Chicken and dumplings is the ultimate comfort food.
A whole chicken simmered to tender perfection with veggies and seasonings. Simple dumplings, made with pantry ingredients are simmered in the broth until plump and tender.
Chicken and dumplings is easy to make from scratch and will be requested again and again.
You’ll Crave This Old Fashioned Chicken and Dumplings Because…
- Homemade Chicken and dumplings is good ol’ comfort food at its best.
- Making chicken and dumplings from scratch is easy, most of the time is spent simmering.
- The broth is so flavorful, the chicken is incredibly tender, and the simple dumplings are made with pantry ingredients.
Ingredients for Chicken and Dumplings
The Broth
This is a simple broth made with a whole chicken and vegetables. Onions and carrots add flavor. Use a large onion and leave the skin on to add extra color to the broth. You can add your favorite herbs, such as bay leaf, a pinch of poultry seasoning, and fresh parsley.
We like to eat the veggies as a side dish, but feel free to chop the carrots & celery and add them back into your broth.
How to Make Dumplings
It’s so easy to make dumplings from scratch with basic ingredients (and doesn’t take much longer than making them with Bisquick). Flour, shortening, milk, baking powder, and salt are combined to make the dumplings.
Don’t worry about making the dumplings perfect; it doesn’t matter how they’re cut as long as the dough is rolled to about 1/8-inch thick. This gives the dumplings the perfect consistency.
How To Make Old Fashioned Chicken and Dumplings
- Cut the chicken and add all the broth ingredients to a large pot. Simmer.
- Prepare the dumplings (recipe below).
- Remove chicken from the broth. Discard the bones and skin and chop the meat.
- Add dumplings to broth and simmer.
- Add the chicken to the broth. Thicken with optional cornstarch.
Some Extra Tips
This will keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. If freezing, it is best to freeze without the dumplings. They will become soggy. It is best to freeze the chicken and the dumplings separately.
Did you enjoy this Old Fashioned Chicken and Dumplings Recipe? Leave a comment and rating below.
Old Fashioned Chicken and Dumplings
Equipment
Ingredients
Broth
- 1 whole chicken 4 to 5 pounds, cut into pieces
- 1 yellow onion cut into quarters
- 3 large carrots cut into thirds
- 3 ribs celery cut into thirds
- 8 cups reduced sodium chicken broth
- salt and black pepper to taste
- 1 bay leaf or a ¼ teaspoon poultry seasoning, optional
For the Dumplings
- 1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour plus extra for dusting
- ⅓ cup shortening
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¾ cup milk
- ½ teaspoon salt
Other
- 4 tablespoons cornstarch
- chopped fresh parsley for garnish
Instructions
- In a large soup pot, combine the chicken, onion, carrots, and celery. Add salt to taste (about ½ teaspoon).
- Add chicken broth. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer covered for 45-60 minutes or until the chicken is tender and cooked through. While the broth is simmering, prepare dumplings below.
- Remove chicken and vegetables from the broth. Discard skin and bones and chop remaining chicken, set aside.
- Gently add dumplings to broth. Simmer for 15-20 minutes or until tender.
- Stir chicken (and vegetables if desired) into the broth and cook about 2-3 minutes or until heated through.
To Make the Dumplings
- Combine flour, baking powder, salt, and shortening with a fork until shortening is mixed in.
- Add milk a little at a time and mix until combined (you may not need all of it, you want a soft but not sticky dough).
- Knead a few times on a floured surface until dough is smooth.
- Generously flour your surface and roll the dough out to ⅛-inch thick. Using a sharp knife or a pizza cutter, cut the dough into 1-inch x 2-inch strips. Flour generously to avoid sticking.
- Cook in broth as directed above.
To Thicken the Broth
- In a small bowl combine 4 tablespoons cornstarch with 4 tablespoons water.
- Add to boiling broth a little bit at a time stirring to reach desired consistency.
Video
Notes
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Main Course
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Delicious!!! Love a great keeper recipe
My husband doesn’t like leftovers but he did with this recipe! It made enough for 2 dinners and a lunch, So good!
Love the recipe. Have to admit Icheat n either use cut up flour tortillas or can biscuits for the dumplings however they are still delish!!
absolutely the perfect chicken and dumplings recipe. I use it with a whole turkey at the holidays and just double everything else because everybody loves it so much. love this recipe!!!!
Made this recipe over a year ago. I refuse to use any other after this one came out so amazing.
Thank goodness, I found it again!
My grandma would definitely be proud ☺!
LOVE IT!!! However I did add (1)tsp poultry seasoning, regular chicken broth, and (1)tsp tumeric. Totally did the cornstarch and water and next time definitely used a lot of baby carrots in it cause all of that flavor was probably the best taste of carrots I’ve ever had in my life!!! Thanks for the recipe!!!!!
I have been using this recipe for years for the dumplings. It’s so amazing every time! I use butter instead of shortening as well as add a bit of seasonings for extra flavor and it always works like a charm. I also just grab a small ball and squish it flat rather than rolling out the dough. I plan on using this recipe for many years! :)
Omg same day too?!!! Yes sooooo amazing!!!!!
Can you use precooked rotisserie chicken
that should work well. You wouldn’t need to cook the chicken in the broth in step 2 but you could put the chicken carcass in there to infuse the broth with the flavor. Enjoy!
Very good! I didn’t roll out the dumplings, I just rolled them into little balls and sometimes I just pinch in little pieces!