I love making stews in the fall and winter months or even on a cool spring day when comfort food is what we really crave. This one is a winner! I highly recommend using fresh rosemary for both the stew and dumplings. Either broccolini, lightly steamed, buttered cabbage, kale or Brussels sprouts, or in for the spring, asparagus, would all make excellent sides.
Makes 4 – 6 Servings
For The Stew:
1 tsp. salt
½ tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1 whole chicken (3 lbs.) cut into 8 pieces
1 Tbsp. canola oil or more
1 tsp. EVOO or more (or you can use a combination of EVOO & butter)
4 large carrots, peeled, cut into 1” thick pieces
2 stalks celery, cut into ½” pieces
1 onion, thinly sliced
1 tsp. dried rosemary, crumbled or 1 Tbsp. fresh rosemary, chopped
1 bay leaf
1 ½ cups chicken stock(see below) or tinned low-salt chicken broth
½ cup dry white wine
1 cup small frozen peas
¼ cup whipping cream
1 ½ tsp. potato starch to thicken if required
Garnish: 2 Tbsp. chopped Italian (flat-leaf) parsley
For the Rosemary Dumplings:
1 cup unbleached flour
2 tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. dried rosemary, crumbled, or 1 ½ tsp. fresh rosemary, chopped
½ tsp. salt
½ cup milk
1 egg, lightly beaten
Make The Stew:
Heat a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add the oil and EVOO, heat until hot but not smoking. Pat the chicken pieces dry, season with salt and pepper. Place the chicken in the pan, skin side down leaving space between each piece so they will brown properly, saute until golden brown, turn & brown the other side, adding more oil if needed. You may need to do the browning in 2 stages. As the chicken pieces are browned, remove them to a large plate.
Preheat the oven to 325 F.
Turn the heat down to medium-low, add the onions, sauté for a couple of minutes, then add the carrots and celery, continuing to sauté for 3 or 4 minutes. Add the bay leaf, rosemary, wine and chicken stock. Stir to combine. Return the thighs and drumsticks to the pan; cover with a lid and place in the preheated oven for 10 – 15 minutes depending on the size of the chicken pieces. Add the breast pieces, skin down and wings, cover and continue to bake for 15 – 20 minutes, or until juices run clear; turning the chicken pieces over after 10 minutes. Remove the chicken to a large plate and keep warm in a warming oven or turn the oven down to 180 F. Place the pan containing the sauce and veggies over medium heat on top of the stove; add the cream, bring to a boil, turn the heat down to medium-low.
Meanwhile as the stew is baking, in a medium bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, rosemary and salt. Set aside until needed.
In a measuring cup combine the milk and egg. Stir it into the flour mixture, stir with a fork to make a lumpy dough (do not over-mix, lumps are fine). Drop dumpling mixture, in approximately 8-10 spoonful’s, equally spaced on top of the sauce. Cover pan and cook over medium heat for 12 – 15 minutes or until a tester inserted into the centre of a dumpling comes out clean. When they are done remove to a large plate, keep warm.
Now add the peas to the sauce; cover and cook for 2 or 3 minutes. Remove the lid; if the sauce needs a bit of thickening, combine the potato starch with 1 Tbsp. white wine and stir into the sauce.
Remove the chicken from the warming oven, place on a large serving platter or shallow serving bowl, top with the vegetables and sauce and then the dumplings. The chicken can be plated up on individual plates if you prefer. Top with chopped parsley, serve.
Helpful link to Making Stock.
