Trip #1 – Delaware (Northeast) Chicken and Slippery Dumplings, Strawberry and Mixed Greens Salad

Delaware’s Date of Statehood – December 7, 1787

Welcome to the first installment of Edible US! We will be going in the order of statehood and, since Delaware was the first state in these United States, we’ll start here! Chicken and dumplings is a dish that I grew up eating. It’s my Dad’s favorite meal and something that just tastes like a big warm hug. My grandmother’s version is pretty similar to the Delaware version, except there is milk in the gravy and the dumplings are thicker and a bit puffy. Delaware chicken and dumplings feels a bit less heavy but still deeply satisfying and the perfect meal when it is cold and rainy outside.

Tips and Tricks

1. Use lots of flour when making the dumplings. The dough is sticky, so you will need to add lots of flour on top of and underneath the dough when rolling out and cutting the dumplings. Don’t shake off the excess flour either, as it will help to thicken the gravy.
2. When rolling out the dough, keep rolling it until it is very thin. The old wisdom is to “roll it out until it is so thin you can read a newspaper through it.” Remember that the dumplings will absorb lots of liquid and will become thicker in the pot.
3. Don’t skim any oil from the top of the broth. This helps to create a thicker gravy once the dumplings are added.
4. Make the dressing at least 30 minutes before serving. The vinegar will help mellow the harshness of the raw garlic into something delicious!

Chicken and Slippery Dumplings

Serves 4

Chicken and Gravy

• 2 lbs. Skinless Chicken Thighs (Bone-In)
• 8 Cups Chicken Broth
• 3/4 tsp Salt
• 1 Large White Onion, peeled and diced
• 2 Stalks Celery, root and leaves removed and diced

Dumplings

• 1 Cup All-Purpose Flour
• 1/4 tsp Salt
• 1/2 Cup Chicken Broth, from above and cooled

Step 1: Place the chicken thighs in a large pot. Pour all of the chicken broth over the chicken and then add the diced onion, diced celery, and 3/4 tsp salt.

Step 2: Place the pot on the stove over high heat and bring the liquid to a boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook for 1 hour.

Step 3: After the hour, remove the chicken from the pot and set aside to cool. Remove the chicken broth from the heat and also allow to cool. Once the chicken thighs are cool enough to handle, remove the meat from the bones and shred. Place the meat into a separate bowl and set aside in the refrigerator. Discard the bones.

Step 4: Once the broth has cooled to lukewarm, you can make the dumplings. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour and salt. Take 1/2 cup of the lukewarm broth and add it to the flour. Mix with a fork until the dough starts to come together and forms a ball. The dough will be very sticky.

Step 5: Place the pot of remaining chicken broth back on the stove over medium heat and bring the liquid to a low boil.

Step 6: Place a very generous amount of flour on a large, flat surface. Place the dumpling dough in the center of the well-floured surfaced and add more flour over the top of the dough. Flour your hands and a rolling pin. Roll out the dough until it is very thin, adding more flour underneath and on top of the dough as you roll it out.

Step 7: Once rolled out, cut the dough into strips 3 inches wide and 1 1/2 – 2 inches tall. Take 4-5 dumplings at a time (do not shake off the excess flour) and drop them, 1 at a time, into the simmering broth. Make sure you keep them flat as they hit the liquid. Use a wooden spoon to submerge the dumplings in the broth and give the pot a gentle stir to keep the dumplings from sticking together and sinking to the bottom. Continue this until all of the dumplings have been added to the pot.

Step 8: Add the shredded chicken to the pot, reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook for 10 minutes, stirring every few minutes to make sure the dumplings don’t stick to the bottom.

Step 9: After 10 minutes, uncover the pot and cook for an additional 10 minutes, gently stirring every few minutes. The dumplings should absorb most of the liquid until what remains in the pot has the consistency of gravy, not soup.

Step 10: Serve hot.

Strawberry and Mixed Greens Salad

Serves 4

Salad

• 1 Bag Spring Mix Salad Greens
• 1/2 Cup Shredded Mozzarella Cheese
• 6 Large Strawberries, caps removed and sliced

Dressing

• 1/4 Cup Vegetable Oil
• 3 Tbs Sugar
• 1/4 Apple Cider Vinegar
• 1 Clove of Garlic, peeled and finely minced
• 1/8 tsp Salt
• 1/8 tsp Paprika
• 1/8 tsp Ground White Pepper

Step 1: In a small bowl, whisk together the vegetable oil, sugar, vinegar, garlic, salt, paprika, and white pepper until the sugar is dissolved. Set the dressing aside for 30 minutes to let the flavors combine.

Step 2: In a large bowl, gently toss together the salad greens, mozzarella cheese, and sliced strawberries.

Step 3: Whisk the salad dressing again before pouring it over the salad. Gently toss to coat.

Step 4: Serve cold.

Fun Facts about Delaware: 1. Delaware is the lowest state, with an average altitude of 60 ft. above sea level. It is ninety-five miles long and between nine and thirty-five miles wide. Its highest point, near the Pennsylvania line, is 442 ft. above sea level. 2. Delaware is the second smallest state and has the fewest counties of any state (3). 3. Delaware’s official state name is “The First State” because it was the first of the thirteen original colonies to ratify the Constitution in 1787, thus becoming the first state in the nation. Because of this, Delaware is given the first position in congressional votes and national events, such as Presidential Inaugurations. 4. In 1638, near the mouth of the Delaware River, Swedish and Finnish people built the first log cabin in North America. 5. Delaware Bay is home to the largest population of horseshoe crabs in the world. It is estimated that they (horseshoe crabs) predate the dinosaurs by more than 200 million years.