Old Fashioned Chicken and Dumplings is a family favorite meal that is both comforting and delicious! This easy recipe is created from scratch including the tender dumplings and juicy chicken in an easy homemade broth.
This recipe starts with 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. This is a family favorite that will be requested again and again!
Homemade Chicken and dumplings is good ol’ comfort food at its best. While I love quick and easy Crock Pot Chicken and Dumplings, there is nothing quite like a meal that is completely homemade.
Making old fashioned chicken and dumplings from scratch is much easier than you’d think. Most of the time is spent letting the broth simmer until it is flavorful and the chicken is cooked to tender perfection.
This recipe starts with chicken, onion and carrots simmered on the stove. When making the broth I choose a large onion and leave the skin on to add extra color and flavor to the broth. Feel free to add in your favorite herbs such as bay leaf, a pinch of poultry seasoning and fresh parsley. Once the chicken is cooked, it is removed from the broth along with the vegetables.
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.
If you’ve ever wondered how to make dumplings from scratch, you’ll love how easy they are! While some people like to make them with Bisquick, I find they’re just as easy to make with ingredients you likely already have in your pantry!
Don’t get too caught up in making your dumplings perfect, it doesn’t really matter how they’re cut. The only thing you’re going to want to be sure of is that your dough is rolled out to about 1/8” thick. This gives the dumplings the perfect consistency.
At the end of cooking, we like to thicken the broth with a little bit of cornstarch and water once the dumplings are cooked. Just mix equal amounts together and add a little bit at a time until the broth reaches the desired consistency. If you prefer a creamier broth, feel free to add a little bit of milk or heavy cream once the dumplings are cooked.
Old Fashioned Chicken and Dumplings
Ingredients
Broth
- 1 chicken cut into pieces
- 1 onion
- 3 large carrots cut into thirds
- 3 stalks celery cut into thirds
- 8 cups low sodium chicken broth
- salt & pepper to taste
- bay leaf or a pinch of poultry seasoning optional
Dumplings
- 1 ¾ cups flour plus extra for dusting
- ⅓ cup shortening
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¾ cup milk
- ½ teaspoon salt
OTHER
- 4 tablespoons cornstarch
- parsley for garnish
Instructions
- Combine chicken, onion, carrots and celery in a large pot. Season to taste.
- Add chicken broth. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer covered 45-60 minutes or until chicken is tender. While broth is simmering, prepare dumplings below.
- Remove chicken and vegetables from broth. Discard skin and bones and chop remaining chicken, set aside.
- Gently add dumplings to broth. Simmer 15-20 minutes or until tender.
- Stir chicken (and vegetables if desired) into broth and cook about 2-3 minutes or until heated through.
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″ thick. Cut dough into 1″ x 2″ strips. Flour generously to avoid sticking.
- Cook in broth as directed above.
TO THICKEN BROTH (OPTIONAL)
- 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
Cuisine American© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
Hi Holly, any substitutes for shortening? I will be attempting to make with gluten free flour.
Hi Haley, you can use butter as a substitute for shortening in this recipe. Let us know how it turns out for you!
can you make these dumpling ahead of time and freeze
Hi Gloria, I have not tried freezing the dumplings but other readers have! ‘Prepare the dumplings (do not cook) then coat well in flour and freeze separate from the soup. When you’re ready to cook just add the dumplings in to the soup after you bring it to a boil.’
yes you can freeze dumplings. line a cooking sheet with wax paper and lay out your dumplings. the next day, while broth is heating up, take your dumplings out of freezer. Makes life less stressful.
Love this recipe! Question: I added the full amount of cornstarch at the end and my sauce was still more “soupy” versus like a thin gravy as shown in your video. I prefer the thicker sauce – what could I be doing wrong that my sauce is coming out thin? I followed the recipe exactly (as far as I know). I used 8 cups of broth (2 boxes).
If you’d like the sauce to be thicker, you could add some additional cornstarch slurry. Combine equal parts cornstarch and cold water and drizzle into the simmering liquid.
Perhaps your chicken released a little bit more liquid than mine or my dumplings may have had a slightly heavier dusting of flour on the outside, these could change the consistency somewhat. I hope that helps!
I’ve made this a few times. Usually turns out great, sometimes the dumplings disintegrate.
I just tried making this for the first time & for some reason my dumplings started to disintegrate. What did I do wrong/what should I do differently next time?
Hmm, I’m not sure what happened there, Madison! Was the broth on a gentle simmer? If it’s boiling too vigorously the dumplings could fall apart. Also, be sure to place them in the pot very gently.
My daughter had 2 bowls and she’s a picky eater!
I love this recipe, every thing I have tried from spend with pennies has been easy and fantastic. Thank you so much
Thank you so much, Patty! That makes us so happy to hear ❤️
this chicken and dumplings was very good. just wondering how I could make it with more juice. first time I attempted dumplings, everything was great
Hi Donna, you can add more chicken broth if you want it to be thinner.
this tastes so much like my grandma’s chicken and dumplings. in my family we do thicken it like the optional way and usually serve over thick mashed potatoes (just mainly potatoes, milk, butter).
it is like getting a hug
Love this recipe! I’ve made it more than once. 95% of our recipes comes from spend with pennies and they are all winners.
I’m so glad you’ve loved the recipes Sheila, thank you so much for following along!
I like this recipe
This recipe was the best chicken and dumplings I have ever made!!! It is sooooo good, it was like my grandma’s chicken and dumplings. Thank you I will definitely use this recipe every time I make it.