Based on the recipe from Bill Neal’s Southern Cooking. Chapel Hill: The University of North Carolina Press, 1985. Pgs. 114, 117-118.

Chicken
- 1 chicken weighing 4 pounds (1800 g), poached
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 3 ribs of celery, chopped
- 1/8 teaspoon of pepper flakes
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 teaspoon of thyme
- 2 teaspoons of salt
- 12 whole black peppercorns
- 2 quarts (2 liters) of water
Wash the chicken and drain in colander. Combine the onion. celery and red pepper flakes, bay leaves, thyme salt, peppercorns and water in a stockpot. Bring to boil. Add chicken. Return to a boil. Reduce heat to low and cook for 90 minutes. When skin pulls from the joints, you are finished. Pull chicken from broth. Save broth. Wait for chicken to cool. Remove meat from bones.
Sauce
- 8 tablespoons of fat, chicken fat or butter
- 1 cup (118 ml) chopped onion
- 2 cups (275 ml) chopped fresh mushrooms
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 9 tablespoons of flour
- 6 cups of chicken stock
- 1/2 cup of heavy cream
- Salt and pepper
- 12 drops of hot sauce (optional)
Heat the fat over medium heat. Add onions. When onions are translucent, add mushrooms. Cook until moisture evaporates, about 7 minutes. Stir in garlice and cook for 2 minutes. Make a roux by adding the flour all at once and stir for continuously for 3 minutes. The flour will turn the color of mushrooms.
Pour in stock and cream. Stir continuously for 15 minutes. Roughly chop the chicken meat, add it to the stock, and cook for 15 more minutes. Season with salt pepper and hot sauce.
Dumplings
- 1 1/2 cups (244 g) flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder
- 1 teaspoon of salt
- 1 teaspoon of sugar
- 1 egg well beaten, with enough milk to equal 7/8 of a cup (205 ml)
- 2 tablespoons of chopped, fresh basil
- 2 tablespoons of chopped fresh parsley
- 4 tablespoons of chopped scallions
Stir flour, baking powder, salt and sugar together, Make well in center and add egg/milk mixture. If too wet add flour. If too dry, add a few drops of milk. Dough should be sticky but not wet. Fold in herbs and scallions. Drop by the spoonfuls into the broth. Dumplings can be very close together. Cover tightly, annd reduce heat so liquid bubbles but is not boiling. Close and cook until tender, about 10 minutes.
To serve, put sauce in the center of a large serving platter and garnish with dumplings. Or, just scoop some in a bowl.