Chicken and Dumplings

Stew

• 30 g Unsalted butter
• 1 medium Yellow onion
• 2 medium Carrot
• 2 pieces Celery
• 20 g Plain flour
• 1.2 liters Chicken stock
• 700 g Chicken thighs, boneless, skinless
• ½ tsp Black pepper

Dumplings

• 180 g Plain flour
• 2 tsp Baking powder
• 40 g Unsalted butter, cold
• 150 ml Whole milk
• 10 g Fresh parsley
• ¼ tsp Black pepper

1. Melt the butter in a large pot over a medium heat. Add the onion, carrots and celery, then cook for 8 to 10 minutes, stirring, until softened but not browned.
2. Stir in the flour and cook for 1 minute. Gradually whisk in the stock until smooth, then add the chicken and the black pepper.
3. Bring to a gentle simmer, then reduce the heat to low and cook for 35 to 40 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the chicken is tender and the broth has thickened slightly. If it starts to catch, add a splash more stock and lower the heat.
4. While the stew simmers, make the dumpling dough: mix the flour and baking powder in a bowl. Rub in the cold butter with your fingertips until it looks like fine crumbs, then stir in most of the milk to make a soft, spoonable dough; add the remaining milk if needed.
5. Stir most of the parsley and the black pepper into the dumpling dough, reserving a little parsley for serving. Taste the stew and adjust seasoning with more black pepper if you like.
6. With the stew at a steady, gentle simmer, drop heaped spoonfuls of dumpling dough on top, spacing them slightly apart. Cover with a tight-fitting lid and steam for 15 minutes without lifting the lid, until the dumplings are puffed and feel set to the touch.
7. Turn off the heat and rest, covered, for 3 to 5 minutes to finish cooking through. Ladle into bowls and scatter over the reserved parsley.

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