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Chicken and Dumplings
1 whole chicken, approximately 3 pounds
4 cups water
2 cups chicken broth
1 carrot, chopped
1 medium onion, quartered
1 stalk celery, chopped
1 teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper
2 cups all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons shortening
1 cup buttermilk
In a Dutch oven or large pot, add the chicken, water, broth, carrot, onion, celery, and salt. Bring it to a boil, cover the pot, and lower the heat. Simmer for 60 to 70 minutes. Remove the chicken from the liquid and allow it to cool. Discard the carrots, onion, and celery pieces, but reserve the broth.
Remove the meat from the chicken, discarding the skin, bones, and cartilage. Tear the meat into bite-sized pieces and set aside.
Make the dumplings while the chicken is cooking by combining the flour, baking soda, and half teaspoon of salt. Cut in the shortening with a pastry blender until the mixture has a coarse meal consistency. Add the buttermilk. Put the dough on a floured surface and knead four to five times (no more!)
Pat the dough to a ¼ inch thickness and add the dough to the broth in 1 ½-inch pieces. If you’d prefer rolled dumplings, roll the dough to a ¼-inch thickness and cut into 2x2-inch strips.
Cook the dumplings for 10 minutes, making sure they don’t stick together. The flour will thicken the broth. Return the chicken pieces back to the broth and simmer until heated through. Add black pepper and serve.
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