Chicken and Dumplings

When I was deciding what to make for Father’s Day (I decided because The Mr. wouldn’t say what he wanted…lame!) so I thought to myself what is his favorite meal? Where does he like to go out to eat? When we go out to eat what does he get?
So I thought of The Cheesecake Factory
The Mr. loves their Chicken and Biscuits
and their Red Velvet Cheesecake
Who doesn’t?
So I made Chicken and Dumplings – not quite biscuits, but still as good!
And I haven’t made a cheesecake before so I decided to start with an easy one-no layers.
Ingredients
5 c. chicken stock
1-1/2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken thighs
1 tbsp olive oil
1 large onion, diced
1 large carrot, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
10 oz. mushrooms, rough chopped
4 tbsp. + 3 tbsp. unsalted butter
1/4 + 1 c. AP flour
2 bay leaves
1/4 c. heavy cream
3/4 c. frozen peas
1 c. milk, whole or 2% (I used 2%)
1 tbsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
2 tbsp. minced chives
Directions
Poach the Chicken: 
Heat the stock to a simmer, in a medium saucepan
Add chicken thighs
Poach until barely cooked through, about 10 minutes
Roughly chop or shred the chicken, set aside
Reserve the stock
Make the Stew:
Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat
Add the onion, carrot, celery, garlic and mushrooms and cook until veggies are just tarting to tenderize, 7-10 minutes.
Push the veggies to the edge of the pan
Add 4 tablespoons of butter to the middle
When it’s fully melted, whisk in 1/4 cup of flour to make a roux (a thickening agent)
Cook the flour and butter for a few minutes to get the raw flour taste out
Pour in the reserved stock and stir well to combine
Add the bay leaves and cream
Let the mixture come to a simmer and thicken
Stir in the chicken chunks
Make the Dumpling Batter
Heat the milk with 3 tablespoons of butter, until the butter is just barely melted
Whisk 1 cup of flour together with the baking powder, salt and chives
Stir in the warm milk with a wooden spoon and mix until combined and smooth
Finish the Dish: 
Add the frozen peas to the stew and bring it back to a simmer
Drop the dumplings in by rounded tablespoon, leaving space between each dumpling
Cover the pot and let simmer for 15-18 minutes, until the dumplings are cooked through
Take the bay leaves out and serve immediately
So try these puppies out!
I know there’s a lot of ingredients in here but it’s not as daunting of a recipe as it looks.
It’s quite simple, and actually kind of fun to make!!

When you’re done with that
Make
This!

Lots of Oreos mixed with creamy cream cheese = PeRfeCtIoN!!!

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4 Comments

  1. June 23, 2012 / 5:27 pm

    wow, this dish looks really elaborate and intense. you’re a good lady for makin that for your man!

  2. June 23, 2012 / 4:07 am

    Thank you! It took me forever…it’s surprising how time consuming blog design takes! Well for me anyway 🙂 haha.

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