Slow Cooker Chicken and Buttermilk Dumplings (Freezer Friendly)

Well, thanks to the hurricane, we had several days of cold windy rain. Luckily, these are the kinds of days that slow cooker comfort food is made for!

Notes: For me, slow cooker meals work best when I've done my ingredient prep ahead of time. No one has time to dice vegetables before they go to work. I usually peel and chop everything on a weekend day or a slow week night, stick it in a container in the fridge, and then it's ready for me whatever morning I'm ready for it. In this case, I did my prep on Sunday and made the chicken and dumplings on a Thursday. Worked perfectly!

Figuring out when the dumplings are done took some work. 30 minutes was about how long it took mine, but it will depend on your slow cooker. You mainly just have to look at them and poke them. They will look darker (not golden brown) and they will look dry on top. You'll be able to move them without your fork sinking into them or tearing them. When in doubt, cut one open and look: does it look like a biscuit inside? Then it's done.

WARNING: don't make your dumplings too big. They expand in the chicken mixture. 1/2 teaspoons will look too small, but once they expand, they'll be the right size.

I used my buttermilk biscuit recipe to make the dumplings. It works great, but you will have leftover dough. No worries! Just use the dough to make some drop biscuits. Once you finish making the dumplings, just drop big tablespoons of leftover dough on to a baking sheet. Bake for 15 minutes at 400 and you'll have made-from-scratch buttermilk biscuits. They can bake while the dumplings are finishing.

This recipe freezer friendly. I like to freeze mine in meal-portion sizes using freezable plastic food storage containers. Wait for the chicken and dumplings to cool before you start putting it away.  Pull a container out of the freezer 24 hours before you want to eat it and put it in the fridge. You can heat it in a pot on the stove or in the microwave.

Ingredients:
2 pounds boneless skinless chicken
1 pound carrots, sliced or diced
1 celery bunch, sliced into large bite-sized pieces
1 onion, diced
1 bunch fresh parsley, chopped
32 oz chicken stock
Salt
Pepper
2 cups flour
1 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 tablespoons baking powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 stick cold butter
1 cup buttermilk

Directions for the chicken:

Put the chicken in the bottom of your slow cooker and season with salt and pepper. Put the onion, carrots, celery, and parsley on top. Pour in the chicken stock. Season everything with salt and pepper. Set to low for 8-10 hours.

Before you start the dumplings, take the chicken out and shred it. Return it to the slow cooker and then start the dumplings.

For the dumplings: About 40 minutes before you want to eat, start the dumplings. In a large bowl, mix together flour, salt, baking powder and soda. Cut the cold butter into small cubes and work it into the flour with a pastry blender or your fingers until the butter is the size of large peas. Mix in the butter milk until the dough comes together.

Spoon 1/2 teaspoon balls of dough into the slow cooker on top of the chicken mixture (you'll have dough leftover: see notes). Put the lid on top of the slow cooker and cook for 30 minutes until the dough is cooked.

Serve and enjoy!