This easy Chicken and Dumplings recipe is SO FAST AND EASY to make from scratch in only 30 minutes if you use rotisserie chicken and store-bought (or other pre-made) broth! It’s a fast, easy comfort food to make on busy nights. The fresh thyme in the perfectly fluffy dumplings sets it over the edge! The chicken and dumplings broth can be made thick and luscious like a gravy, or more thin like a soup depending on preference.
This, my friends, is comfort food at its finest. It has all the taste of chicken pot pie without the effort (because who has time to deal with a pie crust on a busy weeknight?).
Between the fluffy dumplings with a biscuit-like texture, the juicy, tender shredded chicken, and the creamy, thick broth, this easy chicken and dumplings recipe will have you and your whole family literally RUNNING to the dinner table!
In this post I’ll explain how to make this easy chicken and dumplings from scratch in only 30 minutes with a few simple shortcuts, and give my best tips and tricks for getting the fluffiest dumplings that still hold their shape!
Why this chicken and dumplings recipe is SO FAST!
Traditionally, chicken and dumplings is a labor-intensive process, involving boiling an entire chicken to make stock, waiting for it to cool, and de-boning it, not to mention making dumpling dough by rolling and flattening out biscuit dough. It makes a mess and takes hours.
But almost every “quick and easy” recipe for chicken and dumplings I’ve come across uses processed ingredients like condensed canned creamed soup and pre-made biscuit dough.
I wanted to make a version of chicken and dumplings that was fast and easy to make but used as few pre-made, processed ingredients as possible.
You can make this chicken and dumplings recipe in only 30 minutes if you use shredded rotisserie chicken (or leftover roast chicken, poached chicken, or meat from a slow cooker whole chicken) and store-bought chicken broth helps save loads of time without sacrificing any of that down-home, from scratch taste! Easy peasy.
How to make Easy Chicken and Dumplings
I’m telling you, this recipe for chicken and dumplings could not be easier. It cooks up super fast in only one pot!
- First, sauté some diced carrots, onions, and celery in some butter. Tip: use the rib AND the leaves from the celery, if you have them. The leaves are packed with flavor!
- Then, sprinkle some flour on the veggies and stir around to coat, and add some chicken stock and bring to a boil. The flour will help thicken the gravy-like broth to a perfect consistency.
- While the soup is coming to a boil, mix the dumpling dough: flour, salt, baking powder, fresh thyme, melted butter, and milk.
- Once the soup comes to a boil, add some milk and the cooked chicken to the pot. Add scoops of the dumpling dough to the broth, cover the pot, and simmer for 15 minutes. Done! Told you that was easy.
One thing to keep in mind: if the soup doesn’t seem that thick at first, don’t worry. Some of the flour from the dumpling dough will also seep into the broth, thickening it a bit more, and it will also thicken as it cools some.
Tips and Tricks for making the BEST fluffy Dumplings
There are two kinds of dumplings used for chicken and dumplings. The first is a flat dumpling- the dough is rolled out and cut, then dropped in the soup. The result is a thick noodle-like consistency (like Cracker Barrel’s chicken and dumplings).
The other kind of dumpling is more biscuit-like: fluffy, round balls of dough that expand and cook after being dropped in the soup. This chicken and dumplings has the fluffy kind of dumplings.
Here are the best tips to getting the fluffiest dumplings that won’t fall apart with the PERFECT texture:
- Use white flour, not whole wheat. Whole wheat tends to be a bit dense and has less gluten, so the result won’t be as fluffy. If whole grains are super important to you, try a combination of half white and half whole wheat flour.
- Don’t overmix the dough. Stir it until it’s just combined and you can’t see any powdery flour anymore.
- Use a cookie scoop to scoop the dough into the soup. This will ensure that all the dumplings are evenly sized and fairly round.
- No peeking! Keep the lid on for 15 minutes while the dumplings cook. This will trap the steam and also ensure you don’t stir it, which may smush the dumplings and affect their texture.
How to make the broth thick and gravy-like
Craving a more substantial broth? Some readers have commented that the base of this chicken and dumplings is a bit thin for their taste.
If you want a more gravy-like base to this chicken and dumplings recipe, just increase the amount of flour added to the veggies. Add about 2 tablespoons more flour, more or less depending on preference.
Other easy comfort food recipes?
- Chicken Pot Pie with a Whole Wheat Biscuit Crust
- Healthy 20-Minute Chicken and Mushroom Stroganoff
- Easy Chicken Noodle Soup
- Classic Shrimp and Grits
- Easy Shepherd’s Pie
- Creamy Chicken Gnocchi Soup
Did you know commenting and rating recipes is one of the best ways you can support your favorite food bloggers? If you made this recipe or have a question, please click the stars below to comment and Rate this Recipe and/or share photos on social media using the hashtag #bowlofdelicious or tagging @bowlofdelicious!
