Easy Chicken and Dumplings
Creamy, cozy, one-pot Southern chicken and dumplings with tender shredded chicken and fluffy dumplings — all from scratch in under 90 minutes.
Equipment
- Large, heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven
- Wooden Spoon
- Mixing bowl
- pastry cutter or fork
- Ladle
Ingredients
- 1 whole chicken (3–4 pounds), cut into pieces
- 8 cups chicken broth
- 1 cup carrots, sliced
- 1 cup celery, sliced
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp dried thyme
- 2 bay leaves
- ½ cup heavy cream
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- 1 tsp salt (for dumplings)
- 4 tbsp cold butter, cubed
- ¾ cup whole milk
Instructions
- In your large pot, combine the chicken, broth, carrots, celery, onion, garlic, salt, pepper, thyme, and bay leaves. Bring it to a gentle boil.
- Lower the heat and simmer for about 45 minutes, or until the chicken is tender and the meat nearly falls from the bone.
- Remove the chicken pieces and discard the bay leaves. Shred the meat, tossing bones and skin. Return the chicken to the pot.
- In a bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Cut in the cold butter until the texture is crumbly. Stir in milk until a soft dough forms.
- With the soup simmering, drop spoonfuls of dough right onto the hot broth.
- Cover the pot tightly and cook for 15 minutes. Don’t lift the lid — this step steams the dumplings until they’re fluffy.
- Stir in the heavy cream and cook for 5 more minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed.
Notes
Want to save time? Swap in rotisserie chicken and use pre-made biscuit dough — it still tastes amazing with half the effort!