This recipe for gluten free chicken and dumplings is the perfect thing to warm you up on a cold winter’s night! Hearty chicken soup is topped off with perfectly fluffy dumplings for a meal the whole family will love.

A large pot of chicken and dumplings.

This recipe is…

Gluten. Free. Chicken. And. Dumplings. Need I say more? I don’t think there’s any food more comforting than chicken and dumplings (except for maybe this chicken pot pie). Fun fact: I had never actually eaten chicken and dumplings growing up. It wasn’t until later in life, after going gluten free, that I wound up at a dinner party where it was the main dish. Sitting there looking at everyone’s steaming bowls and hearing them exclaim about how good it was, I knew I needed to experiment with my own gluten free chicken and dumplings ASAP.

Ingredients Needed

All of the ingredients for chicken and dumpling soup on a marble surface.

For the Soup

  • 3 tablespoons of salted butter, divided
  • 2 pounds of boneless, skinless chicken breast or thighs (or about 3 cups of shredded chicken)
  • 3/4 teaspoon of coarse sea salt, divided
  • ½ teaspoon of ground black pepper, divided
  • 1 small yellow onion, diced
  • 2 medium carrots, chopped
  • 2 stalks of celery, minced
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 2 tablespoons of gluten-free flour blend
  • 4 cups of chicken broth
  • ½ cup of heavy cream or full-fat coconut milk
  • 1 teaspoon of chopped fresh sage (or ½ teaspoon of dried sage)
  • 1 teaspoon of chopped fresh thyme leaves (or ½ teaspoon of dried thyme)
  • 1 cup of frozen peas
  • Chopped fresh parsley for garnish

For the Dumplings

Let’s just say it was a revelation. I mean, why aren’t we putting dumplings in ALL of our soups already?! My first attempt at gluten free chicken and dumplings involved making the dumplings out of Gluten Free Bisquick, but was slowly evolved into the scratch-made dumplings you see here. I know dumpling making can seem a little intimidating at first, but it really isn’t!

How to Make Gluten Free Chicken and Dumplings

First things first, you’ll make the soup, which is best described as a cross between traditional chicken soup and a chicken pot pie filling. Here’s the step-by-step:

4 large chicken breasts cooking in a pot for chicken and dumpling soup.
A top view of the start of chicken and dumpling soup.
A person adding shredded chicken into a large pot of chicken and dumplings.
A person making chicken and dumpling soup in a pot.
A person using tongs to pull the chicken out of a large pot of chicken and dumpling soup.
A person using a spoon to drop dumplings into a large pot of chicken and dumplings.
A person making chicken and dumpling soup in a pot.
A large pot of chicken and dumpling soup.
A large pot of chicken and dumplings.
  1. Sear the chicken – melt 1 tablespoon of butter in a dutch oven (or other heavy-bottomed pot with a matching lid) over medium-high heat. Season the chicken with a 1/2 teaspoon salt and a 1/4 teaspoon pepper, then place it in the pot and sear for 3-4 minutes, until browned. Flip the chicken and sear for an additional 3 minutes, or until browned, then remove from the pot.
  2. Saute the veggies – melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter in the pot and add the chopped onion, celery, carrot, and garlic. Saute the veggies for 4-5 minutes, until the onion is translucent and the vegetables have started to brown slightly.
  3. Add the flour and chicken broth – sprinkle the gluten free flour over the vegetables and whisk to combine, then slowly pour in the chicken broth, whisking constantly to smooth any lumps.
  4. Add the rest of the soup ingredients and simmer – stir in the cream, remaining 1/4 teaspoons salt and pepper, sage, thyme, and peas. Add the chicken back to the pot, then cover and reduce heat to medium-low. Let cook for 20 minutes.
  5. Make the dumplings – while the soup is cooking, make the dumpling batter. In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda. Then, mix in the milk, butter, and egg until fully combined and set aside.
  6. Shred the chicken – remove the chicken from the soup, transfer it to a bowl, and shred it with two forks, then return to the pot.
  7. Add the dumplings to the pot – drop the dumplings in by the spoonful (about the size of a tablespoon), making sure not to overcrowd the pot as they will double in size. (Note that it is very important to make sure the soup is not boiling when you drop in the dumplings or as they cook, or they will fall apart. If the soup is boiling, reduce the heat to low before proceeding with this step.)
  8. Finish cooking, garnish, and serve – cover the soup and cook for 15-20 minutes, until the dumplings are cooked through and have expanded in size. Garnish with fresh parsley and serve!

Video

Chicken and dumplings on a serving spoon.

Gluten Free Chicken and Dumplings

4.87 — Votes 45 votes
By Cassy Joy Garcia
Prep: 15 minutes
Cook: 50 minutes
Total: 1 hour 5 minutes
Servings: 6 servings
Hearty chicken soup is topped off with perfectly fluffy gluten free dumplings for a meal the whole family will love.

