Chicken Mull or Muddle - what is it? Recipe is EASY! (2024)

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I had never heard of Chicken Mull until a few years ago. And then I found out that the Chicken Mull Festival happens 8 miles from me in Bear Grass, NC, population 69. This year, the festival is on Saturday, October 28, 2023. My friend Nancy Sparks had a great recipe for Chicken Mull, so we made it and here it is. It is really quite good!

Chicken Mull or Muddle - what is it? Recipe is EASY! (1)

Chicken Mull – What Is It?

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Author: Chloe Tuttle

Ingredients

  • Several quarts water
  • ½ teaspoon salt or to taste
  • ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
  • ½-1 teaspoon cracked red pepper or to taste
  • 1 T lard
  • 1 3-4 pound chicken cut up (larger is fine too) You will need about 4 cups cooked chicken
  • 1 box of Saltine Crackers salted (you will probably use 2-3 sleeves)
  • Hot sauce for serving

Instructions

  • Using a large stock pot, add several quarts of water, salt, black pepper, crushed red pepper and lard and bring to a boil.

  • Add cut-up chicken and enough water to cover the chicken. Return to a boil and cook for 1-2 hours or until chicken is tender and falling off the bones.

  • Remove chicken from broth and strain into a large bowl, reserving any broth.

  • After chicken has cooled, pull meat off the bones, discarding the bones and the skin. Tear chicken into shreds, using your hands. Be careful to remove all bones.

  • Strain and transfer the broth to a separate pan or bowl and wash the cooking pot to remove the chicken residue that is stuck on the sides of the pot. Add the broth back to the pot.

  • When the broth comes back to a boil, add the picked chicken to the pot and turn heat to simmer.

  • Crush 2 sleeves of saltines and slowly add to the pot. Stir and continue to simmer. The mull should not have much excess liquid. If there is liquid, add more crackers.

  • Simmer on low heat about 20 minutes or until hot and thickened, stirring often – hence the Mull moniker.

  • Hint: it is better the next day – the red pepper has a chance to be heard!

  • Yield: 6-7 two-cup servings

Like this recipe?Follow us on Pinterest: @bigmill or tag #bigmillbb

Charlotte Griffin, the mayor of Bear Grass, NC, tells the story of how the Chicken Mull Festival came to be. In 2015, two other Bear Grass residents, Kevin Harris and Justin Edwards, asked Charlotte if they could start a festival for Bear Grass. Charlotte was intrigued.

One idea was to have a Moonshine Festival – all locals know that in the Prohibition Days Bear Grass had some good moonshine – it has been dubbed by some as the Moonshine Capitol of the World. Alas, the technicalities and federalessoon made this idea nearly impossible to pull off. So that is when the idea for a Chicken Mull Festival came to be.

Charlotte tells the history of her grandfather and other Bear Grass tobacco farmers who had to stay up all night to fire the tobacco barns – thus curing it. I remember my dad and Walter Biggs doing that here on the farm. There was not much to do, so the fellows in Bear Grass would get a big iron pot, a chicken, and some saltine crackers and cook up a pot of Chicken Mull as they called it.

It is odd how the tradition didn’t cross Highway 17 into Farm Life where my folks lived. Charlotte did say that her uncle married a Farm Life girl and he introduced them to Chicken Mull. I don’t remember ever eating Chicken Mull in my youth. In some parts of the south it is called Chicken Muddle, usually this has other things in it like tomatoes and peppers. It is difficult to trace the origin of this humble dish.

After the men folks no longer had to fire the barns with wood, they would still cook up a pot of mull at the end of the tobacco season for the “hands” – the folks who worked the fields. Even now when groups like the Ruritans have a fund-raiser, you might see Chicken Mull on the menu.

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It seems Chicken Mull is popular in the Carolinas and in parts of Georgia, often popping up in barbecue joints and at church dinners. In some parts of Georgia it is made with milk, but in the Carolinas it is usually made with water, chicken and saltine crackers. Be on the lookout or just whip up a batch for yourself.

Don’t miss the Chicken Mull Festival in Bear Grass, NC. It happens every year on the 4th Saturday of October – this year in 2023 it is October 28th. Check out North Carolina Weekend’s story of the Chicken Mull Festival.

Distances From:
Raleigh, NC – 102 miles
Greenville, NC – 20 miles
New Bern, NC – 55 miles
Big Mill Bed and Breakfast in Williamston, NC – 6 miles (252) 792-8787

Chicken Mull or Muddle - what is it? Recipe is EASY! (3)

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Chicken Mull or Muddle - what is it? Recipe is EASY! (6)

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Chicken Mull or Muddle - what is it? Recipe is EASY! (2024)

FAQs

Chicken Mull or Muddle - what is it? Recipe is EASY!? ›

The dish consists of finely shredded chicken in a rich broth often thickened by crushed crackers and sometimes milk or cream. Butter and a few other simple seasonings add flavor, and hot sauce, coleslaw, and saltines are common accompaniments.

How to make a mull? ›

The dish consists of finely shredded chicken in a rich broth often thickened by crushed crackers and sometimes milk or cream. Butter and a few other simple seasonings add flavor, and hot sauce, coleslaw, and saltines are common accompaniments.

