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Chicken and Dumplings

Nico Schinco

BY The Editors

PUBLISHED October 15, 2025

The rooster that wouldn’t shut up or the hen past her laying days often turned into this Sunday dinner treat. It demanded low and slow cooking to tenderize a chicken that had strong, developed muscles and tough meat. Some may not think the carrots necessary or find them anathema, but some of us can’t live without them in this dish. Soft pillowy dumplings and a stew cooked all day really hits the spot. My grandmother’s secret was an onion studded with cloves that cooked with the chicken and was removed after the chicken was finished cooking. The meal had to be good and fit for a preacher—who was usually the guest for this meal. – Michael Twitty

 

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Chicken and Dumplings

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Makes 6 servings 1x

Time an hour and 30 minutes

Units Scale

Ingredients

For the base:

  • 1 whole chicken (4 lb/1.8 kg)
  • 8 cups (1.9 liters) chicken stock
  • 1 large onion, chopped
  • 3 carrots, peeled and sliced
  • 3 celery stalks, roughly chopped
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1 teaspoon dried thyme
  • Fine salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 1/2 cup (4 fl oz/120 ml) heavy (whipping) cream

For the dumplings:

  • 2 cups (260 g) all-purpose (plain) flour
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon fine salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda (bicarbonate of soda)
  • 3/4 cup (6 fl oz/180 ml) buttermilk
  • 3 tablespoons (45 g) unsalted butter, melted

Instructions

  1. Prepare the base: Place the whole chicken in a large pot and cover with chicken stock. Add the onion, carrots, celery, bay leaves, thyme, and salt and black pepper to taste. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer until the chicken is cooked through and tender, about 1 hour.
  2. Remove the chicken from the pot and let it cool slightly before shredding the meat, discarding skin and bones. Return the shredded chicken to the pot and stir in the heavy (whipping) cream.
  3. Make the dumplings: In a bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, salt, and baking soda (bicarb). Stir in the buttermilk and melted butter until a dough forms.
  4. Bring the soup to a simmer and drop in spoonfuls of the dough. Cover and cook until the dumplings are cooked through and fluffy, 15-20 minutes.

– Extracted from Recipes from the American South © 2025 by Michael W. Twitty. Photography © 2025 by Nico Schinco. Reproduced by permission of Phaidon. All rights reserved.

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