If you are looking for an ordinary chicken and dumplings recipe with those drop biscuit globs of biscuit dough floating in the broth, these are not for you. These old-fashioned dumplings are more like rustic egg noodles than the more common presentation of soft drop-biscuit dumplings. Like most recipes from grandmas, getting the grandmas to write the recipe down is nearly impossible, so it is best to observe and write it down for them and just eyeball the amounts as best you can.
This is an old recipe handed down for several generations and is the kind typically served by grandmothers of different ethnicities, Germans, French or Scots-Irish in the Southern Illinois and Southeast Missouri region of the United States. In the rest of the country, dumplings are usually biscuit dough, but not here; I am not sure why. In some ways these remind me of the German side dish spaetzle.
Our elders used very old, fat hens and of course they are the best choice, but these days almost impossible to find if you aren’t raising chickens yourself. Older birds are more flavorful and have a better texture in a stew than today’s chickens, but for our purposes, a roasting chicken or capon is probably the best option available, and if you must, just use what you have, I have even known a person who used squirrels.
My grandmother cooked the chicken with celery and carrots but did not serve them in the dish. She did not roll her dough out very thin as some do, due to a preference for a more hearty, satisfying dish. Other people do serve the vegetables with the dumplings, and some folks try to roll their dough as thin as lasagna noodles, but we always preferred a thick egg dumpling, especially in winter.
If you want to serve the carrots and celery with the dumplings, it might be best to add them after the chicken has stewed for a while so they won’t turn to mush as they cook. If you prefer thin, delicate noodles, then by all means, roll them out thin enough to see through.
My mother added quite a lot of parsley in hers, and I take it further, adding it by the cupful until the liquid has a distinct pale green color, if I have a lot handy. There are no rules, so don’t be anxious. You can adjust the recipe every time you try it until it is perfect for your household.
Here is the basic recipe :
1 big fat hen; keep the neck but remove any gizzards or liver if these were included and save for something else because the liver will make the broth cloudy.
2 large carrots, peeled
3 ribs of celery
1 large onion, cut into chunks
1/2 to 1 cup chopped fresh parsley or 1 Tablespoon dried
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp thyme
Bay leaf
Add all ingredients to a pot and then add enough to cover. If desired, you can add the fresh parsley at the end to preserve its green color and please the eye. Cook on medium heat until the chicken is done and the meat pulls easily away from the bones. At that point remove and debone the chicken, discarding the skin and bones and setting aside the meat as you work.
Strain the hot broth through a colander into a large pan. If desired, cut the carrots and celery into bite-sized portions and save to add at the end right before serving. Skim off the fat or chill until the fat hardens and reserve.
For the dumplings:
4 Cups flour (all purpose for firm dumplings or self rising for softer ones)
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
2 Tablespoons of chicken juice or fat
6 large eggs, beaten
On your counter or in a large mixing bowl mix the dry ingredients then make a hollow in them and add the beaten eggs and chicken fat and combine. Knead until the mixture is quite stiff and no longer sticky. Then roll it out to about 1/8 to 1/4 inch thick. Roll it into a log and cut into 3/4 to 1 inch wide coils.
Taste the chicken broth and add salt if needed. Bring the chicken broth to a rolling boil. You may need to add more water to properly boil the dumplings.
Begin adding the noodles, uncoiling and giving them a good stretch and a twist as you do. It is OK if there is a lot of flour on them, it will help thicken the stock. Cook until they float, but be sure not to overcook them. Add the cooked reserved carrot and celery, and the fresh parsely here if desired, and serve.
My mom would make more dumplings if she needed to serve more people, and stretch the chicken out that way, but this recipe will feed about 8 people.