Slow Cooker Chicken and Dumplings

Butter goes in first. Then the soup, the broth, the water, the onion. Lay the chicken on top and let it sit there for almost 8 hours while your kitchen smells like someone’s been cooking since breakfast. This is the kind of meal that makes people ask what you’re doing home in the middle of the day.

Why You’ll Love This Slow Cooker Chicken and Dumplings

Eight and a half hours sounds long. But you’re not actually doing anything. Just dump it in the slow cooker in the morning and forget about it until dinner.

The dumplings stay light. Not heavy. They’re thin enough that they cook all the way through, no raw dough center that some people get.

Comfort food that doesn’t feel like you spent all day in the kitchen. Tastes homemade because it is — you made the dumplings from three ingredients, not a box.

Works perfect for meal prep. Make it, let it cool, stick half in the fridge. Reheats fine.

The broth gets rich from the butter and mushroom soup breaking down together. No added cream needed. Doesn’t feel heavy.

What You Need for Chicken and Mushroom Soup

Three tablespoons unsalted butter. Real butter. Margarine changes how everything tastes.

Two cans of condensed cream of mushroom soup. Not fresh mushroom. Not creamy mushroom. The condensed kind in the red and white can. It matters.

Three cups chicken broth. Works with store-bought. Works with homemade, actually tastes better if you have it.

One can of water. So a 15-ounce can or whatever you have. Just one.

One medium yellow onion chopped fine. Red onion doesn’t work here. Something about it.

Three boneless skinless chicken breasts. That’s roughly a pound and a half. They need room to cook evenly.

Half a cup of all purpose flour and five tablespoons of ice cold water for the dumplings — that’s it. The dough comes together in like 30 seconds.

Salt and pepper. Taste it at the end.

How to Make Slow Cooker Chicken and Dumplings

Melt the butter in the slow cooker if you can, or just throw it in cold. Add the mushroom soup straight from the can, the broth, the water, the chopped onion. Mix it around a little but don’t go crazy.

Lay the three chicken breasts in there flat. Push them down until they’re covered by liquid. If any part sticks above the surface, pour in a bit more broth. Chicken that dries out goes tough and stringy and nobody wants that.

Set it to low. Do not touch it for 7 hours. The broth thickens on its own as the soup and butter melt together. By hour five or six the whole kitchen smells like it — that warm, buttery, mushroom-y thing that makes you keep opening the slow cooker even though you shouldn’t.

How to Get the Texture Right on Slow Cooker Chicken and Dumplings

An hour before dinner, switch to high. Take a fork or potato masher and break the chicken into chunky pieces right inside the pot. You want actual bites of chicken in there, not a shredded paste. If the meat doesn’t fall apart easy, give it more time on low. It’ll get there.

While it heats on high, make the dumplings. Bowl. Half a cup flour. Five tablespoons ice cold water. Stir it until it comes together. Should feel firm enough to hold shape but still soft. Sticks to your hands? Add a tiny bit more flour. Falls apart? Tiny bit more water. That’s it. Two minutes of work.

Dust your counter. Roll the dough thin. About an eighth of an inch. Thinner means they cook through without that raw doughy center that happens when they’re too thick. Cut them rough with a pizza cutter or knife. Even squares don’t matter.

When the broth is bubbling on high and the chicken’s been mixed in, drop the dumplings around the edges. The sides run hotter than the middle so they cook better there. Stir gently once so they get coated in broth but don’t shove them all under. They cook best partly in the liquid, partly on top.

Lid back on. High for 45 to 50 minutes. Don’t open it. The steam does the work. When they’re done they feel springy when you press one. Pull one out, cut it in half if you’re not sure. No raw flour taste? Good.

Taste the broth. Add salt now. Add pepper. Let the whole thing sit covered for 10 minutes before you serve it. Broth thickens a bit more as the dumplings soak it up.

Slow Cooker Chicken and Dumplings Tips and Common Mistakes

The chicken needs to be fully submerged or it dries out. Check it once at the 3-hour mark if you’re paranoid. Push it down if any part’s above the liquid.

Don’t skip the ice cold water for the dumpling dough. Cold water makes them tender. Room temperature or warm water makes them tough and dense.

