Soft and fluffy, the British dumpling turns anything it’s been nestled in into a proper meal.
As the days get shorter and sunlight becomes a scarce commodity, I begin to look to a whole host of home comforts to make my life a little bit cosier.
That feeling can come from a table lamp benevolently glowing its golden light on a gloomy day, a favourite winter coat thrown on to fend off the chill, or something a little stodgy rustled-up in the kitchen.
For me, the fluffy British dumpling is the culinary equivalent of this: like pulling on a pair of thick woollen socks - soft, cushiony and always welcome. Adding them to any soup or stew immediately turns the ordinary to extraordinary.
Is it easy to make dumplings?
The humble dumpling is one of the easiest concoctions to rustle up, and so simple that even a toddler’s little hands can help. Dumplings are the gateway to pastry and bread making, skipping the heartache, second-guessing and hours of chilling or rising. Ready in an instant, but with the same payoff as the fanciest of pastries.
One of the other pleasing features of a dumpling - or drop dumpling as they’re known across the pond - they’re the definition of a one-pot wonder. Simply add them to the dish at the end of cooking and let the magic happen.
How do you make dumplings?
The steps for making a dumpling are so speedy, that they barely warrant a recipe.
When I’m making dumplings, I measure out 10g (or 20g if I’m feeling greedy) of suet or grated chilled butter for every person that I’m about to feed into a mixing bowl. Whatever the total weight of suet is will then get doubled to work out how much self-raising flour to stir in (e.g if it’s 60g suet, I’ll use 120g flour).
The mixture gets seasoned generously - and now and again I add a little something extra to flavour them at this point - then I add just enough water bit by bit to make a soft, ever-so-slightly sticky dough. Once it’s formed, it gets broken into walnut-sized pieces, rolled lightly to make balls and plopped on top of whatever dish I’m adding dumplings to.
If that’s a recipe that’s cooked on the hob, I then cover the pan, or if I’m finishing it off in the oven, I pop the pot back in, leaving it to cook uncovered, so the top of dumplings can crisp slightly and become gorgeously burnished.
So now we know how to make them, what can you add them to?
Beef Bourguignon
Beef stew and dumplings is the classic dumpling recipe, but, delicious as it is - it’s name doesn’t exactly scream ‘glamorously deluxe dinner’. The French may take a small issue with this suggestion, but to elevate the entire concept, I prefer to add dumplings to a richly savoury Boeuf Bourguignon as my casserole of choice. A dollop of dijon and a handful of chopped fresh parsley in the dumpling dough is the perfect way to make them worthy of addition.
Vegan stew recipes
Dumplings don’t have to be made with animal suet. If I’ve got vegan friends coming over, I usually start this plant-based casserole off in the slow cooker earlier, so that I don’t have to cook much once they’re there. Conveniently drop the dumplings in just after your guests arrive, then dish up 30min later.
Soups
To turn any soup into supper, rather than chiselling pieces off a sad, stale loaf to serve alongside it, dumplings can be a hearty substitute. So I can add just a few to a bowl of solo soup for myself, I like to make dumplings in advance, open freeze them on a tray and then bag them up once they feel solidly chilled. I then take out what I need and add them frozen to the little pan of cold soup, heating the whole load up together. It can take around 20min for them to cook, so if I’m feeling impatient, I defrost and part-cook them on a parchment-lined plate in the microwave first, then drop them into the hot soup for the last 5min.
I’m partial to a little twist on the perennial dinner party favourite French Onion Soup (at this rate of messing with their cuisine, it’ll be a wonder that they’ll ever allow me to set foot in the country again). I swap out the toasts for gooey grilled gruyere dumplings instead.
Pies
Perfect if you like your dumplings with crispy carapace, rather than fussing with finicky pastry, try a dumpling topping on your pies instead. It’s not dissimilar to a savoury cobbler.
Arrange the dumplings close together on top of the awaiting pie filling in a dish, cook in the oven as you would a pie with a pastry top, then watch as they magically meld together to make an undulating, pillowy topping.
Curry
Hear me out: if you apply the principle that all a dumpling needs is something delightfully saucy to sit on, then the possibilities of what you can add them to are many and varied. Enter: curry. The idea is robust - after making your favourite curry, all that’s left to sort is an appropriately flavoured dumpling to accompany it. A handful of freshly chopped coriander in the dough, plus maybe some toasted nigella or cumin seeds will do the trick. Still not convinced? Try our delectable lamb curry with naan dumplings.
Want the secret to making perfect dumplings? Look no further than our handy how-to guide.
