Chicken Soup with Dumplings (Print View)

Hearty chicken broth enriched with vegetables and tender dumplings in a savory blend.

# What You'll Need:

→ Soup

01 - 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
02 - 1 medium onion, diced
03 - 2 carrots, peeled and sliced
04 - 2 celery stalks, sliced
05 - 3 garlic cloves, minced
06 - 2.2 pounds bone-in, skinless chicken thighs or breasts
07 - 2 bay leaves
08 - 1 teaspoon dried thyme
09 - 1 teaspoon salt, or to taste
10 - ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
11 - 10 cups low-sodium chicken broth
12 - 1 cup frozen peas
13 - 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley, plus extra for garnish

→ Dumplings

14 - 1½ cups all-purpose flour
15 - 2 teaspoons baking powder
16 - ½ teaspoon salt
17 - 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
18 - ¾ cup whole milk
19 - 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley (optional)

# Method:

01 - Melt butter in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add onion, carrots, and celery and sauté for 5-6 minutes until softened, then add garlic and cook for 1 minute.
02 - Add chicken, bay leaves, thyme, salt, and pepper. Pour in chicken broth. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 25-30 minutes until chicken is thoroughly cooked.
03 - Remove chicken from the pot, shred the meat with two forks discarding bones, then return the shredded chicken to the pot.
04 - Stir frozen peas and chopped parsley into the soup and bring to a gentle simmer.
05 - In a bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt. Stir in melted butter, milk, and parsley until just combined without overmixing.
06 - Drop tablespoon-sized mounds of dumpling batter onto the surface of the simmering soup, spacing them evenly.
07 - Cover the pot tightly and simmer without removing the lid for 15 minutes, or until dumplings have puffed and are cooked through.
08 - Remove bay leaves, adjust seasoning as needed, ladle soup into bowls, garnish with additional parsley, and serve hot.

# Insider Tips:

01 -
  • Those fluffy dumplings that puff up right in the pot feel like a small triumph every single time.
  • It comes together in about an hour, which means you can have real, nourishing food without spending all evening in the kitchen.
  • The shredded chicken disappears into every spoonful, making it feel hearty and complete without being heavy.
02 -
  • Don't stir the dumplings once they're in. I learned this by accident—the ones I stirred fell apart, the ones I left alone puffed up perfectly.
  • Undercooking the chicken is worse than overcooking it slightly. Better to go a few minutes longer than to bite into something pink.
  • Frozen peas work great here because they thaw in the hot broth without falling apart like fresh peas sometimes do.
  • The dumpling dough keeps best used right away, but you can make it a couple hours ahead and drop it in cold if you need to.
03 -
  • Keeping your broth at a gentle simmer (not a rolling boil) keeps everything tender and the soup clear instead of cloudy.
  • If your dumplings sink instead of float, your broth might not be hot enough when you add them—bring it back to a proper simmer first.

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