What is the origin of chicken mull? ›

The origins of chicken mull may rest in the coastal practice of Atlantic fishermen slow cooking striped bass, called a "fish muddle". This tradition inspired inland communities to slow cook chicken using similar ingredients, in what is sometimes called a chicken muddle or chicken mull.

What is the difference between chicken muddle and Brunswick stew? ›

Muddle is thicker and spicier than Virginia style Brunswick Stew. Unlike Georgia style Brunswick Stew, muddle is flavored with bacon rather than barbecue sauce. I have had Brunswick stew before, but this was amazing. The bbq was really good, but I have had really good bbq before.

What is the simplest way to eat chicken? ›

9 Easy Ways to Cook Chicken
  1. 01 of 09. Roasted Chicken. Iain Bagwell / Photolibrary / Getty Images. ...
  2. 02 of 09. Baked Chicken. The Spruce. ...
  3. 03 of 09. Braised Chicken. Eising / Getty Images. ...
  4. 04 of 09. Poached Chicken. ...
  5. 05 of 09. Fried Chicken. ...
  6. 06 of 09. Broiled Chicken. ...
  7. 07 of 09. Grilled Chicken. ...
  8. 08 of 09. Sautéed or Pan-Fried Chicken.
Sep 17, 2020

What is Mull made of? ›

The dish known in northeast Georgia as chicken mull is a stew of chicken meat (ground or cut into bite-sized or smaller pieces), broth, milk, butter, vegetables, and seasonings, thickened with crumbs of soda crackers. It is also called chicken stew, chicken soup (rarely), and in south Georgia, chicken jallop.

What makes a Mull? ›

Mull desig nates a type in which the organic matter is intimately mixed with the mineral soil for a depth of 2 feet or more, which is characteristic of the brown forest soil group.

Where did drunk chicken come from? ›

It's also rare to come across an iconic Chinese dish without an elaborate origin story. Canonically, all we can say is that Drunken Chicken was invented in Shaoxing, which has been producing arguably the best huangjiu in China for at least 3,000 years (more on that later).

What is a chicken mull festival? ›

Likely born from cooks simply using what they had, Chicken Mull has become a comfort food that spans generations. It is the goal of the Chicken Mull Festival to introduce the town of Bear Grass and this southern specialty to more people.

Where did chicken Booyah originate? ›

Booyah (also spelled booya, bouja, boulyaw, or bouyou) is a thick stew, believed to have originated in Belgium, and made throughout the Upper Midwestern United States.

What are the 2 types of white stews? ›

Fricassees and blanquettes are “white” stews of poultry (in the case of fricassee), veal, or lamb. They are delicately flavoured with mushrooms, mild vegetables, and herbs; the sauce is thickened with egg yolks and cream.

Which kind of poultry is best for stews or casseroles? ›

Stew birds are usually laying hens that have passed their prime. They are older and their meat can be tougher, but more flavorful. This type of chicken is best used in stews and soups where the meat has time to break down during the long, moist cooking.

What meat was originally used in Brunswick stew? ›

Originally it was small game such as squirrel, rabbit or opossum meat, but chicken has become most common. Chicken and rabbit are more common in Virginia, pork in Georgia, and, though not for as long, Eastern North Carolina–style pulled pork barbecue.

What not to do when cooking chicken? ›

Here are four of the most common mistakes people make when cooking chicken and ways to avoid them from sabotaging your protein-packed meals.
  1. Buying Previously Frozen Meat. ...
  2. Not Brining the Chicken. ...
  3. Not Drying the Chicken. ...
  4. Cooking Meat Right Out of the Fridge. ...
  5. See How Chicken is Done at La Rosa Chicken and Grill.

What is the tastiest and healthiest way to cook chicken breast? ›

Poaching

3 This cooking technique increases moisture retention and tenderness, resulting in juicy and tender meat. Plus, it is relatively quick, taking only 10-15 minutes. When poaching chicken, keep the temperature low, around 158-176 degrees.

Is it better to cook chicken slow or fast? ›

Chicken is a very versatile and lean meat with little fat or sinew, so it doesn't need long cooking for it to become tender. Both quick high heat methods such as frying, and low, slow cooking are suitable.

What is a standard Mull? ›

Standard Mull is one in which the frames are joined tightly together with no reinforcement or space between. Mull Reinforcement or MRF are vertical or horizontal mulls that have aluminum reinforcement members attached to them and are clipped and fastened together making the mull 3/8" wide.

What is the process of mulling? ›

For many Americans, to heat up wine may seem like sacrilege. However, the process of mulling—adding sugar, spices and fruit to a heated drink—is one of the oldest co*cktail techniques in the world.

What is the Mull in mulled wine? ›

Wine heated with sugar and spice is called a "mull"

The really great thing with mulled wine is it tends to be better with rough dark red wines. The trick is to heat the wine with the spices and make sure you do not boil the mixture.

How do you Mull something? ›

to think carefully about something for a long time: I need a few days to mull things over before I decide if I'm taking the job. considerDon't make any decisions before you've considered the matter.

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