John's hearty chicken and bacon stew with dumplings

It’s a classic family feast and John’s on hand to show you how to master it. This is his hearty chicken and bacon stew, not forgetting the all important dumplings!

Hearty chicken and bacon stew with dumplings

Serves: 4

Ingredients

8 chicken thighs, skinless with bone in

2 tbsp plain flour

70ml vegetable oil

225g button onions, peeled, or 2- 3 medium onions, peeled and cut into 8

170g smoked bacon

2 garlic cloves, crushed

200g flat mushrooms, sliced

2 large carrots, peeled and cut into hunks

2 medium potatoes, peeled and diced

2 bay leaves

1 ½ tbsp redcurrant jelly

250ml red wine

200ml chicken stock

salt and pepper

Lots of parsley

Mustard

Dumplings

100g suet

250g self-raising flour

100ml warm water

Method

• Preheat the oven to 200°C (gas 6)

• Put the flour in a plastic bag and season with lots of salt and pepper. Drop the chicken into the flour and shake like mad to coat well.

• In a large casserole, brown the chicken pieces over a high heat. Remove the chicken and reduce the heat.

• Add the onions and bacon and cook for 5 to 8 minutes until they are coloured and smell good. Add the garlic, then the mushies, carrots, potatoes, bay leaves and redcurrant jelly. Stir well.

• Put the chook back in and stir to coat well. Pour in the wine and stock. Cover and bring to the boil then transfer the pot to the oven for 40 minutes.

• Meanwhile for the dumplings, combine the suet, flour and a big pinch of salt in a mixing bowl. Gradually stir in the warm water, mixing to give a heavy dough. Roll the mixture into balls about the size of a golf ball. Take the casserole from the oven, drop the dumplings into it and return to the oven for a final 20 minutes, until the dumplings are cooked.