Easy Chicken and Dumplings

These Easy Chicken and Dumplings are warm, comforting, and a timeless classic. They are rich, savory, full of chicken and fluffy dumplings- true comfort food that’s heartwarming and flavorful. This recipe promises a cozy dinner without the time-consuming fuss. With a helpful shortcut, you can have dinner on the table quickly.

This Easy Chicken and Dumplings recipe is pure Southern comfort food. Made with chicken, broth, and canned biscuits. You can have dinner cooked and on the table in 30 minutes.

Begin With A Big Pot

Cooking Chicken and Dumplings tonight brought back sweet memories of my dear mother-in-law. She always had the best chicken and dumplings! She loved to cook, and she put love into every dish she made. Sunday meals at her home will always be remembered in my heart. She made a huge impression on my children, and today, years later, they still talk about their favorite dishes she made for them. I am very grateful for her love and her love for her meals.

Tonight, I made a big pot of chicken and dumplings, and I used her pot. This pot was well-loved and used for many meals in her home. She made not only chicken and dumplings but also soups, mashed potatoes, stews, collard greens, and too many other dishes to name in this pot. Her memories were sweet tonight as I prepared dinner for my family.

My chicken and dumplings recipe is very easy. I used a shortcut of canned biscuits for my dumplings. You can certainly make your dumplings from scratch (see my homemade biscuit recipe), but I was in a bit of a rush to get dinner on the table at a decent hour before my family cleaned out the snack corner!

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

After a long day, nothing beats a mouthwatering bowl of old-fashioned chicken and dumplings. This is a beloved dish in my home and one of our go-to recipes.

Comforting: A home-cooked meal that is warm and comforting. The creamy broth and the tender chicken make this dish the ultimate comfort food.

Easy: This easy recipe is a family favorite, and using canned biscuits makes this a fast dinner perfect for any night of the week. Have leftover chicken? Perfect for this dish.

Satisfying: The combination of tender chicken pieces and canned biscuit dough creates a filling meal that will leave you satisfied after enjoying a comforting meal.

One Pot Dish: This great recipe prepares everything in one large pot or Dutch oven. Minimizing clean-up makes this dish a fabulous choice for a busy day.

What Kind of Chicken for Chicken and Dumplings?

For this recipe, I use boneless, skinless chicken breast. But you do have several choices.
Chicken Breast— Boneless, skinless is the easiest to use. If you use skin-on–boil and then remove the skin.
Chicken Thighs–Chicken thighs are my favorite. Why? Because they are full of flavor. But in this recipe, I use boneless chicken breast. Don’t have chicken breast? Thighs will work just fine.
Whole Chicken–If you have a whole chicken, use it. Boil the chicken until done, and pick all of the meat off of the bones. It will be delicious with a mix of white and dark meat.
Chicken Tenders–Easy to use. Boil and shred or chop. No bones and no skin. These don’t take too much time to boil. I usually put these on to cook while pulling all of the other ingredients out of the pantry.
Rotisserie Chicken–Yes, if you are short on time, stop by the store and grab a rotisserie chicken. Pull the meat off of the bone, shred it, and throw it into the pot.

 

After work, I make this dinner, so it is possible for a weeknight meal, even for busy families. **TIP—The chicken can be cooked in advance to save time. You might throw the chicken in the crockpot in the morning, pick up a rotisserie chicken, or boil it over the weekend, bag it, and have it ready for this meal during the week.

What Kind Of Dumplings?

Using canned biscuits is smart and convenient and has its advantages. They are premade and ideal for busy weeknights. They are easy to find in most grocery stores and always turn out fluffy and tender. They are easy to work with, and you can always add more if you are feeding a hungry crowd.

There are several types of dumplings you might use for chicken and dumplings. The most popular choices are:

Canned Biscuits: Most nights, this is my go-to for dumplings. When I run short on time, canned biscuits always come to the rescue. Just pop open a can, cut biscuits into small pieces, and you have your dumplings ready for the pot.
Drop Biscuits: Drop biscuits are easy to make and will work for this recipe. This is just a flour/biscuit mixture made in a bowl. Drop dumplings by the spoonful into the hot soup. This makes an easy dumpling dough.
Frozen Dumplings: I have not tried frozen dumplings for this recipe, but there are several choices. The dumplings are ready and just waiting to be dropped into the pot.
Rolled Dumplings: This was the way my mother-in-law made her dumplings. She would mix the dough, roll it out, and cut it into pieces. Yum!

Flat Dumplings: These are usually found in the freezer section of your local grocery store. I have used them, but my family prefers the canned biscuits.

