Creole Chicken Stew with Mustard Dumplings

Creole Chicken Stew with Mustard Dumplings

• 40g butter
• 20g plain flour
• 3 onions, roughly chopped
• 1 large green pepper, deseeded and chopped
• 3 celery stalks, chopped
• 4 tomatoes, deseeded and roughly chopped
• 1 litre chicken stock
• 1 tsp hot smoked paprika
• ½ tsp mustard powder
• ½ tsp cayenne pepper
• ¼ tsp ground white pepper
• Sea salt
• 1kg roasted chicken meat, skinned and cut into 3cm-wide strips
• Handful of fresh parsley, roughly chopped
• 50g pork scratchings, crushed for the mustard dumplings
• 150g plain flour
• ½ tsp baking powder
• 1 tbsp mustard powder
• ½ tsp cayenne pepper
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 60g butter, melted
• 3-4 tbsp milk
• Handful of fresh parsley, roughly chopped

In a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan, make the red-brown roux. Melt the butter, then add the flour, a third at a time, whisking until smooth before adding more. Cook over a medium-low heat, stirring often, for 10-20 minutes, until beginning to colour.

Add the onions, pepper, celery and tomatoes and cook for 10 minutes, until soft, stirring often to ensure the roux doesn't burn.

Bring the stock to the boil in a separate pan, then add to the roux and vegetables in batches, stirring as you go. Add the paprika, mustard, cayenne, white pepper and a big pinch of salt and simmer gently for 25 minutes. Add the chicken meat and simmer for five minutes.

Meanwhile, to make the dumplings, mix the flour, baking powder, mustard, cayenne and a big pinch of salt in a bowl. In another bowl, combine the eggs, butter and three tablespoons of milk. Pour the wet ingredients onto the dry to make a soft, spongy dough, adding a little more milk if necessary, then add the parsley and stir to mix evenly.

Dust your hands with flour and form the dough into small dumplings, dropping them directly onto the stew. Cover tightly with a lid and simmer for 10 minutes.

Serve hot, with parsley and pork scratchings sprinkled over the top.

Recipe taken from Tom Parker Bowles cookery book “Lets Eat Meat”