Easy Chicken and Dumplings from Scratch
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons butter divided
- 2 carrots diced small
- 2 stalks celery plus their leaves diced
- 1 onion diced
- 1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour divided
- 4 cups low sodium chicken stock/broth
- 1 cup whole milk divided
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon baking powder (see notes)
- 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme leaves or 1/2 teaspoon dried, plus more for garnish
- 2 cups cooked diced or shredded chicken
- extra salt and pepper
Instructions
- Sauté the carrots, celery, and onions in 2 tablespoons of the butter in a large pot over medium high heat until softened a bit and beginning to brown (about 3 minutes).
- Add 1/4 cup flour, stir to coat.
- Add chicken broth (4 cups) and bring to a boil.
- Turn the heat down to simmer and add 1/2 cup milk and the chicken. Season with salt and pepper.
- Meanwhile, to make the dumplings, mix together the remaining 1 cup of flour, 1 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon baking powder, and 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves. Stir in the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter, melted, until flour mixture is crumbly looking. Add the remaining 1/2 cup of milk and stir until JUST combined. Do NOT over mix, or your dumplings may be dense.
- Add spoonfuls of the dumpling mixture to the simmering pot- I recommend using a small cookie scoop for this (a tablespoon can also be used).
- Cover and simmer on low for 15 minutes, or until dumplings are fluffy, cooked, and float to the top. No peeking!
- Serve garnished with extra fresh thyme and fresh ground pepper, if desired.
Video
Notes
- If you are sensitive to salt, cut the salt in the dumplings in half, as they are quite salty. I like them that way, but some readers have recommended taking the amount of salt down. Also, if you are using fine grain salt instead of kosher, use 3/4 teaspoon, as 1 teaspoon will be too much.
- Make sure your baking powder is fresh. Baking powder often isn’t good after a year of opening it. If you find your dumplings are dense and not fluffy, this may likely be the culprit.
- Readers have commented that this recipe doesn’t make as much as they would like. Please double it if you and your family have a big appetite!
- You can freeze the leftovers, or double the batch and freeze one for later in an airtight container for up to 6 months.
- If you prefer a really thick base, you can add 1-2 more tablespoons of flour to the veggies before adding the broth and milk.
- If you don’t like thyme, you can use other herbs– parsley, oregano, or even dill- or leave them out entirely.
- Feel free to add more veggies toward the end of cooking, such as frozen peas or corn, or a few handfuls of baby spinach.
- I love making this in a Dutch Oven, because it stays hot for a while if dinner is ready early. The one in the photos is a Cuisinart 5.5 qt. Oval Dutch Oven but lately I’ve been recommending the Lodge Dutch Oven.
- The provided nutrition information does not include any added sodium from seasoning to taste, any optional ingredients, and it does not take brands into account. Feel free to calculate it yourself using this calculator or by adding the recipe to Yummly.
Nutrition
Nutrition Information Disclaimer
The provided nutrition information is my best estimate and does not include any added sodium from seasoning to taste, any optional ingredients, and it does not take brands into account. I use an automatic API to calculate this information. Feel free to calculate it yourself using one of these tools:
This chicken and dumplings recipe first appeared on Bowl of Delicious in September, 2016. It has been edited to include a video, process shots, and more detailed instructions, tips, and tricks.
Julie Benfatto
First time ever making chicken and dumplings. This was a hit!! Took me way longer then 30 minutes but I had to bake the chicken and prep the veggies. I doubled the recipe to have easy leftovers. Didn’t have thyme and used 1% milk, other then that, followed the recipe. So good! Thank you for sharing it.
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it!
Laura
Does anyone know if I can finish this in the oven to add a little color to the top of the dumplings?
Elizabeth Lindemann
I haven’t tried it but I think you can! I would add the dumplings to the base, then bake at 375 for 30ish minutes until golden brown on top. You may want to add a little extra chicken broth to account for evaporation as it cooks in the oven. This is similar to making chicken pot pie with a biscuit crust: https://www.bowlofdelicious.com/chicken-pot-pie-with-a-whole-wheat-biscuit-crust/
Elizabeth Lindemann
Alternatively, you could just cook as directed and broil it or add it to a very hot oven for 5ish minutes after the dumplings are cooked on the stovetop :-)
Carol Woznicki
Is it ok to use skim milk?
Elizabeth Lindemann
Sure! I recommend whole milk for taste, but skim will do just fine if that’s all you have.
Carol Woznicki
Ok great! Don’t want to go to store if I don’t need to! Thanks!
Natalie
Is the recipe calling for cooked chicken? Just not sure if I should cook it, then shred it and add it or just put the chicken in raw.
Elizabeth Lindemann
Yes, the recipe calls for cooked chicken. I usually like using leftover roast or rotisserie chicken for this. But if you have raw, just cook it up, shred it, and proceed with the recipe from there! Hope that helps and hope you like it :-)
Ken
Awesomely Delicious!
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it!
Melonie
This was a great base recipe…I added my own fav seasoning and can of green beans (all I had around) used rotisserie chicken… made my dumplings to big so had to add extra cook time, but it was a great comfort food!!!!
Elizabeth Lindemann
Glad you liked it!
