By Andrew Galarneau

My favorite recipes solve problems.

Chicken and dumplings is called for when I want to make something warm, soothing, homey, a dish that makes people feel cared for, while spending under $20.

No fancy ingredients required, just technique, a modicum of patience, and a big pot.

Despite its title, this recipe can accommodate vegetarians. Skip the chicken and make vegetable stew, double the dumpling recipe. Voila.

Chicken stew with dumplings 

3-4 pounds chicken pieces, legs and thighs, or boneless skinless thighs, not breast

3-4 carrots

3 ribs celery

2 largish onions chopped  

2-3 cloves garlic, smashed and peeled

2-3 teaspoons dried oregano

Salt and pepper

For the dumplings (inspired by Joy of Cooking’s spaetzle recipe)

1 ½ cups flour 

½ teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

Pinch of nutmeg (optional)

2 eggs

½ cup milk (water will do)

4 tablespoons butter, for finishing

To thicken: (optional)

2 tablespoons corn starch

2 tablespoons water

Put the chicken and garlic in a big pot. Cover it with water. Add 2 teaspoons of salt, and bring it to a boil, then back it down to a simmer, and let it cook for 45-60 minutes, stirring occasionally.

When the chicken is nice and soft, add the vegetables. Add more water, so it’s at least an inch above everything else. Simmer until the vegetables are almost as tender as you like them. 

Meanwhile, stir together the dumplings. Using a spoon and a finger, drop quarter-sized globs of dough to cover the top of the simmering liquid.

Put a lid on the pot, and let it bubble away for 10 to 12 minutes, until the dumplings are puffy and firm. If you so choose, remove with slotted spoon into a skillet with butter. Or just a bowl with butter. 

Repeat with the rest of the dough, until the dumplings are finished.  

You can brown the dumplings by cooking them in a sauté pan with butter. Usually I have a pan collecting dumplings and browning them until all the dumplings are ready to serve. But they’re fine right from the pot.

Taste the broth, and adjust it to your liking. Add more salt and pepper, or experiment with soy sauce, chicken base, vegetable bouillon, fish sauce, lemon or lime juice, whatever seems right. 

If you’d like the broth more gravy-like, stir up some corn starch slurry. Mix corn starch with water at a 1:1 ratio until milky and well combined. Drop it into the simmering broth and in a couple minutes, it’ll tighten up. Two tablespoons of cornstarch should slightly thicken two quarts of liquid. 

Ladle into bowls. Serve dumplings separately, so customers can decide how many is enough.

REVIEW: At Pinoy Boi, inside 617 Main St., Lloyd Ligao offers tiptop Filipino standards like lechon, roasted pork belly, and sisig, diced pork belly marinated in calamansi soy, caramelized, and served over garlic rice. Recently he’s expanded the range of the only Filipino restaurant in Buffalo to include super-premium ice cream in flavors like ube, black sesame, and avocado, along with soulful Filipino stews like inihaw na baboy. (For patrons, later this week.)

BERNARD OCEANDA CHAMP 

The Niagara Aquarium fundraiser Nov. 11 at Artisan Kitchens & Baths celebrated sustainable seafood, with eight chefs offering their inspirations.

Jessica Melisz of Oralia served rich seafood chowder in a peach-sized bread bowl. 

Marc Adams and Eury Santana scored high on both level of difficulty and taste. They weren’t just cooking fresh pasta and saucing it for their cavatelli with mussels and chorizo bolognese; They made the fresh pasta on the spot, too.

As emcee, I was honored to ask the crowd to give it up for Scott Bernard of Good Neighbor Flavor, selected by guest votes as the Oceanda champion, for his jerk-marinated seared mahi-mahi, coconut rice and peas in a banana leaf pouch, citrus-pickled mango jicama slaw, and curried coconut glaze.

ASK THE CRITIC

Q: I’ve been to Spain several times and love Catalan food. Anywhere (outside of Toronto) for real tapas or Spanish cuisine?

– Sandi, Cheektowaga, via email

A: Spanish cuisine is lightly represented in Buffalo. Iron Tail Tavern once described itself as Spanish but has retreated to “gastropub,” not even keeping patatas bravas on the menu. 

I’d head for Moriarty or Mira, where Spanish dishes often turn up on the menu. 

Moriarty gets the feel of the thing: Sidle up to a timeworn wooden bar, eyeballing the tapas in the case, $2-$3 bites of something good, then the pinxtos, $4-$5 tastes, before you pick your main from the brief standard menu or the longer list of this week’s specials inscribed on the chalkboards.   

Are you familiar with Moriarty? I’ve talked to people who won’t go there because they’re not open at dinner. Let’s hear it for the narrow-minded, because the place is sort of narrow itself. The parking lot is narrower. It fills fast.

That was true even before Guy Fieri parked his convertible there last week. Or, even more consequentially, the long-awaited opening of Moriarty Market. (Hours: 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Tuesday-Friday, 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturday.)

Foccacia by the slice, housemade deli meats, salads by the pound, soups by the quart. Grab-and-go dinners, for reheating or making from a Moriarty marinated meat packet. 

If you find the lot packed tighter than a tin of Portuguese sardines, just take a deep breath and admit that there are worse things than walking a block to get to Moriarty. 

More local food and restaurant stories compiled by Michael Chelus of Nittany Epicurean:

• Mr. Galarneau told us about the Chinese-Bangladeshi dishes at Bismillah Bangla Wok [Four Bites]
• Andrew also put together a list of ten places where Buffalo eaters can feel the love for under $10 including Lin Asian Market, Colombo Spice and more [Four Bites]
• Francesca told us the story of Dave Chicane and Deana Summerson, owners of Artusi [Buffalo News]
• A SPoT Coffee franchise is opening in Larkinville [Buffalo News]
• Francesca also gave us a list of five new immigrant-run bakeries and restaurants [Buffalo News]
• Jim interviewed Chef Derek Minkensky, the man responsible for the arrival of French cuisine on Main Street at Bistro at the Vault [Buffalo Rising]
• Mike Shatzel is opening a new bar in the space that formerly housed ABV that will be an ode to the Old Pink with a splash of Brick Bar – Damaged Goods [Buffalo Rising]
• Sarah wrote about five Buffalo restaurants that are among the oldest in the state including Chef’s, Ted’s and more [Step Out Buffalo]
• Brian’s Buffalo Beer Buzz told us about the 11th annual Stoutsgiving at Big Ditch, Autark Brewhouse’s fifth anniversary and more [Buffalo Beer League]
• Genesee Brewing is bringing back the Genesee Schwarzbier under a new name – Genesee Specialty Black Lager [Buffalo Beer League]
• Jamie gave us some options to find local apples and two recipes for them [Open till Four]

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