Description
A comforting Southern-style slow-cooker chicken and dumplings recipe featuring tender chicken breasts, hearty vegetables, and soft homemade dumplings simmered in a creamy chicken and celery soup base.
Ingredients
Scale
Chicken and Vegetables
- 3 1/2 lb. skin-on, bone-in chicken breasts
- 1 1/2 cups chopped onion (1 medium)
- 1 cup chopped celery
- 1 cup chopped carrots
Soup Base
- 4 cups unsalted chicken stock
- 1 (10.5-oz.) can condensed cream of chicken soup
- 1 (10.5-oz.) can condensed cream of celery soup
- 1 1/2 tsp. kosher salt, divided
- 1 tsp. black pepper
- 1 tsp. dried thyme
Dumplings
- 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp. baking powder
- 3 Tbsp. cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
- 1 cup whole milk
Instructions
- Prepare Slow Cooker Base: Place the skin-on, bone-in chicken breasts in a 6-quart slow cooker. Top evenly with chopped onion, celery, and carrots.
- Mix Soup and Stock: In a large bowl, whisk together the chicken stock, condensed cream of chicken soup, condensed cream of celery soup, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, black pepper, and dried thyme until well combined.
- Add Soup Mixture: Pour the soup and stock mixture over the chicken and vegetables in the slow cooker. Cover and cook until the chicken is tender, about 6 to 7 hours on Low or 3 to 4 hours on High.
- Remove Chicken: Using tongs, carefully take the chicken out of the slow cooker and place it on a cutting board to cool slightly.
- Prepare Dumpling Dough: If the slow cooker is on Low, increase the heat setting to High. In a medium bowl, combine flour, remaining 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, and baking powder. Add cold butter pieces and cut them into the flour mixture using a pastry cutter or fingers until it resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in the whole milk to form a soft dough.
- Roll and Cut Dumplings: Transfer the dough to a floured surface and roll it out into a rectangle about 1/4-inch thick. Cut dough lengthwise into 1-inch strips, then crosswise into pieces about 1 1/2 to 2 inches long.
- Add Dumplings to Slow Cooker: Drop the dumpling pieces directly into the hot soup mixture in the slow cooker. Cover and cook on High until dumplings are chewy-tender, approximately 20 to 30 minutes.
- Shred Chicken: While dumplings cook, remove skin and bones from the chicken breasts. Shred the meat into bite-sized pieces using two forks.
- Combine and Season: When dumplings are done, stir the shredded chicken back into the soup. Taste and add additional salt if desired.
- Serve: Ladle the chicken and dumpling soup into bowls and serve warm for a hearty, comforting meal.
Notes
- Using skin-on, bone-in chicken breasts adds extra flavor and richness to the soup.
- Make sure to cut the butter cold and incorporate into the flour mixture quickly to ensure flaky dumplings.
- Cooking dumplings on High in the slow cooker helps them cook through properly and become tender without turning gummy.
- The dumplings can be rolled and cut while the chicken cooks to save time.
- Adjust salt to taste at the end since the soups already contain some sodium.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving (approx. 1.5 cups)
- Calories: 450 kcal
- Sugar: 5 g
- Sodium: 780 mg
- Fat: 18 g
- Saturated Fat: 8 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 8 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 36 g
- Fiber: 3 g
- Protein: 38 g
- Cholesterol: 120 mg
