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.
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 never made true chicken and dumplings until this recipe. I live in NC so this dish is taken rather seriously and your mettle is defined by how you make this dish lol. I served this to a historical society of Civil War folks so the pressure was on.
I made the recipe almost exactly, subtracting nothing just merely adding. To the broth I used a bouillon paste and added 1.5 T garlic powder, used white pepper in place of black, used both bay leaf and Italian seasoning. To the dough I added about a tsp of onion powder.
My only issue was actually cooking the dumplings. I didn’t know if it was okay to stir them and did not know the importance of leaving the lid on and not peaking so the steam could do its work. Happily, I figured it out and every cooked to perfection and the dumplings didn’t turn to glue or become chewy.
My dinner folks said it might be the best or one of the best dumplings they ever had. So definitely give it a try. I did double the recipe and used chicken legs and boneless skinless chicken breast. Nice to know in these days I can still get lucky and find chicken @ $.99 per pound
I am so happy to hear this recipe was a hit for your dinner group Karisma!
When you say “leave the skin on” are you referring to the onion or the chicken?
Hi Joe, I am referring to the onion. The skin can add extra color and flavor to the broth.
have u ever try making this in a Crock-Pot
For a Crock Pot version I use this recipe Stephanie!
can I substitute self rising flour for the dumplings?
While I have not tried it, I think if you substitute self rising flour in place of the all purpose and baking powder it should work just fine. If you try it I would love to hear how it turns out!
Hi, I plan on making this. But I have a question. Have you ever used stock to make your dumplings? Instead of the milk?
I haven’t tried it so I can’t say for sure Lela. If you try it I would love to hear how it turns out!
My first time making this, my chicken was a little stringy and I cooked my dumplings 15 minutes. They tasted great but I think they needed to cook 20 minutes before thickening the sauce.
loved this recipe!
very smart to say “old fashioned ” I’ll be making it this weekend “
This is an absolutely delicious and easy dinner. The dumplings don’t freeze well, so if your family can’t eat it all within a couple of days, give some to a friend. I guarantee they will love it and want the recipe. I reduce the cornstarch by 1/2 and add the veggies back in after cooking with the chicken. I cut the onion small and do not put in the onion skin. Cooking the veggies full size with the chicken really speeds up the process. You can use bone broth or low salt/no MSG Swanson’s broth to make it a bit more healthy.
I don’t have milk, I have half and half, any suggestions?
Any milk will work. Half and half will just make it a bit creamier Carla!
Best chicken and dumplings I’ve ever had. Made them for a thanksgiving potluck where everyone brought soups or chili. I made 2 large pots and I was the only one who walked away with empty pots. Everyone love it.
the soup itself didn’t come out bad, but the dumplings are bland as hell. definitely needs about 4 to 5 times as much salt as the recipe calls for.
This is so, so delicious. I made my dumplings into little squares and they’re so beautifully pillowy, and l thinly sliced some green onions and added them at the end with the parsley (trying to use up what’s in my fridge!) what a fantastic recipe!
Love Love Love…..This turned out great for dinner tonight. Made it with a precooked whole chicken from Costco ($5) and removed the meat from the bone. I use ‘Better than Bullion’ Roasted Chicken base instead of bouillon cubes, I used 3 1/2 tbsp per the 8 cups of water. The dumplings turned out great, just the right size. My only mistake was not making a double batch which I will do next time. I’m not much of a cook, especially making anything from scratch so if I can do it anyone can.
Haven’t made this recipe yet will be making it sometime soon. Looked through all the recipes on line and this one looked the best can not wait to make this
Very similar to chicken & dumplings I’ve been making for about 65 years. However I boil my chicken in water flavoring it with chicken soup base, I don’t add the carrots, just celery & onion. I normally just use self rising flour for the dumplings. I roll them out on a well floured sheet of newspaper to save some clean up but also I allow my dumplings to air dry for awhile before adding into the broth, adding the ‘left over flour from the rolling’ along with the dumplings instead of making a separate thickener. that’s usually more than enough for thickening, I add evaporated can milk & butter then add salt & fresh ground black pepper to taste. I sometimes add a bit of poultry seasoning to my dumplings. I also save the bones & skin to boil further for broth. I have a bag of bones & skin in the freezer until I have enough to make a good amount of broth with flavorings to my taste. Better than any store bought.
how big of a chicken do you use?
I use one whole chicken cut up, about 3-4lbs.
I don’t understand why my dumplings didn’t cook. They are mush. Was I supposed to bring it to a boil first then simmer? My dough was kind of sticky at first. Too much milk?
This was my first try at dumplings!
Oh no! I’m sorry to hear that Lisa. I can’t say for sure what happened as I haven’t had that problem before. Did you use a hard shortening the texture of butter (like Crisco)?
….. total yum. This was my first in a long time making roll out dumplings, since i usually take the easy way out and use Bisquick. It wasn’t as difficult as thought it would be… next time i will cut them about 2×2″ or bigger, my little ones disintegrated. This had such a great taste.
I ended up using all of the cornstarch slurry for thickening (and all of the 3/4 cup milk to make to the dumplings). Also, my original 8 cups broth didn’t seem to be enough (but my chicken was really big) so it may have simmered off even though i kept it covered – I added 2 chicken bouillon cubes and 2 cups water extra.
thank you for the recipe
so good! if you’re feeding more than 4, double the dumplings!
This is THE BEST chicken and dumplings. I have made it numerous times and it turns out amazing every time. My family loves it!!