I started with about 4.5 lbs. of chicken thighs. They were on sale. You can really use any chicken parts you want, or a whole chicken if the spirit moves you, but if you're like me, you buy what's on sale or, better, what's in the "sell it now or it'll give you food poisoning" section of the deli. That's where I get all my veal and stuff too. LOVE.
My mom told me to make sure you have a whole lot of broth, so I did about 12 cups of chicken broth, which was basically all my largest pot could hold once I also put the chicken in. One day I'll have a proper stock pot, but for the time being, it's casseroles all the way. So, 12 cups of chicken broth, salt and pepper, and chicken. I took the skin off the chicken, because it's gross. Well, I mean, not in certain contexts when you can make it all crispy and golden, but in this case it is.
Then you cut up the chicken and throw away the bones. I hate bones and stuff in my dumplings, so this is a crucial step. I imagine you would also hate bones in your dumplings. At this point, you can set the chicken aside or whatever.
Then you take some of the broth (I did about 2 cups) and combine it with flour (I did about 6 cups of whole wheat flour) and 2 tablespoons of shortening (don't screw around with oil; go get some Crisco). Make a dough ball that isn't sticky.
Then roll out your dough into a rectangular-ish shape. I'm still pretty terrible at actually getting anything into a rectangle, though I think I'm going to continue to make croissaints until I perfect that skill. You want to make it pretty thin, since you don't want gross dough-balls instead of dumplings. Then cut into sort of a New York-grid shape, like so.
You'll then want to put your dumplings on a cookie sheet or some wax paper. Mom said to put them in the freezer for a while you continue cutting. This is good if you're having problems with sticky dough, but if you're not (I didn't), then you don't really have to. This is lucky for me, because we have the world's tiniest freezer.
The biggest thing about this dish, though, is that you can understand why it's a working-class Southern dish. It's ridiculously cheap to make, and you can readily get everything that's in it. If you need to feed a lot of people (I fed 7, plus however many want to partake tomorrow), and I think I spent about $10. It would be even cheaper if I engaged in the nonsense of urban chickens, but I'm not that much of a foodie.
All in all, this is a happy dish for a happy weekend. I feel like I've been bitching and moaning a lot lately, and I'm not gonna lie--I'm really tired and sort of mentally and emotionally drained. But life is really excellent right now, and I'm excited and optimistic about everything that's going on. More later. For now, a bitch needs to sleep.
4 comments:
This reminds me of my one and only attempt to make my grandma's chicken and dumplings - only that you were highly successful and I just sucked. My grandma also made drop dumplings, so it's a bit different. But, here's the story in short. I wanted to surprise my mom with an awesome dish, so I worked away for a while (it seemed like an eternity). But we all know that you need a very big pot for chicken and dumplings. So, I grabbed the biggest pot we had, but little did I know it was a pressure cooker. So, about 15 minutes before my mom was to get home, I put the lid on the "pot" and began to wash the dishes. A few minutes later, the whole damn thing exploded, leaving splatterings of chicken and dumplings ALL over the kitchen and dining room. Now, my mom is a super clean freak and I knew she would have an aneurysm if she came home to chicken and dumplings all over the house - so I busted ass and somehow, I still don't know how, got most of it cleaned up before my mom got home. It must have been the adrenaline. And, the crappiest thing is that there wasn't really enough left in the "pot" to enjoy. So, I've never made chicken and dumplings again. But your recipe looks delicious!
oh, that's awful!!! i'm so sorry that was your cnd experience. :( damn pressure cookers. it's a funny story, though.
Sarah, I have been wanting to ask you this not to be an asshole, but because I'm really curious about your answer, because you're such a thoughtful and conscientious person. Eating meat - especially factory farmed meat - is shitty for animals and shitty for the environment. I love your food posts but I'm always sort of surprised to see you cook meat, because it seems that so many people who think critically about food end up going veg, or at least reducing their animal intake and/or eating local/sustainable animal products (which, as you point out, are expensive as hell). What are your thoughts on this? Especially veal?
it's a relevant question. i suppose it's just something i don't really think about all that much. i was a vegetarian for several years when i was younger (mostly just to be difficult for my parents), and since i started eating meat again i just haven't ever felt the need to give it up.
that said, i don't eat meat every day, and as often as possible buy what i cook from local producers. i can't do that as often as i'd like, being a poor grad student and all, but i make a pretty conscious effort to do so. in fact, i'd prefer to buy all my food from a co-op or farmer's market, but it really is cost-prohibitive. often, my desire to eat actual food rather than something out of a box trumps my ethical concerns about animals or the environment or even capitalism. it's a hegemonic system. we can all try to buck it as much as possible, but ultimately the system wins. i don't have the time or ability (space-wise) to grow my own food, raise my own meat, or even to just eat local. so instead of constantly thinking and worrying about it, i've just resolved myself that this is a temporary situation, and when i get a real job i'll be able to make more ethical choices. it sucks that it has to be that way, but i don't know any other way to get around it, and i really have no desire to be a vegetarian.
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