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This is intended to be a very basic recipe for dumplings. The variations are endless - see the preparation notes for details.
These can be soft, fluffy dumplings (my favourite) or crusty and crunchy. The dough can also be rolled out to about 1 cm, and used to top a pie (yum!).
The proportions of ingredients make it easy to adjust the amount made.
Ingredients
Makes 4 servings
- 4 oz self raising flour
- 2 oz beef or vegetable suet
- ½ tsp salt
- good grind of pepper
- approx 75 ml of cold water
Preparation
Basic recipe preparation:
Mix the flour, suet, salt and pepper. Add most of the water, and mix to a soft dough, adding the rest of the water if necessary. Knead very briefly, just to form it into a coherent lump. Split into 8 even pieces, and roll into balls.
Cooking:
If you want soft, fluffy dumplings, then add to your simmering stew / soup / casserole, cover, and simmer for 20 minutes.
If you like really crunchy dumplings, then add to your simmering / really hot stew (or a baking dish with a shallow layer of gravy), and bake uncovered in the oven at 180C for 20 minutes. It's even better if you roll the dumplings in melted butter first.
For a happy medium, when you've had a stew cooking in a low oven for hours, increase the heat to 180C and add the dumplings to the stew. Cook covered for 10 minutes, then uncovered for 10 minutes more.
Variations:
My 'standard' dumplings incorporate a teaspoon of finely chopped thyme. Other yummy variations include:
1 finely sliced leek sautéed in butter until tender.
1 tsp horseradish
1 tsp dijon mustard
1 tsp dried mixed herbs
You can let your imagination run riot with this recipe - so long as you end up with a soft, workable dough you are pretty much guaranteed good results.
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