Chicken and Dumplings

Chicken and Dumplings

We would get rid of an old rooster or hen with this recipe. Just put the chicken in a coop for a few days to fatten up for this old-time favorite.

• 1 chicken (about 5 lbs)
• 1 stick butter, cut into pieces
• 3 packets (1.5 oz each) instant chicken broth and soup mix, or 1 can (10 ½ oz) chicken broth
• ½ cup warm stock
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 bay leaf

Rinse the chicken under cold running water. Put it into a large pot with the bay leaf and cover with water. Let cook over medium heat until tender, about 40 minutes. Remove the chicken and set it aside. When it cools, remove the meat from the bones and chop. Skim the fat off the chicken stock, strain the stock, and return it to the pot. Add water to make 10 cups. Add the instant soup mix or broth and the butter to the stock and heat until the butter melts. Stir to mix. Take ½ cup of the stock from the pot and add 2 ice cubes to it so that it cools. Put the flour in a bowl and pour in the ½ cup cooled stock. Mix well with a fork or your fingertips to form a dough. Add a little more flour if the dough is too wet. Roll out the dough, on a floured board, thinner than pie crust (not more than 1/8 inch thick). Cut into strips and then into 1-inch pieces. Let the stock come to a boil, and then drop in pieces of dough. The dumplings will stir themselves in the boiling liquid. When you’ve finished putting the dumplings in the liquid, shake the pot. Stir the chopped chicken into the pot, reducing the heat to low. Let cook slowly for 10 minutes. 

Serves 8 to 10.