Tomato and Chicken Casserole with Herby Dumplings

Shredding the chicken makes a little go a long way in this tasty stew, but you could make it vegetarian by swapping the chicken for extra butter beans and using vegetable stock. If you have fresh herbs to hand, finely chop them and use them in the dumplings instead of dried herbs.

Hands-on time 40min. Cooking time about 1hr 10min. Serves 4

• 1tbsp vegetable oil

• 300g chicken thigh fillets

• 1 onion, finely chopped

• 2 celery sticks, finely chopped

• 2 large carrots, roughly chopped

• 2 garlic cloves, crushed

• 400g tin chopped tomatoes

• 750ml cold chicken stock

• 125g self-raising flour

• 60g butter, chilled and chopped

• 1tsp herbs de Provence

• 200g tin butter beans, drained and rinsed

1 Heat ½tbsp oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. Add chicken and fry until browned all over. Remove to a plate.

2 Lower heat to medium and add remaining ½tbsp oil to pan. Fry onion, celery and carrots for 10min, until softened. Stir in garlic and fry for 2min.

3 Return chicken (and any juices) to the pan along with tomatoes and 650ml stock. Bring to the boil, then reduce heat and simmer gently for 25-30min, until chicken is cooked through and tender.

4 Meanwhile, make the dumplings. Pulse flour and butter in the small bowl of a food processor to coarse crumbs. Add herbs de Provence, remaining 100ml stock and some seasoning and pulse briefly to combine.

5 When chicken is cooked, remove to a board and shred with two forks. Stir back into stew, along with the beans; check seasoning. Spoon tablespoons of the dumpling mixture on top (you should have about 12). Cover with a lid and simmer for 18-20min, until dumplings are puffed and cooked through. Serve.

PER SERVING 482cals, 25g protein, 24g fat (10g saturates), 39g carbs (10g total sugars), 8g fibre