Chicken Stew with Bread Dumplings

INGREDIENTS

• 1 kg chicken pieces
• ½ cup plain flour
• 30ml olive oil
• 1 onion, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 2 carrots, chopped
• 2 potatoes, peeled, diced
• 250g field mushrooms, chopped
• ½ bunch thyme,
• 3 bay leaves
• 1L chicken stock

DUMPLINGS

• 250g self-raising flour
• 125g cold, unsalted butter
• 100ml milk
• ¼ bunch rosemary, chopped
• Salt & Pepper

DIRECTIONS

1. Place the removable slow cooking bowl onto the stove top and heat over a medium heat.  Coat chicken pieces with flour. Add the oil to the slow cooker bowl and fry the chicken pieces until golden. Remove and set aside.  Add onions and sauté for 3 minutes, then add the garlic and carrots and cook until golden brown. 
2. Add the potatoes, mushroom, thyme, bay leaf , chicken pieces and stock  into the removable slow cooking bowl and stir to combine.(For slow cookers without a sauté function or stovetop safe slow cooking bowl option, use a frypan, and then add to the slow cooker bowl). Place lid on and allow to cook.
3. Place onto the ‘HIGH’ setting and set to cook for 6 hours, stirring every few hours.
4. Just before the four hour mark, prepare the dumplings. Place flour in a bowl with cold butter and rub together in until it resembles bread crumbs.  Add milk, rosemary, salt and pepper. Combine until a dough has formed.
5. Divide the dough into golf ball size dumplings.
6. Once the chicken has been cooking for 4 hours, add the dumplings and allow to cook for the last couple of hours, adding a little more water for the dumplings to absorb the extra liquid.