Sunday supper: Chicken and Pastry

Chicken and Pastry

Serves 4 to 6.

We first ate chicken and pastry — a hearty Southern take on chicken soup featuring tender shreds of chicken and chewy strips of pastry in an ultrasavory stock — at Red's Little School House in Grady, Ala., in 2016, back when it was owned by Debbie Deese. The food there is pure Southern comfort, as is the reincarnated schoolhouse, a relic that functioned as a one-room school from 1910 to 1960, only to be reborn as a restaurant in 1985. While Deese has retired, the restaurant continues to serve comforting classics such as chicken and pastry.

To prepare a flavorful base for chicken and pastry, we brown chicken thighs before pouring in broth and water. For the soup's trademark pastry dumplings, we take a cue from Edna Lewis' recipe; she cut the dough into attractive diamonds. Once stirred in and simmered, these diamond-shaped pastries become tender and their starch thickens the soup, giving it a rich, velvety consistency. Keep the root ends of the onion halves intact so the petals don't separate during cooking and the onion is easy to remove from the pot. From "When Southern Women Cook" (America's Test Kitchen, 2024).

• 1 ½ c. all-purpose flour
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• ½ tsp. table salt
• 1 tsp. pepper, divided
• ½ c. milk
• 2 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted, plus 1 ­tbsp. unsalted butter
• 2 lb. bone-in chicken thighs, trimmed
• 4 c. chicken broth
• 1 c. water
• 1 onion, peeled and halved through root end
• 1 celery rib, halved crosswise

Directions

Combine flour, baking powder, salt, and ½ teaspoon pepper in large bowl. Combine milk and melted butter in second bowl (butter may form clumps). Using rubber spatula, stir milk mixture into flour mixture until just incorporated. Turn dough onto lightly floured counter and knead until no flour streaks remain, about 1 minute. Return dough to large bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and set aside.

Pat chicken dry with paper towels and sprinkle with remaining ½ teaspoon pepper. Melt remaining 1 tablespoon butter in Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add chicken, skin side down, and cook until golden brown, 3 to 5 minutes. Flip chicken and continue to cook until golden brown on second side, 3 to 5 minutes longer.

Add broth and water, scraping up any browned bits. Nestle onion and celery into pot and bring to boil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 25 minutes.

Meanwhile, roll dough into a 12-inch square, about ⅛ inch thick. Using pizza cutter or knife, cut dough lengthwise into 1-inch-wide strips, then cut diagonally into 1-inch-wide strips to form diamonds (pieces around edges will not be diamonds; this is OK).

Off heat, transfer chicken to plate and let cool slightly. Discard onion and celery. Return broth to boil over medium-high heat and add pastry. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer, stirring occasionally, until pastry is tender and puffed, about 15 minutes. While pastry cooks, shred chicken into bite-size pieces with 2 forks; discard skin and bones.

Stir chicken into stew and cook, uncovered, until warmed through and stew has thickened slightly, 2 to 4 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve.