A simmering pot of fragrant stew earns top honors when it comes to comfort food, but the comfort doubles when it is topped with fluffy dumplings. They are the bonus prize in each bowlful — the unexpected delight that makes the meal special enough to feel restorative. Such a dish sure hits the spot on a winter evening, just right for a cozy family supper, although it can be the sleeper hit of a casual dinner gathering as well.

Dumplings come in a host of shapes and sizes around the world, but most are a type of simple bread or pastry that enhance or extend more expensive ingredients. The ones in the accompanying recipe are pillows of light yet substantial dough added to the pot shortly before the stew is served. They take their cues from drop biscuits rather than pastry, so there’s no rolling, shaping or futzing. Just stir up the dough, spoon it into the pot, cover and come back in about a half-hour.

Chicken with dumplings is the benchmark for Southern dumplings. Although the dumplings are the stars, the stew has to keep up its end of the bargain. Using a rotisserie chicken for the meat and the broth not only saves time, it adds flavor from the roasted skin and bones. The ready-to-use meat also eliminates the temptation to overcook the chicken. Old recipes often called for boiling the chicken for upward of an hour, which might have been a good advice for tough old yard birds, but can turn the meat into ropey strands. Rotisserie chickens are seasoned, so wait until the broth has reduced before adjusting the salt. The dumpling dough isn’t heavily seasoned, so don’t be alarmed if the stew seems a tad salty when tasted on its own — it will be balanced when the two come together in the bowl.

These dumplings, which are about the size of a golf ball, float atop the stew as they cook, resulting in puffed tops, fluffy middles and tender bottoms — more like bread than noodles. When the pot lid is lifted, the aromas and experience are heady.

Because the dough is leavened (or raised, as some cooks would say), stir it together right before it goes atop the stew.Bring the stew to a boil before adding the dough. One might worry that the boiling stew would cause the dumplings to break apart, but actually the opposite is true. The hot liquid quickly seals the dumplings, so they rise instead of spread. It is akin to baking biscuits in a very hot oven.Don’t peek inside the pot until the dumplings are likely to be done. Lifting the lid too soon or too often lets heat escape and deflates the dumplings.A one-ounce spring-release scoop, such as a #30 disher, makes quick work of creating uniform dumplings. Scoop, drop. Scoop, drop. But in lieu of a scoop, two large-ish soup spoons will do. Use one to lift the dough from its mixing bowl and the second to push the dough onto the burbling stew.

Here, fluffy and biscuit-like dumplings float like clouds atop a simple stew of large pieces of tender chicken studded with bright orange carrots and flecks of herbs. Rich broth with plenty of body that actually tastes like chicken is the bedrock of this stew and other recipes.

A note about the rotisserie chickens: We have called for small birds, and all their meat can be used. But if you buy larger rotisserie birds, like the ones at Costco, only use the white meat and reserve the dark meat for another use. Why? Because using all the meat from a large bird will thicken the stew to the point where the dumplings won’t be able to float.

2 small, plain rotisserie chickens (see note below)

8 cups low-sodium chicken broth (store-bought or homemade)

3 large thyme sprigs and 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves

4 teaspoons kosher salt, plus more as needed

1 tablespoon unsalted butter, and 4 tablespoons chilled unsalted butter, cut into small cubes

1 small onion, chopped (about 3/4 cup)

2 medium ribs celery, thinly sliced (about 3/4 cup)

2 medium carrots, scrubbed well and cut into thin rounds (about 1 1/2 cups)

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, or more as needed

1/2 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper

2 tablespoons chilled vegetable shortening (may substitute leaf lard)

Chopped fresh parsley, for garnish

For the broth and stew: Pull the meat from the chickens and tear it into largish bite-size pieces; cover and refrigerate until needed.

Place the carcasses and skin in a large saucepan or small pot. Add the cold water, broth, thyme sprigs and 1 teaspoon of the salt; bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then reduce the heat to medium and cook, uncovered, for about an hour, until the carcasses fall apart and the liquid reduces to about 8 cups and tastes like rich chicken soup. Strain the broth through a fine-mesh strainer into a large saucepan; discard solids. Stir in the vinegar and keep the broth warm on the lowest heat setting.

Melt 1 tablespoon butter in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onion, celery, carrots, thyme leaves and a pinch of salt, stirring to coat. Cook for 8 minutes, or until vegetables begin to soften, stirring often. Add the broth and cook for 10 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender.

Season with 2 teaspoons salt and the black pepper. Stir in the reserved rotisserie chicken; reduce the heat to low.

For the dumplings: Whisk together the flour, baking powder, 1 teaspoon salt, sugar and pepper in a medium bowl. Work in 4 tablespoons of butter and shortening with your fingertips until the mixture is crumbly. Add the half-and-half and stir only until combined to form a soft, sticky dough.

Bring the chicken stew to a boil over medium-high heat. Use a 1-ounce scoop or two soup spoons to drop golf-ball-size dumplings evenly over the surface of the stew. Reduce the heat to medium; cover and cook for 20 to 25 minutes or until the dumplings are firm, fluffy and somewhat dry on top.

Uncover and let stand for 5 minutes. Sprinkle with parsley and serve warm

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