Cherokee Grape Dumplings

Name: Cherokee Grape Dumplings
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 50 min
Yield: 6 servings
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: all-purpose flour 135 g; baking powder 1.5 tsp; granulated sugar 2 tsp; salt 0.25 tsp; vegetable shortening 1 tbsp; pasteurized 100% purple grape juice, no added sugar 960 ml

Quick answer

Total time: 50 min
Level: Medium
Servings: 6 servings
Ingredients: 6

About this dish

Strips of flour dough cook straight in grape juice, and the loose flour on their surface slowly turns that juice into a sauce without any separate starch.

The thin strip shape follows a publicly available Cherokee Nation cookbook, made here with pasteurized bottled juice. The juice is measured for two jobs: a small portion hydrates the dough and the rest is the cooking liquid, and mixing them early leaves a batter too wet to roll. Swelling alone does not mean done. Cut a thick piece and look for a raw flour layer.

Ingredients

servings

IngredientAmount

pasteurized 100% purple grape juice, no added sugar

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Instructions

5 steps

1

Reserve 10 g flour for rolling.

Mix remaining 125 g with baking powder, sugar and salt. Rub in shortening with fingertips until crumbly.
2

Add 120 ml grape juice and gather into a dough.

Cover and rest 10 minutes without prolonged kneading.
3

Dust the work surface lightly with reserved flour.

Roll dough about 3 mm thick and cut strips roughly 1.3 cm wide and 5 cm long.
4

Bring remaining 840 ml juice to a simmer in a wide deep pan about 24 cm across.

Add strips one at a time around the pan. Gently separate only pieces that overlap.
5

Cover and simmer gently for 10 to 12 minutes.

Cut one thick piece; when no dry flour or dense raw dough remains, turn off heat. Stand 3 minutes, then serve with the grape sauce.