Chicken and Dumplings is the ultimate comfort food, with tender chicken, homemade dumplings, and a flavorful broth that warms you from the inside out. This classic recipe is simple to make from scratch and perfect for a cozy family dinner any night of the week.
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Holly’s Recipe Highlights: Chicken and Dumplings
Flavor: The rich, savory broth, tender chicken, and soft, pillowy dumplings come together to create a comforting, hearty dish with classic homemade flavor.
Recommended Tools: A large soup pot, rolling pin, pizza cutter, and cheesecloth make preparing this recipe easier and help achieve the best results.
Serving Suggestions: I like to serve this chicken and dumplings with a simple green salad.
Total Time: 1 Hour 35 Minutes Serves: 8 Cooking Method: Stovetop
Ingredient Notes
- Whole Chicken: A whole chicken creates a rich, flavorful homemade broth while providing plenty of tender meat. Bone-in chicken thighs are a great substitute.
- Carrots and Celery: These vegetables add savory flavor to the broth as it simmers. For a heartier soup, chop and return them to the pot, or discard them for a smoother, clearer broth.
- Bay Leaf or Poultry Seasoning: While optional, either adds extra savory flavor to the broth. Poultry seasoning, thyme, or a pinch of sage all complement the chicken with a classic, comforting taste.
- All-Purpose Flour: Forms the base of the homemade dumplings. Keep extra flour on hand for the work surface and dough to prevent the strips from sticking while rolling and cutting.
- Variations: Stir in frozen peas with the chicken for extra color and sweetness. For a richer finish, add a splash of cream before serving. For a shortcut version, use cooked shredded chicken, keeping in mind the broth will have a lighter flavor.
How to Make Chicken and Dumplings
- Place the chicken, vegetables, and seasonings into a large pot and pour in the chicken broth.
- Simmer the chicken with vegetables, broth, and seasonings.
- While chicken is simmering, start the dumplings. Cut the shortening into the dry ingredients and gradually add milk to form a soft dough.
- Gently knead the dough on a well-floured surface a few times until it becomes smooth.
- Roll the dough out thinly and use a pizza cutter to slice it into short strips.
- Strain the broth and shred the cooked chicken while discarding the skin and bones.
- Simmer the dumpling strips in the broth, thicken with a cornstarch slurry, and stir the shredded chicken back in before serving.
Tips for Tender Dumplings
- For Even Cooking: Roll the dumplings thin, about ¼ inch.
- To Prevent Clumping: Flour the dough generously before cutting so the strips do not clump together.
- For Soft Dough: Add the milk slowly to the dumpling dough. Soft dough is good, sticky dough is harder to roll.
- Do Not Over-Knead: A few folds of the dough are enough to bring it together.
- Simmer the Dumplings Gently: A hard boil can break them apart.
- Add the Cornstarch Slurry Slowly: The broth thickens quickly.
Storing The Cozy Extras
- Storing Leftovers: Keep leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
- Freezing: The chicken and broth can be frozen for up to 3 months. For the best texture, freeze before adding the dumplings, then make fresh dumplings when reheating.
- Reheating: Reheat gently on the stovetop over medium-low heat or in the microwave at reduced power, stirring occasionally. Add a splash of broth or water if the dumplings have absorbed too much liquid.
Cozy Chicken Dinners
Did you enjoy the following Chicken and Dumplings recipe? Leave a comment and rating below.
Chicken and Dumplings
This cozy chicken and dumplings recipe is made with rich homemade broth, tender shredded chicken, and soft rolled dumplings simmered right in the pot.
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
- ½ teaspoon salt or to taste
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper or to taste
- 1 bay leaf or a ¼ teaspoon poultry seasoning, optional
- 8 cups reduced sodium chicken broth
- 4 tablespoons cornstarch plus 4 tablespoons water
For the Dumplings
- 1¾ cups all-purpose flour plus extra for dusting
- ⅓ cup shortening
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¾ cup milk
Instructions
- In a large soup pot, combine the chicken, onion, carrots, celery, salt, pepper, and the bay leaf.
- 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.
- Strain broth through cheesecloth. Shred or chop the chicken and discard the skin and bones. Chop the vegetables if desired (or discard). Set aside.
- Add the strained broth back to the pot. Bring to a boil and gently add dumplings to broth. Reduce heat and 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, shortening, baking powder, and salt with a fork or pastry cutter until shortening is the size of small crumbs.
- 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 5-6 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
- Chicken: *The whole chicken can be replaced with 3 pounds of bone-in chicken thighs.
- Vegetables: Carrots and celery can be served on the side or chopped and added to the broth along with the chicken. If adding to the broth, frozen peas can also be added.
- Seasonings: While I’ve kept the seasonings simple, any of the following can be added to the broth: ¾ teaspoon poultry seasoning, ½ teaspoon dried thyme leaves, ¼ teaspoon ground sage.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
Nutrition Information
Calories: 461 | Carbohydrates: 33g | Protein: 27g | Fat: 25g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 6g | Monounsaturated Fat: 10g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 73mg | Sodium: 469mg | Potassium: 619mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 4756IU | Vitamin C: 5mg | Calcium: 82mg | Iron: 3mg
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Chicken, Dinner, Entree, 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.