Ingredients  

For the Soup:

  • 3 tablespoons salted butter divided
  • 2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breast or thighs (or about 3 cups shredded chicken)
  • 3/4 teaspoon coarse sea salt divided
  • ½ teaspoon ground black pepper divided
  • 1 small yellow onion diced
  • 2 medium carrots chopped
  • 2 stalks celery minced
  • 2 garlic cloves minced
  • 2 tablespoons gluten-free flour blend
  • 4 cups chicken broth
  • 1/2 cup heavy cream or full-fat coconut milk
  • 1 teaspoon chopped fresh sage or 1/2 teaspoon dried
  • 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme leaves or ½ teaspoon dried
  • 1 cup frozen peas
  • Chopped fresh parsley for garnish

For the Dumplings:

Instructions 

  • Melt 1 tablespoon butter in a dutch oven or other heavy bottomed pot with matching lid over medium-high heat. Season the chicken with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper, then place in the pot and sear for 3-4 minutes, until browned. Flip the chicken and sear for an additional 3 minutes, or until browned, then remove from the pot.
  • Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons butter in the pot and add the chopped onion, celery, carrot, and garlic. Saute for 4-5 minutes, until the onion is translucent and the vegetables have started to brown slightly.
  • Sprinkle the gluten free flour over the vegetables and whisk to combine, then slowly pour in the chicken broth, whisking constantly to get out any lumps.
  • Stir in the cream, remaining 1/4 teaspoons salt and pepper, sage, thyme, and peas. Add the chicken back to the pot, then cover and reduce heat to medium-low. Let cook for 20 minutes.
  • While the soup is cooking, make the dumpling batter. In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda. Then, mix in the milk, butter, and egg until fully combined and set aside.
  • Remove the chicken from the soup and transfer to a bowl and shred with two forks, then return to the pot.
  • Drop the dumplings in by the spoonful (about the size of a tablespoon), making sure not to overcrowd the pot as they will double in size. Note that it is very important to make sure the soup is not boiling when you drop in the dumplings or as they cook, or they will fall apart, so if the soup is boiling, reduce the heat to low before proceeding with this step.
  • Cover the soup and cook for 15-20 minutes, until dumplings are cooked through and have expanded in size. Garnish with fresh parsley and serve!

Nutrition

Calories: 543kcal | Carbohydrates: 31.6g | Protein: 37.6g | Fat: 29.5g | Saturated Fat: 15.6g | Cholesterol: 235.6mg | Sodium: 1431.1mg | Fiber: 3.3g | Sugar: 5.1g

Additional Info

Course: Dinner
Cuisine: American
Servings: 6 servings
Calories: 543
Keyword: chicken and dumplings, gluten free dumplings

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Amber Goulden


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107 Comments

  1. 5 stars
    Great flavor! Great meal! My first attempt at dumplings and this was easy and painless. I used coconut milk to make it dairy free along with gluten free. My entire family devoured it and loved the dumplings (and didn’t notice any flavor or consistency difference for gluten free) so definitely a win-win recipe in my book.

  2. 5 stars
    I can’t speak to the soup base, but these dumplings are fantastic!! I grew up with chicken and dumplings as a comfort food. my mom always used Bisquick. I haven’t found a good replacement in my 10+ years of eating gluten free. Until now! I made the soup base the way my mom did and these dumplings on top. They were so good I made them again the next night with the leftover soup!

    1. That is so amazing, Sydnee! We are so so happy you loved them!

  3. 5 stars
    Wow!! I will definitely be adding this into my meal rotation! My husband who can usually sniff gluten free out couldn’t even tell the dumplings were gluten free. My particular eater, 5 year old son, said he loved it and asked for seconds! Thank you for sharing!

    1. That is amazing, Coralyn! So so happy y’all loved them!!

  4. 5 stars
    Great turn out for this comfort food classic. We smoked the chicken to add a dimension to it before adding it to the soup. This was a hit with everyone in the family (even the non-gluten free)! I look forward to making it again soon!

  5. 5 stars
    Love this recipe!!! My whole family enjoyed it …even my picky eater child ate the chicken and the dumplings !!! Super easy and very yummy!!! Side note ..do all the prep work the night before like chopping the veggies to save time!

  6. 5 stars
    This is such an excellent comfort meal! The recipe was a HUGE hit with my family!

  7. 5 stars
    My kids raised meat chickens for their 4H project this year and this recipe was a fantastic way to enjoy our home-grown meat! We are not a GF family so I used AP flour for the dumplings without issue. Great cold weather dinner.

    1. That is amazing, Hazel! So so cool! We are so happy y’all enjoyed it!!