Vegan “Chicken” & Dumplings

I have to admit, we didn’t grow up eating chicken and dumplings. I don’t think I learned about dumplings until I had the dish at a truck stop on a road trip once. See, the thing is – everyone has had a version. We’d have chicken & noodles. It was a hearty dish where we boiled chicken in a pot full of root vegetables and herbs until the chicken was tender. Then, we’d dump in a bag of egg noodles and eat the hearty stew with a pan of cornbread. This is what I remember. Then, when I learned about nixing the noodles, adding cream, and a few dumplings…I was completely sold. There’s something that’s just so warm and comforting about a bowl of food like this. And well, now, you can have it vegan!

Here’s the recipe
2 cups of pulled jackfruit
2 teaspoons of olive oil
1 cup of diced onion
4 cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 cup of diced celery
1/2 cup of diced red bell pepper
1 cup of diced carrots
1 cup of frozen peas
1 teaspoon of Kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon of black pepper
1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon of ground fennel
1/2 teaspoon of onion powder
2 sprigs of fresh thyme
1 bay leaf
4 cups of vegetable stock
2 cups of vegan half and half
1/2 cup of vegan cream cheese
About 1 cup of Pillsbury crescent rolls, cut into squares
Chopped parsley, to garnish

To start, heat the olive oil in a large pot. Then, saute the onion, garlic, celery, bell pepper, and carrots for about 3-4 minutes until fragrant. Then, add in the seasonings – salt, pepper, garlic powder, ground fennel, and onion powder. Cook for a few more minutes being sure to stir well. If the pan is a bit dry, you can always add a bit more olive oil.

Then, Add in the vegetable stock, jackfruit, half and half, fresh thyme, and bay leaf. Cook on medium heat for about 30 minutes until the stew has reduced some. Then, add in the crescent rolls and cook until they’re done. The last thing you’d want to do it stir in the vegan cream cheese (creamy factor insurance policy!) and then top with chopped parsley.

PLEASE READ: After making this a few times, I’ve noticed that sometimes I might want the stew to be thicker. If you do, then, just whisk together about a teaspoon of cornstarch with a teaspoon of cold water. Pour half of the cornstarch slurry into the stew while it’s still cooking – it’ll thicken right away. If it’s still not thick enough for your liking, add the remainder of the slurry. Be careful though, because you can add more slurry – but, you can’t take any away if you’ve added too much.

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