Shawns Cracker Barrel Style Chicken And Dumplings Recipes

Steps:

• Place chicken and 1 pinch salt in a large pot; cover with water. Bring to a boil, skimming any scum off the surface with a slotted spoon. Add lemon, celery, onion, and carrots. Simmer broth over medium heat until chicken starts to fall off the bone, about 1 hour.
• Discard lemon. Remove chicken from the pot; let cool.
• Place flour, salt, and pepper in a large bowl. Make a well in the center. Ladle in 2 to 3 scoops of hot broth. Mix in flour with a spoon until dough comes together into a ball.
• Turn dough out onto a floured surface. Knead carefully until smooth. Roll out into a large rectangle; cut into small rectangular dumplings.
• Drop dumplings one at a time into the simmering broth. Cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 30 minutes.
• Bone chicken and chop into pieces. Add to the pot; cook until heated through, about 5 minutes.

Steps:

• Boil 3 quarts water in a large pot.
• Add chicken, 1 t salt, onion, celery, garlic, bay leaf and parsley and simmer for 2 hours.
• The liquid will reduce by 1/3.
• When chicken is cooked, remove it and set aside.
• Strain stock and throw away everything but the stock.
• Put 6 cups of the stock back into the pot. (Leftover stock can be frozen.)
• Add the pepper, 1/2 t salt and lemon juice and reheat while you mix dumplings.
• For dumplings, mix flour, baking powder, 1-1/4 t salt and milk in a medium bowl.
• Stir until smooth, then let dough rest for 5-10 minutes.
• Roll dough onto a floured surface to about 1/2 inch thickness. (Handle the dough as little as possible for good dumplings).
• Cut the dough into 1/2 inch squares (I use a pizza cutter) and drop each square into the simmering stock.
• Use all of the dough.
• The dumplings will first swell and then slowly shrink as they partially dissolve to thicken the stock into a white gravy.
• Simmer for 20 to 30 minutes until thick.
• Stir often.
• While the stock is thickening, the chicken will have cooled.
• Tear all the meat from the bones and remove the skin.
• Cut chicken into bite sized pieces and drop them into the pot.
• Cook for another 5 to 10 minutes, but stir carefully so you don't break the chicken up.
• When the gravy has reached the desired consistency, ladle four portions onto plates and serve hot.
• (Very good over mashed potatoes.).