Campr – Everything Camping

If you’re camping this winter (see our winter camping recommendations) you’ll need some hearty fare to keep the cold away.

Don’t resort to a can of beans in the camp fire. We have searched the web, our mother’s cookbooks and some dusty old Scout annuals to present to you, dear reader the first in an occasional series of gourmet camping recipes.

Dutch Oven Chicken and Dumplings

Chicken and Dumplings are delicious, warming and easy to cook in a single pot on a campfire.  You’ll need a Dutch Oven (a thick-walled iron cooking pot with a tight-fitting lid. A casserole dish will also do the trick) for this recipe.

Ingredients:
Serves 6
2 rotisserie chickens, meat taken off and pulled into pieces (or turkey)
2 tbsp canola oil
2-3 tbsp butter
Mix of herbs such as chopped rosemary and herbes de provence
1-3 tsp cayenne
1 medium onion, chopped
1 small shallot, chopped
1 ½ cups carrots, diced
1 cup celery, diced
3-5 cups chicken broth (or veggie with turkey)
salt/pepper
1-2 tbsp flour (to thicken)

Dumplings:
4 cups of Jiffy mix
1 1/3 cup milk
1 tbsp butter (I added this to the directions)

1. Heat 20 briquettes in campfire and remove 14, leaving the other 6 in the fire, place them on the side away from the fire.

2. Place dutch oven (lid on and pre-seasoned) over those 14 to begin heating.

3. Add canola oil after 30 minutes or so, then butter. When you see bubbles, add onion, celery, carrot, shallot, salt/pepper, herbs of choice and cayenne. When they begin to soften, add a small amount of broth, mix and place the lid on top for 10-15 minutes or until veggies are soft.

4. Add the chicken and enough chicken broth to cover. I added more briquettes to the bottom and a few on the lid at this point to really heat things up. Allow this to reduce a bit and heat the chicken, then you might need to add some flour to thicken, stirring it in the entire time.

5. Make dumplings in a bowl until you have a chunky mix and plop them over the chicken mix, 6 to 8 dumplings.

6. Place lid back on and cook 10-15 minutes or until the dough is cooked through. Ta-da!

Recipe and image courtesy of thedabble

Buying a Dutch oven

If the recipe has got you salivating there are a great selection of Dutch ovens available to suit most wallets.