Alton Brown on Chicken and Dumplings

Just when I thought Alton had traded in his old clothes for a new coffee bar Hipster wardrobe, the infamous bowling shirt makes a come back!  Poor guy.  He probably gets tons of fan mail telling him what to wear, how to get his hair styled, and asking how many watches he owns.  :-)

Chicken and dumplings.  I have to admit, I do not recall ever having a bowl.  I tell you this though, it looks darn good.  I love chicken noodle soup and those dumplings can't help but take it to the next level.  Dropped, rolled, twirled, thrown, flopped.  I can't say one way of the other which method of dumpling making is better; or even if one is better.  Every time I make chili it is completely different; why can't my chicken and dumplings be that same way?  I know, let's have a poll while I think over which method to test first.

New poll!!!!  How do you prefer your chicken and dumplings.  Look over on the left side of the page for your options and vote away!  Knowing that the majority of my blog readers come from all parts of the US and Canada, the results should give a rough and thoroughly unscientific guesstimate of the North American dumpling preference.

p.s.  I bought a new stock pot today with this episode in mind.  I really can't see getting enough use out of a pressure cooker, but a good stock pot will definitely come in handy!

Monday Poll

According to last week's poll, 67% voted the original Feasting on Asphalt series as your favorite.  The River Run and Feasting on Waves were a close second.  I have to agree.  The original FOA was pure adventure.  Alton and his crew really did roam out across the country without much of a plan and found a lot more than they expected; more than could fit into the series.  Too bad they hadn't made it an eight part series.  River Run, while still in the same element, seemed a little more planned and a tad less adventurous.  Though Alton did pick up a nice tattoo instead of a broken arm that time.  Feasting on Waves was disappointing to me.  It lacked the real adventure that made the first two and was more of a destination show like so many other out there.  Don't get me wrong, it was interesting, but not in the same element as the other two shows.

On to this week's poll!  Some of us are constantly trying new recipes and some of us fall into patterns with their cooking.  I've noticed lately that, while I've been trying more new recipes, my regular meals have fallen into a dull pattern.  Mostly this has been the fault of that ol' black kettle grill sitting on my deck.  My weekly grocery decisions have become 'steak or pork chops today?'  This realization got me thinking about what meat I cook the most.  It seems to vary with the weather, but right now there has been a lot of beef and pork grilling and not much in the way of fish or chicken.  Don't worry, I still eat lots of fruit and veggies; especially since they are all in season right now.  What would Alton vote?  Hmmm...pork comes to mind right away, but with his new diet and lots of talk about sustainable fishing....

So, what meat do you cook the most?  Yes, there's even an option for vegetarians on there.