Making homemade chicken and dumplings from scratch is the ultimate comfort food! It’s made in 1 hour from start to finish in one pot for easy clean-up!
If you’re as excited about quick, hearty, and creamy soups like I am, you and your family will love this Easy Loaded Baked Potato Soup as well. It’s just as thick as this easy chicken and dumplings recipe and just as flavorful!
Table of contents
Easy Homemade Chicken and Dumplings
Xhicken and dumplings is a favorite simple recipe to make when I am craving hearty, homestyle comfort food, but don’t have a ton of extra time. It’s a warming heavenly dish that is quick and ready in 1 hour from start to finish and even though this recipe is completely from scratch I do share tips on variations and short cuts you can take to cut your time and make this even more effortless. It’s an easy, old-fashioned, one-pot meal that has been a family favorite for as long as I can remember!
The best part about this chicken and dumplings recipe, other than the taste, of course, is that it’s a meal everyone can agree on. It’s so full of flavor and chunks of juicy tender chicken, simmered in a thick creamy, herb-flavored broth. And who doesn’t love the signature fluffy homemade dumplings that sop up all that goodness?!
Oooh, so good!
Why we love this recipe
- Quick and easy so it’s great not only for lazy weekends but also busy weeknights.
- Makes a big batch and is enough to feed a small gathering or large family.
- Freezer friendly which means you can freeze leftovers.
- One-pot meal makes for easy meal prep and even easier clean-up.
- Full of flavor from the juicy chicken, herbs, and a creamy sauce.
- Another comforting chicken dish you might like is this creamy chicken casserole recipe.
What you need to make Homemade Chicken and Dumplings
- Chicken – Boneless, skinless, chicken breast cut into 1″ cubes.
- Olive oil – Used to cook chicken and sauté the veggies.
- Veggies – Diced carrots and celery. Frozen peas.
- Aromatics – Diced onion and minced garlic. A dynamic duo giving loads of flavor.
- All Purpose Flour – Needed to thicken up the broth base as well as to make the dumplings.
- Baking powder – An ingredient used in the dough to create fluffy dumplings.
- Chicken broth – A liquid component of the creamy base adding lots of flavor.
- Cream – Heavy cream will help make he dumplings moist and rich.
- Butter – Have some melted butter ready to add to the dough.
- Thyme – A traditional herb used in many chicken dishes. Adds great taste to the broth.
- Salt & pepper – Does what salt and pepper does best!
- Parsley – An optional addition if you prefer.
How to Make this Recipe From Scratch
A little prep beforehand will help speed up the process. Have your celery, onions, and carrots diced and your garlic minced and this recipe will be ready in time for dinner!
Step 1: Using a dutch oven or large pot, heat oil over medium heat. Cook chicken breasts in batches and set aside.
Step 2: Coat the veggies in flour until lightly browned. Then add the chicken stock and thyme and stir well to combine.
Step 3: Add the carrots, onions, and celery and sauté over medium-high heat for 5 minutes before adding the garlic to cook for a few minutes more.
Step 4: Bring to a boil and add the shredded chicken meat back into the pot and let simmer to thicken the soup. Once it has thickened nicely, add in the peas and stir to combine.
Step 5: Combine dumpling ingredients but do not overmix. Drop dough into the soup one scoop/spoonful at a time.
Step 6: Cover and cook for 15 minutes and allow the dumplings to steam completely. Garnish with fresh parsley if desired.
Different types of delicious dumplings
1: Drop – Fluffy drop dumplings, like the ones made in this recipe, are a homemade dough scooped and dropped into the broth.
2. Biscuit – Uses canned biscuit dough that are cut into 4 pieces and dropped into the broth. Great for convenience.
3. Rolled – roll out the dough with a rolling pin and slice one inch thick flat, noodle-like dumplings and dropped in the broth. This is the kind my grandmother made for us growing up in the South. You can use a pizza cutter or pastry cutter for easily cutting the pieces of rolled out dough.
Tips for Making Homemade Chicken and Dumplings
- Use a store-bought rotisserie chicken for added convenience. Keep in mind if it is previously seasoned with loads of seasoning, it may change the taste slightly.
- Use fresh, frozen, or canned peas. You could actually use frozen carrots and celery in a pinch a well.
- For a gluten-free dish substitute gluten-free flour if preferred.
- Substitute heavy cream for whole milk, low-fat milk, buttermilk, or non-dairy milk.
- Use a mix of white or dark meat (from chicken thighs) if desired.
- Use Bisquick mix in place of flour, baking powder, and salt if you’d prefer.
FAQ’s
To store any leftovers, keep covered in an airtight container and pop in the fridge. Should be consumed within 4 days.
Depending on how much you’re reheating, you can reheat it on the stovetop in a pot or in the microwave by individual servings. If it has become too thick you can thin it out with a little additional broth or cream.
Dumplings need to be cooked covered for sure! Not even a peek! You need to keep the lid on for the entire cook time to make sure the steam cooks the dumplings all the way through. Otherwise you’ll be tasting raw dough.
They should be soft however you may not really know unless you test the center with a toothpick. If they’re not quite done yet, cover and continue cooking for another couple of minutes. Keep an eye out though, it is possible for dumplings to overcook.
You can! Chicken and dumplings are freezer friendly. Depending on the type of dough you used you might find that upon thawing your dumplings will have fallen apart. It just might mean that you’ll have an extra thick soup!
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Homemade Chicken and Dumplings
Ingredients
- 4 cups chicken breasts boneless, skinless , diced into one inch pieces (approx. 2 lbs.)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 medium carrots peeled and diced
- 2 stalks celery diced
- 1 medium onion diced finely
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1/4 cup flour
- 6 cups Chicken broth
- 2 teaspoons dried thyme
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 1 cup frozen peas
- Fresh parsley optional
For the Dumplings
- 2 cups flour
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 4 tablespoon butter melted
Instructions
- Dice vegetables and set aside
- Add olive oil to a large pot or Dutch oven and heat over medium high heat .
- Add chicken in batches and cook until no longer pink . Then remove from the pot and set aside.
- Add the carrots, celery and onion to the pot and saute for about 5 minutes.
- Then add garlic and cook an additional 2-3 minutes.
- Add in the flour and stir to coat the vegetables and cook until lightly browned.
- Then add the thyme and chicken broth and stir to blend well.
- Bring to a boil and add the chicken back into the pot.
- Let simmer uncovered for 10 minutes to thicken the soup.
- Add the frozen peas the thicken soup and stir to combine.
For the Dumplings
- In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt.
- Add the cream and melted butter and stir until mixed in completely. (careful NOT TO OVERMIX)
- Using a cookie scoop or spoon, drop a tablespoon of the dumpling dough into the soup on at a time.
- Cover and cook for 15 minutes. (NO NOT open the lid until after the 17 minutes or you risk the dumplings not steaming completely.)
- Garnish with fresh parsley if desired.
Notes
1. Slice raw chicken into cubes and saute in a skillet until no longer pink 2. Boil a whole chicken for 30 minutes. Remove from water, cool and shred
3. Use a store bought rotisserie chicken and remove all meat from the bones.
Linda
I don’t put peas in my chicken and dumplings, only celery, carrots, onions and a little bit of garlic powder.
I use Mrs.B frozen dumplings they are so much easier and just as good as homemade, no floury mess in my kitchen.
Teresa Henderson
Sounds great. I will definitely be trying this one.