You’ll Need
For the Chicken
600g chicken thigh fillets, cut into bite-sized chunks
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp garlic granules, 1 tsp onion granules, 1 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp sea salt, ½ tsp black pepper, ½ tsp smoked paprika
For the Pot
1 onion, finely diced, 2 carrots, diced
150g chestnut mushrooms, sliced
3 garlic cloves, finely grated, 25g butter
400ml chicken stock, 150ml double cream
1 tbsp plain flour
Dumplings
150g self-raising flour
75g shredded suet
1 tsp dried parsley
Pinch of salt
70–80ml cold water
To Finish
Fresh parsley, chopped
Cracked black pepper
Optional but Dangerous
Garden peas
Crispy bacon pieces
Wholegrain mustard
Crusty bread
Method
Preheat your air fryer to 190°C.
Toss the chicken with the olive oil, garlic granules, onion granules, thyme, smoked paprika, salt and black pepper.
Place the chicken, onion, carrots and mushrooms into a foil tray or deep heatproof dish.
Air fry for 10 minutes, stirring halfway through.
Stir in the butter and grated garlic, then sprinkle over the flour and mix well.
Pour in the chicken stock and double cream, stirring until smooth.
In a separate bowl, mix the self-raising flour, suet, parsley and salt. Gradually add the cold water until you have a soft dough, then divide into 8 small dumplings.
Sit the dumplings gently on top of the chicken mixture.
Return to the air fryer and cook at 180°C for 18–20 minutes, until the dumplings are puffed, cooked through and the sauce has thickened.
Finish with chopped parsley and plenty of cracked black pepper.
Serve immediately while the dumplings are light, fluffy and soaking up that rich garlic butter gravy.