Caitlin Acox
This was hands down the best homemade chicken and dumplin’ recipe and super easy to make. I made some modifications and used thick oat milk (dairy issues) and threw in some dried rosemary into the dumplings and the broth. My kids loved it too!
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it, and thanks for the tip on using oat milk and rosemary!
Kate
Made this tonight because I wanted to do something new with leftover rotisserie chicken. Absolutely loved it! I added the extra 1/2TB flour as I like mine a bit on the thicker side, and 1.5c frozen corn. I also used thyme, parsley, and oregano in my dumplings. Wish I could attach a photo! Will be adding it to my recipe book.
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it!
Martha Morgan
This dish is so easy and absolutely delicious. This is the 3rd time I’ve made it and my husband and I LOVE it. I’ve always loved chicken and dumplings and now I can make them myself. Yay!
Elizabeth Lindemann
Yay! So glad you and your husband like it :-)
Laura
This was absolutely wonderful… I used homemade broth I already had in the freezer and added frozen peas at the end (after the dumpling are cooked… frozen peas just take a few minutes to heat up and if they’re over cooked they go off colour). Two thumbs up! So good!
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it!
Raven
Can you use coconut milk instead of whole milk
Elizabeth Lindemann
Yes you can! It won’t come out quite as creamy, and it may have a slight coconut flavor, but you definitely can (this is a great way to make this dairy-free, using ghee or olive oil instead of butter).
Elizabeth Lindemann
Oh and for the milk in the dumpling mixture, I would recommend watering down the coconut milk just little or using only water instead of milk- the coconut milk is probably too thick to mix into the dumplings :-)
Claire Morey
Love it…not thick like old fashioned chicken and dumplings…it was perfect!
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it!
Summer
I don’t have any of these veggies but I have mixed veggies and a California blend veggies I have bought from aldi . How would I corporate this in the dish ? How much frozen should I use ? What is the serving size
Elizabeth Lindemann
Hi! Yes, a mixed frozen veggies would work great. You can probably get away with adding them into the broth for a few minutes before scooping the dumpling mixture in. Maybe 1-1.5 cups of them. I estimate a serving size to be about 1.5 cups. For my recipes, I always have how many servings the whole recipe makes, but it’s hard to say the exact serving size- you may be better off to just divide it equally into four bowls after making it, if that makes sense! :-)
Madison
I am pregnant and had a major craving. This was AMAZING! I added the extra flour and subbed carrots for mushrooms and peas. Also added less salt to dumplings. Broth was like gravy, so amazing. I’m making it again tomorrow!! THANK YOU!
Elizabeth Lindemann
It’s so funny- when I first created and published this recipe, I was pregnant too! I loved the comfort food aspect, and I left garlic out on purpose because I could NOT handle it when I was pregnant. A lot of readers have added garlic in when they’ve made it but I stand by my decision still haha! SO glad you liked it, and good luck to you!
Theresa Henderson
Absolutely loved it! Broth was a bit thin for us, so I would add a bit more flour in the beginning next time. Would also make more for a larger family. I had to make it Gluten-Free since we have two Celiac’s in the family, so I used Cup-for-Cup flour and it still tasted great!
Elizabeth Lindemann
SO glad you liked it! I also wonder if using GF flour doesn’t thicken the base as much as regular? Adding more flour to the roux in the beginning is a perfect solution. Thanks!
Jesse Schoonover
Amazing! I always come back to this recipe, it is really easy and tastes great!
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you like it!
Kathleen Carroll
I was really happy with this recipe… it took me back to my childhood. I grew up with southern cooking. I added a bit more herbs and spices to the dumplings.
Elizabeth Lindemann
So happy you like it!
Saiya
FANTASTIC RECIPE!!! I’ve made this recipe four times now using baked chicken thighs brushed with olive oil and thyme, plus extra carrots and celery, and everyone loves it! I make the dumplings smaller, probably 1/2tbsp size, and they are fluffy and delicious and perfect ! Thank you for such an awesome, hearty, comfort food recipe! I make double batches every time now, because it freezes really well. :)
Elizabeth Lindemann
SO glad you liked it!!
Cindy
Broth was too thin. It was more like a soup.
Elizabeth Lindemann
Thanks for this feedback- I find the broth thickens perfectly as the dumplings cook and release their starch into the base, but it’s definitely not as thick as say, a chicken pot pie filling. If you prefer a thicker base, just add a tablespoon or two more of flour to the veggies! Easy fix :-) I’ll make a note in the recipe card about that now.
Avery
I just whipped it up for dinner after about 2 days of waiting to try it, and it was absolutely delicious! I used what I had on hand which was veggie broth and almond milk (unsweetened) and it was just delightful and so straightforward to put together. Definitely saving the recipe, as it made a perfect dinner with leftovers for tomorrow for my partner and I! Thanks for the recipe!
Elizabeth Lindemann
So happy you liked it!!
Voula
I just tried this soup and it was ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS 😋! Thank you, Elizabeth!
Elizabeth Lindemann
Yay! So glad you liked it, Voula!