The one-hour switch to high at the end isn’t optional. The dumplings need that heat to cook through. They won’t cook sitting on low.

Flour the counter when you roll the dough. They stick otherwise. But don’t go crazy with extra flour or the dumplings get dry.

That 45-minute window is roughly right but depends on your slow cooker. Some run hot. Some run cold. If they’re still doughy at 45, give them five more. If they look brown and set at 40, they’re probably done. You’ll figure out your cooker.

The broth thickens as it sits. If it’s too thick when you serve it, stir in a splash of broth or water. If it’s too thin — and sometimes it is — you can’t fix that without cooking it more.

Slow Cooker Chicken and Dumplings

By Emma

Prep:

35 min

Cook:

7h 50min

Total:

8h 25min

Servings:

6 servings

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 2 cans condensed cream of mushroom soup
• 3 cups chicken broth
• 1 can water
• 1 medium yellow onion chopped fine
• 3 boneless skinless chicken breasts
• Half cup all purpose flour
• 5 tablespoons ice cold water
• Salt and pepper to taste

Method

1. 1 Put the butter, mushroom soup, chicken broth, water, and chopped onion in the slow cooker. Lay the chicken breasts in and push them down until they're fully covered by liquid. If they're sticking out, pour in a bit more broth. Chicken that sits above the liquid dries out and goes tough.
2. 2 Set it to low. Walk away for 7 hours. The broth thickens on its own as the soup and butter melt together. By hour five or six the whole kitchen smells like it. The chicken will be so tender it barely holds its shape.
3. 3 About an hour before you want to eat, switch to high. Take a fork or a potato masher and break the chicken into chunky pieces right inside the pot. You want actual bites of chicken in there, not a shredded paste. If the meat doesn't break apart easy, give it more time on low. It's not ready.
4. 4 While the chicken heats on high, make the dumplings. Half a cup of flour and five tablespoons of ice cold water in a bowl. Stir it until it comes together into a dough. It should feel firm enough to roll but still a little soft. If it sticks to your hands add a touch more flour. If it cracks and falls apart add a tiny bit more water.
5. 5 Dust your counter with flour and roll the dough out thin. About an eighth of an inch. Thinner dumplings cook through properly and don't end up with that raw doughy center. Cut them into rough squares with a pizza cutter or a knife. They don't need to be even.
6. 6 Drop the dumplings around the edges of the slow cooker. The sides run hotter than the middle. Give them one gentle stir so they get coated in the broth but don't push them all under. They cook best when they're partly in the liquid and partly sitting on top.
7. 7 Put the lid back on. Leave it on high for 45 to 50 minutes. Don't open it during that time. The steam trapped inside is what cooks the dumplings through. When they're done they'll feel springy when you press one. Pull one out and cut it in half if you're not sure. No raw flour taste means they're good.
8. 8 Taste the broth. Add salt and pepper. Let the whole thing sit covered for another 10 minutes before you serve it. The broth thickens a bit more as the dumplings soak it up.

Nutritional information

Calories

420

Protein

38g

Carbs

22g

Fat

18g

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Frequently Asked Questions About Homemade Chicken Dumplings Slow Cooker

Can I use boneless thighs instead of breasts? Yeah, they work. Thighs stay more tender and juicier but they take longer to shred. Maybe add 30 minutes to the cook time. Breasts are easier.

What if I don’t have mushroom soup? Cream of chicken works. So does cream of celery. Not the same soup, but they work. White soup instead of tan soup. That’s the only real difference.

Can I make the dumplings ahead? Roll them, cut them, flour them, stick them on a baking sheet, throw them in the fridge. Make them a few hours early. Maybe 4 or 5 hours max. They get weird if they sit too long.

Why can’t I cook the dumplings longer if they’re not done? You can. You’ll just end up with dumplings that are more like cooked dough than light dumplings. The first 45 minutes get them done right. After that they just get thicker and heavier.

How long does this keep in the fridge? Three or four days easy. Probably five. The dumplings get softer sitting in the broth but they don’t go bad. Reheats fine on the stove or in the slow cooker on low for like 20 minutes.

Is this really a full day slow cooker chicken and dumplings recipe? Yeah. 7 hours on low, then an hour more with the dumplings. The broth cooks slow. That’s where the flavor comes from. Rushing it doesn’t work.