I have a question please .. When you say 1 chicken, am I right to understand this is a whole chicken?
That is correct, Jennifer. We use a whole chicken for this recipe.
I followed the recipe as written – Simple and delicious! Thank you!
Best Chicken & Dumplings I’ve ever made and I’ve made them many times over my years of preparing meals! I think this is a great recipe. Very flavorful. I did leave my onion whole and chopped up later as you recommended & added back into broth. I did use more organic chicken broth than instructed – I like a lot of broth. I cooked a whole chicken in broth which also creates more flavor. Did not need to thicken the broth when you add homemade dumplings but next time I will make more dumplings.
Looking forward to eating again tonight.
Wonderful recipe! I did a bit more broth (we had about 2 cups of turkey broth left over in the freezer) and bumped up the corn starch a bit. I missed if it was called out, but I cut the onion into thirds then did a 1/6th on those pieces. I also added some garden green onion.
It was fantastic all the way around, added corn starch water after taking the chicken and veggies out and before adding the dumplings. That way the stirring wouldn’t disturb the dumplings.
Curious if this could be frozen too. I may give it a try and see with some of the left overs.
What kind of shortening do you use?
Hi Martha, any brand of shortening should work for this recipe. Some popular ones are Crisco or Tenderflake shortening, but any should work.
What did I do wrong? My dumplings turned to mush and fell apart. I’m sure it was me, help!
I can’t say for sure as I haven’t had that problem before. Did you use a hard shortening the texture of butter (like Crisco)?
Hi Amber, I was just reading about dumplings in my Joy of Cooking cookbook and it said never let your broth go above a simmer or the dumplings could turn to mush or disintegrate.
Best dumplings ever! This is the only recipe I use. Family loves them !
This was awesome! The recipe was easy to follow. I have never made chicken and dumplings.
Real close to how grandma use to make them … however you do not need milk or thickener … use the broth and chicken fat floating on top to the dumpling mix (the baking powder just causes them to puff a little so it’s not necessary either) … and flour the dumplings real good after they are cut to keep them from sticking to each other … the extra flour on the dumplings mixes with the broth and thickens itself (like a nice gravy or bechamel sauce)
Thank you Lance! I lost my Mom’s recipe (and sadly she is no longer here for me to ask) and you reminded me that she made her dumplings with the broth!
I can’t believe it actually worked! I have never been able to do anything well with dough! This recipe is perfect!!
Did not know how to make home made dumplings! Will add them to my Turkish chicken soup (tavuk corbasi) which has more of a lemon flavor. This is a great recipe, thank you for sharing!!
I’d like to make this, however, it doesn’t state if it’s all purpose flour or self rising flour…
Hi Melissa, we use all-purpose flour in this recipe.
This is my go to recipe for my dumplings
So good! Big hit with the guys in my house!
I made this tonight and it was great. This is going in my family recipe cook book forever. Thank you Holly.
Excellent!!!
My son made this last night. Said it was great. My mother made this frequently, but didn’t add the chicken to the dumplings. And she added no leavening or egg to the dough. It was always delicious. Neighbors and friends would provide poultry after asking if she could make some for them. my son never made it before and he was very happy with how it turned out. I can’t imagine what the next commenter did for here’s to turn out as she describes. FYI – I’ve even used quality flour tortillas to make just enough for me. They’re made from the same ingredients. But they need to be good ones. Not Dollar Tree versions. They don’t hold up while cooking.
Hi Wendy! So glad this recipe turned out delicious for him. :)
Just a note-soft mill flour will produce mush. Also, do not cover while simmering dumplings. You must use a standard grade flour for “sturdy” dumplings. Also, egg added to dumplings is a noodle. True dumplings do not have egg in them.
It was awful. I’m a good cook. Follow recipe with a couple of extra veggies. Had great homemade chicken broth. What a waste. They needed salt and had no egg. It made the dish slimy. It was a waste of time and ingredients. Threw the whole pot out!
Oh no, I am sorry to hear that Susan! This recipe is usually such a hit with our readers.
Love this recipe! I followed the dumpling instructions to a t, and they turned out awesome! Thank you for sharing this!
So glad you enjoyed it, Meghan!
Fabulous! I added turmeric and it is delicious
I have loved this recipe and by chance I made it for my dad’s very last meal. He was on hospice and could only eat soothing, easy to swallow foods. He hadn’t been eating much until I made this recipe. He ate one bowl, asked for seconds, and told me it tasted really good. We had a nice dinner together. Unfortunately, soon after that it was his time to leave us, but I’m very thankful that I have a good memory of one last meal with him. Thank you for putting this recipe out for others to share and enjoy. Sometimes the smallest things can have the biggest impact on someone’s life.
Wow Nicole, that teared me up. I agree, memories around food are very special, and I am so glad that you were able to enjoy such a lovely meal with your dad, and honored to have played a part in that. ❤️❤️
Beautiful memory!! You made me cry. I experienced the same with my father before he passed, unexpectedly, in April. Food and family is a strong bond. I am grateful that our family was able to share his favorite meal together. The next day, he went into the hospital and never came home. Bless you and that memory.
The recipe was so easy and the dumplings turned out perfect! I’ve been looking for this type of dumpling recipe for a long time. This is a keeper!