Chicken casserole with herby dumplings

• skinless chicken↗12 12

  pieces - a mixture of thighs and drumsticks on the bone, and halved chicken breasts

• plain flour↗3 tbsp 3 tbsp
• sunflower oil↗2 tbsp 2 tbsp
• onions↗2 2

  sliced

• carrots↗2 2

  diced

• bacon lardons↗200g 200g

  smoked or unsmoked, or streaky rashers, snipped

• bay leaves↗3 3
• sprigs thyme↗3 3
• red wine↗250ml 250ml
• tomato paste↗3 tbsp 3 tbsp
• chicken stock cube↗1 1
• cold butter↗140g 140g

  diced

• self-raising flour↗250g 250g
• chopped mixed herb2 tbsp 2 tbsp

  - try parsley, thyme and sage or chives

Step-by-step instructions

1. 1

   Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Toss the chicken pieces with the flour and some salt and pepper, to coat them – it’s easy to do this in a plastic food bag.

2. 2

   Heat the oil in a casserole with a lid. Brown the chicken pieces well on all sides – you’ll need to do this in batches. Remove all the pieces to a plate, and tip the onions, carrot, lardons, bay and thyme into the pan. Cook gently for 10 mins until the onion is softened.

3. 3

   Return the chicken pieces, with any juices that have collected on the plate. Then pour in the red wine, 250ml water and tomato paste and crumble in the stock cube. Add a splash more of water if you need, until the chicken is almost covered. Bring to the boil, then cover with a lid and bake in the oven for 20 mins. Remove the lid and bake for another 10 mins while you make the dumplings.

4. 4

   Rub the butter into the flour with your fingertips until it feels like fine breadcrumbs. Stir in the herbs with ½ tsp salt and some pepper. Drizzle over 150ml water, and stir in quickly with a cutlery knife to form a light dough. Use floured hands to shape into ping pong sized balls.

5. 5

   Place the dumplings on top of the stew and bake for 20 mins more until the dumplings are cooked through.