Chicken Fricassee with Dumplings
A feathery green herb, dill is used frequently in Eastern European and Russian cooking, where it adds its distinctive aroma to all kinds of dishes, from chicken soup and marinated herring to dill pickles (flavored with dill seeds) and beet borscht. Here dills refreshing flavor adds an extra dimension to fluffy dumplings in a dill-scented chicken stew. Note: I made sourdough biscuits instead of dumplings.
A feathery green herb, dill is used frequently in Eastern European and Russian cooking, where it adds its distinctive aroma to all kinds of dishes, from chicken soup and marinated herring to dill pickles (flavored with dill seeds) and beet borscht. Here dills refreshing flavor adds an extra dimension to fluffy dumplings in a dill-scented chicken stew. Note: I made sourdough biscuits instead of dumplings.
- salt to taste
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 3 cups chicken stock
- freshly ground pepper
- 2 tsp. baking powder
- 1 cup apple juice
- 6 carrots peeled and sliced
- 3 lbs chicken thighs legs and breasts
- 4 tbs. olive oil
- 4 leeks, white and light green portions cleaned and thinly sliced
- 2 yellow onions thinly sliced
- 4 celery stalks sliced
- 2 red apples peeled, cored and sliced
- 3 tbs fresh dill finely chopped
- 1/3 cup cornmeal
- 3 tbs vegetable shortening chilled
- 1/2 milk (up to 1 cup as needed)
- Carbohydrate 87.951261878125 g
- Cholesterol 299.0285 mg
- Fat 93.544629070625 g
- Fiber 9.14419149179834 g
- Protein 74.449413796875 g
- Saturated Fat 23.792865607375 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (1195g)
- Sodium 1520.3087736875 mg
- Sugar 78.8070703863267 g
- Trans Fat 5.13233268468751 g
- Calories 1495 calories
Step-by-step
- Pat the chicken dry with paper towels. Place 1/4 cup of the flour in a large bowl or sealable plastic bag and season with salt and pepper. Add the chicken in batches and stir or shake to coat thoroughly with the seasoned flour.
- In a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat, warm 3 Tbs. of the olive oil. Working in batches to avoid crowding, add the chicken and brown on all sides, 4 to 5 minutes per batch. Transfer to a bowl and set aside.
- Reduce the heat to medium and warm the remaining 1 Tbs. oil in the pot. Add the leeks and onions and saute until lightly browned, 5 to 7 minutes. Add the carrots, celery and apples and saute until slightly softened, 3 to 5 minutes more. Add 2 Tbs. of the dill, the stock and apple juice and bring to a simmer. Return the chicken and any accumulated juices to the pot, cover and cook until the chicken is cooked through and the juices run clear when a thigh is pierced with a knife, about 15 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
- Meanwhile, make the dumplings: In a bowl, stir together the remaining 1 1/4 cups flour, the cornmeal, baking powder, the 1/2 tsp. salt and the remaining 1 Tbs. dill. Using a pastry blender or 2 knives, cut in the shortening. Add the milk, stirring with a fork until the dough holds together in a rough mass.
- Using an ice cream scoop, scoop up spoonfuls of the dumpling batter and arrange over the chicken in the simmering broth (you should have 6 to 8 dumplings). Cover and cook, spooning some of the broth over the dumplings once or twice, until a skewer inserted into a dumpling comes out clean, 15 to 18 minutes.
- Ladle the stew into warmed bowls, dividing the chicken and dumplings among them. Serve immediately
Dropping raw dumpling batter directly into a tepid broth is the single fastest way to dissolve your dough into a gummy, disintegrated paste instead of achieving light, porous pillows that absorb savory liquids. When you submerge flour-and-cornmeal mixtures into a liquid that lacks a rolling bubble, the steam cannot expand the baking powder pockets rapidly enough before the surrounding moisture breaches the dough matrix. Maintain a steady simmer so that thermal energy generates microscopic steam cells within the shortening-cut flour, creating a tender crumb that holds its structural integrity under a ladle.
Crowding the Dutch oven during the initial searing phase traps residual moisture against the poultry skin, preventing the Maillard reaction from developing deep savory compounds and leaving you with grey, rubbery meat instead of golden-brown surfaces. Work in batches across four to five minutes per side to dehydrate the exterior proteins fully before introducing aromatics like leeks and thinly sliced yellow onions. Managing this sequencing ensures the pan stays hot enough to render fat efficiently without scorching the fond at the bottom of the vessel.
Fresh dill degrades rapidly under prolonged heat, losing its bright volatile oils if added entirely at the beginning of a long braise. Incorporating two tablespoons early infuses the broth with herbaceous depth, while reserving the final tablespoon for the dumpling dough preserves a vibrant, pungent bite that contrasts against rich chicken stock and sweet apple juice.
