Chef John's Chicken and Dumplings

Ingredients

1 (3 to 3 1/2 pound) whole chicken

2 ½ quarts cold water

1 large carrot, cubed

1 stalk celery, chopped

1onion, chopped

3 sprigs fresh thyme

1bay leaf

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour, or as needed

salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

½ teaspoon cayenne pepper, or more to taste

½ cup creme fraiche

½ cup milk

2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme leaves

2eggs

2 cups self-rising flour

4 sprigs thyme, for garnish

Directions

Step 1

Place chicken in a Dutch oven. Add water, carrot, celery, onion, 3 sprigs of thyme, and bay leaf. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer for 1 hour. Remove chicken from dutch oven and transfer to a bowl; set aside to cool.

Step 2

Increase heat and bring the stock to a simmer. Skim off any chicken fat that appears on top of the stock and reserve in a bowl. Combine 2 to 3 tablespoons of the reserved fat with flour in a small bowl; stir to make a paste, adding more flour if needed. Add the chicken fat and flour mixture to the stock. Reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes.

Step 3

Remove chicken meat from the carcass and add to the stock. Season with salt, black pepper, and cayenne pepper to taste. Continue simmering for 10 to 15 minutes.

Step 4

Whisk creme fraiche, milk, 2 teaspoons of thyme leaves, and eggs together in a large bowl. Stir in self-rising flour until almost entirely incorporated; do not overmix.

Step 5

Scoop large dollops of dumpling mixture on top of the chicken stock. Increase heat slightly to medium-high. Cover and simmer until dumplings appear light and fluffy, and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 10 to 15 minutes. Serve garnish with thyme sprigs.

Chef's Note:

If you don’t have self-rising flour (which does work better here) you can use 2 cups all-purpose flour sifted with 3 teaspoons baking powder and 1 teaspoon fine table salt.

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