This warmer weather refresh of chicken and biscuits shakes up both the filling and topping for a lighter and brighter take on the classic. Lemon and mustard pair up to cut through the creamy sauce, studded with ground chicken, carrots, and celery. The biscuits, flecked with frilly sprigs of dill, are pulled together with sour cream, giving them tenderness and a mild tang. While most recipes dollop the biscuits on top, this dough is patted into a rough circle and scored into scone-like wedges. They bake into a graphic pattern that makes dishing up servings a piece of cake.
Test Kitchen Tip: Stay restrained with your mixing and kneading of the biscuit dough. It’s okay if the edges look a little shaggy even after patting into a disk. Your reward will be an ultra-tender crumb.
Recipe information
Total Time
1 hour 45 minutes
Yield
4 servings
Ingredients
Gravy
Biscuits and Assembly
Preparation
Gravy
Step 1
Place a rack in middle of oven and preheat to 375°. Heat ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil in a large high-sided ovenproof skillet, rondeau, or medium Dutch oven over medium-high. Add 1 lb. ground chicken and press into an even layer. Break up into marble-size pieces with a wooden spoon; cook, mostly undisturbed, until deeply browned underneath, 6–9 minutes. Add 2 medium onions, thinly sliced, 4 celery stalks, cut crosswise on a diagonal 1" thick, and 2 medium carrots, peeled, halved lengthwise, cut on a diagonal 1" thick, and cook, stirring often, until onions are tender and carrots and celery are slightly tender, 10–14 minutes.
Step 2
Add 6 garlic cloves, finely grated, and ¼ cup (31 g) all-purpose flour and mix until chicken and vegetables are coated and no pockets of dry flour remain. Stirring constantly, gradually pour in 2 cups low-sodium vegetable broth and ½ cup dry white wine, then stir in ⅔ cup heavy cream, 1 Tbsp. plus 1½ tsp. Dijon mustard, 1 Tbsp. finely grated lemon zest, 1½ tsp. Diamond Crystal or ¾ tsp. Morton kosher salt, and ¾ tsp. freshly ground pepper. Bring to a simmer and cook until gravy is thick enough to coat a spoon, about 2 minutes. (It’s okay if gravy is a tad loose; it will thicken up more in the oven.) Remove from heat. Taste and season with more salt and pepper if needed. Let cool slightly.
Biscuits and Assembly
Step 3
While the gravy is cooling, whisk 2 tsp. baking powder, 1½ tsp. Diamond Crystal or ¾ tsp. Morton kosher salt, ½ tsp. baking soda, and 2 cups (250 g) all-purpose flour in a large bowl. Add ½ cup (1 stick) chilled unsalted butter, cut into pieces, and rub into dry ingredients with your fingers until it completely disappears. Add 1¼ cups sour cream (from a 16-oz. container) and ¾ cup finely chopped dill and mix just until a shaggy dough forms.
Step 4
Transfer dough to a lightly floured surface; knead a few times just to bring together (it will still be shaggy). Pat into a 7"-diameter disk. Cut into 8 wedges and arrange over gravy in pan, spacing evenly apart. Brush tops of biscuits with heavy cream. Set pan on a baking sheet; bake until biscuits are deeply browned and gravy is bubbling around edges, 55–65 minutes. Remove from oven and top with more dill to serve.
