Chef John's Chicken and Biscuits

Step 1

Place chicken in large (9-quart) stockpot, pour in water, and drop in bay leaf and clove. Bring to a simmer over medium-low heat. As foam rises to the top of broth, skim and discard with a ladle. Add peeled garlic cloves, cover the pot, and simmer over low heat for 1 hour.

Step 2

Remove chicken from the pot and allow to cool for a few minutes. When cool enough to handle, remove meat from the bones and set meat aside. Pour stock into a large bowl and set aside.

Step 3

Melt butter in a large oven-safe pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Cook and stir carrots, celery, onion, and mushrooms in hot butter until vegetables start to become tender, about 10 minutes. Season with salt, white pepper, cayenne pepper, black pepper, and paprika. Mix in flour, stirring to coat vegetables with flour, about 5 minutes. Add 1/2 of the reserved stock; stir with vegetables and flour to form a very thick sauce. Stir in remaining stock until sauce is smooth; reduce heat to a simmer and cook uncovered for 45 minutes.

Step 4

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).

Step 5

Stir milk into sauce until incorporated, then gently mix in reserved chicken meat, tarragon, rosemary, and herbes de Provence. Bring stew back to a simmer and cook for 10 more minutes.

Step 6

Pop open the can of biscuit dough, separate, and place biscuits on top of stew.

Step 7

Bake in the preheated oven until biscuits are golden brown and stew is bubbling, about 20 minutes. Cover the pot and continue baking until biscuits are cooked through, about 15 more minutes. Test biscuits for doneness by pulling apart a biscuit near the middle of stew.