Of course, the choice is yours to make, depending on your tastes and time. Mostly, I use canned biscuits during the week. This recipe uses canned biscuits and is quite delicious.

What Makes This Soup Creamy?

Cream of Chicken soup makes this pot of Chicken and Dumplings delicious. The soup adds additional flavor and creaminess. If you don’t have any cream of chicken soup in your pantry, I have used cream of mushroom. It works fine, every time!

 

Ingredients Needed For Southern Homemade Chicken and Dumplings

See the printable recipe card below for a complete list of ingredients and amounts.

Most of the ingredients are kitchen staples you likely already have on hand.

Chicken – Boneless skinless chicken breasts, chicken thighs, chicken tenders, or even a whole chicken will work for this recipe. The chicken should be fully cooked and chopped.
Chicken Broth – Save the liquid from boiling your chicken and add this to the bought chicken broth. Homemade chicken stock will work if you have this on hand. This provides a savory foundation for the flavors in this dish.
Cream of Chicken Soup – A thick and creamy soup that adds a rich flavor and velvety texture to the chicken and dumplings.
Biscuits – Canned biscuits are a shortcut for this recipe. They are convenient and help this dish to come together fast. No one will ever know they are not homemade dumplings.
Butter – Butter adds richness and flavor.
Water & Flour – Combine flour and cold water to thicken the soup. You can substitute cornstarch for flour if you like. Make a cornstarch slurry, and they will both do the same job.
Salt and Black Pepper – Seasonings I use for this dish. 

Why This Dish Is Great For Weeknight Meals

Weeknights can be hectic, so adding this dish to your weeknight rotation is a fantastic way to enjoy Southern comfort food without all of the time and hassle.  Its simplicity makes this a winning choice for those nights when you need an easy and satisfying meal. This dish can be prepared quickly, allowing you to have a home-cooked meal for your family. You can prepare the chicken in advance, making this dish even faster. I have also picked up a rotisserie chicken on the way home and used this instead of rushing home to cook chicken for this dish.

Recipe Tips and Variations For The Best Chicken and Dumplings

Feel free to adjust and modify this dish for your personal preference. Here are a few suggestions to help make this dish fabulous.

Recipe Tips:

• Cook and chop the chicken in advance to speed this dish along.
• Regular biscuits or Grand biscuits will work for this recipe. You will need to cut the larger biscuits into more pieces so they will cook evenly.
• Don’t overcrowd the pan with dumplings. Give them space to cook evenly.

Recipe Variations:

• Add some cooked vegetables to the dish, such as celery, peas, and carrots.
• Add some heavy cream for extra richness.
• Add some spices to the dish, such as cayenne or red pepper flakes.

How to Make Easy Chicken and Dumplings

• Cook chicken and dice into small pieces.
• Pour broth into a large soup pot. Add chicken. Bring to a boil.
• Add soup. Stir until thoroughly mixed.
• Cut biscuits into small pieces. They will expand when they cook.
• Drop biscuit pieces, one at a time, in boiling broth.
• At this point, I usually reduce the heat so my dumplings won’t stick.
• Cook for about 15 minutes or until dumplings are done.
• Drop 2 tablespoons of butter on top and let melt. Stir gently.
• Make a slurry of 1/4 cup water and 2 tablespoons of flour. Mix well and slowly pour into the pot and gently stir. This will thicken the broth. Cook 10 minutes longer—salt and pepper to taste.
• Serve with crusty bread.

What To Serve With Southern-Style Chicken and Dumplings

Garlic Bread

Honey Butter Skillet Corn

Southern Collard Greens

How To Store Chicken and Dumplings

Allow the chicken and dumplings to cool to room temperature, place them in an airtight container, and refrigerate. They will last for 2-3 days refrigerated. Heat in a microwave-safe dish until hot.

FAQs

Are you craving more comfort food? Be sure to check out Creamy Chicken Casserole. Creamy shredded chicken baked with a Ritz Cracker topping. A delicious meal that is true comfort food and easy to prepare for any night of the week.

Pan Cooked Sticky Chicken is finger-licking good. It is sticky and sweet and so pleasing to your taste buds.

Wanting some soup? Check out my Taco Soup recipe for another weeknight soup idea. It will certainly take the chill out of your bones. Cream Cheese Chicken Chili is another easy meal made in the crock pot.

More Chicken Dishes

Chicken and Waffles

Buffalo Chicken Tenders

Chicken Pot Pie

Oven Baked Chicken Tenders

Million Dollar Chicken Casserole