Let’s talk about that real comfort food: Cornbread Chicken and Dumplings.
I have been on the verge of almost getting sick for almost a month. And if you’re like me and feeling a bit under the weather or are simply FREEZING cold all the time, then look no further. All you need in your life is a big bowl of this Cornbread Chicken and Dumplings.
What is Chicken and Dumplings
The great folks at Wikipedia tell me that chicken and dumplings is a dish that consists of chicken cooked in water, resulting in chicken broth. And then brought to a boil with drop biscuits/dumplings added and then cooked.
This recipe is pretty Southern but I can think of a few other iterations from other parts of the world.
It’s a super comforting dish. The dumplings are cooked throughout with the broth feeling generous and warming.
How to Make Chicken and Dumplings
This recipe couldn’t be simpler because it relies on a store-bought chicken broth. Of course, if you have some homemade chicken broth in the fridge, by all means use it!
Here’s Are the Steps:
– Sauté the onion, carrot and celery together
– Add the butter and when it’s melted, add the flour.
– The flour will dissolve into the melted butter, creating a bit of a roux. This will help thicken the soup broth
– Next, add the thyme. Thyme is a key ingredient in making any chicken soup absolutely delicious. It’s a MUST!
– After the thyme comes the chicken broth. Again, store-bought or homemade! Whichever one you have–both will work.
– Bring it to a simmer and cook for about 15 minutes, you really want the flavors married.
– While that’s going, mix up the dumpling batter. It’s super simple: buttermilk, a bit of leavening, salt, flour and corn meal. It tastes SO much like cornbread, it’s amazing.
– In the boiling points of the broth, you drop in the batter using a cookie scoop. Dropping it in the boiling point, creates a super fluffy cornbread.
– Cover the pot and that’s it! The dumplings will cook in about 5 minutes.
If you make this, for sure let me know on Instagram!
Cornbread Chicken and Dumplings
Ingredients
Filling:
- 2 chicken bone-in chicken thighs
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- Kosher salt
- Freshly ground pepper
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 ribs celery diced
- 2 small carrots finely chopped
- 3 sprigs thyme leaves removed
- 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
- 10 turns of freshly-cracked pepper
- 4 cups low-sodium chicken stock
Dumplings:
- 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup cornmeal
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup + 1 tablespoon shaken buttermilk
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with foil or parchment. Place the chicken side-by-side and drizzle with about a tablespoon of olive oil. Sprinkle both thighs with a few pinches of salt and pepper. Transfer to the oven to roast for 20 to 25 minutes, until the tops are golden brown and the juices run clear. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool. When they reach closer to room temperature, use two forks to shred the chicken. Discard any scraps and set the shredded chicken aside.
- In a dutch oven or medium pot, set over medium heat, add the butter. When melted, add the celery, carrot and thyme. Cook until slightly softened, about 2 to 3 minutes. Mix in the flour and cook for about 1 minute. Next pour in the chicken stock. Bring the mixture to a simmer and then immediately bring it down to medium low; cook for about 6 to 7 minutes, until slightly thickened.
- While the soup is cooking, let’s make the dumplings! In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cornmeal, baking powder and salt. Pour in the buttermilk and mix until combined.
- Give the soup a taste and adjust the salt to your liking and add a bunch of black pepper. I added about 10 turns. Bring the soup up to a gentle simmer and drop tablespoons or ice cream scoops of dumpling dough right onto the boiling point (this will make super fluffy dumplings) and then repeat with the remaining dumpling dough. Cover and cook for about 5 minutes until the dumplings are fluffy and cooked through. Move a dumpling aside and slide the reserved shredded chicken into the pot. Divide amongst bowls and serve!
Notes
Equipment
Nutrition
Adapted from The Year of Cozy
We loved this! I’ve been making the original version from The Year of Cozy with the chicken bones used for broth for years, but left my book in our vacation apartment! Since I didn’t have cornmeal I used blue masa flour, and these dumplings were amazing! Otherwise, I made the broth as I usually did with the bones. This recipe is always so delicious, my little son always asks for it and calls it chicken with clouds.