This crockpot chicken and dumplings is a warm, cozy chicken soup made with simple ingredients and a few shortcuts!
It’s that time of the year where I feel like my Slow Cooker is on permanent rotation! Of course, I use it all year round, but when the kids go back to school in the fall is when my Crock Pot really gets a workout. And today’s recipe is one I know you will be making all year long!
I’ll be the first to admit this recipe definitely uses some shortcuts, but I won’t apologize for them! I have made Chicken and Dumplings from scratch TONS of times, and it’s fantastic, but there is also a place in my life for time savers on busy nights. And since my family loves this version of classic chicken and dumplings so much, I thought I would share it with you too!
This Chicken and Dumplings Recipe? Kind of a Big Deal
- Total comfort food. It’s creamy, cozy, and tastes like something your grandma made on a snow day. Except you didn’t have to stand over the stove for hours!
- No dough-making required. I mean, you could make homemade dumplings, but why? Canned biscuits do the job and no one complains. They get all soft and pillowy and soak up that creamy sauce like champs.
- Just a handful of ingredients. Chicken, a couple cans of soup, some seasonings, and biscuits. That’s it. Nothing fancy, but it works.
- Kids love it. This is one of those dinners that disappears fast. No whining. No drama. Just clean plates. That’s a winning chicken recipe if you ask me!
Looking for more ways to cook chicken in your crockpot? Try Crockpot Chicken Pot Pie or BBQ Pulled Chicken!
What You’ll Need
Make sure to scroll down to the bottom of this post to the recipe card for the full ingredient list and printable recipe!
- Yellow onion – You could also use a white onion.
- Garlic, minced – Fresh is great, but the jarred kind totally works. No shame.
- Chicken breasts – Boneless, skinless is the way to go. They shred up nice and soak up all that creamy goodness. You could use boneless thighs if you prefer something a little richer.
- Seasonings – Ground black pepper and dried thyme
- Cream of chicken soup – This is where the magic starts. It makes everything creamy and cozy with almost no effort.
- Chicken broth – Use low-sodium if you’re watching salt. And if you only have veggie broth, it’s fine—no one will notice.
- Frozen peas and carrots – Straight from the bag. No need to thaw. If your family’s anti-peas, just swap for corn or skip them entirely.
- Can buttermilk biscuits – The star of the show. They fluff up into the best little dumplings. I use Pillsbury Grands, but anything similar works. Just don’t use the flaky layers kind, they fall apart and get weird.
Why Does the Recipe Say To Microwave the Onions?
Ok, so the first step in my recipe is to microwave diced onions. You CAN skip this if you really want to, but I just like to get the onions cooking a little bit…soften them up…before placing them in the slow cooker.
Onions don’t always soften up in the slow cooker, and I really, REALLY dislike crunchy onions in soups and stews. So cooking them in the microwave gets the process started. It’s a lot like if you were to sauté them…it just gets that crunch gone!
How to Store and Reheat Leftovers
Let your leftovers cool and then transfer them to an airtight container and store in the fridge for 3-4 days.
When you are ready to reheat extras, scoop the desired amount into a microwave-safe bowl and microwave until warmed through, stopping halfway through the heating time to stir everything.
More Crockpot Recipes
Crockpot Chicken and Dumplings
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 5 hours
- Total Time: 5 hours 10 minutes
- Yield: serves 6
- Category: Soup
- Method: Slow Cooker
- Cuisine: Dinner
Description
This easy slow cooker chicken and dumplings recipe is quick to prep and the perfect comfort food for busy evenings!
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup diced yellow onion (about 1/2 medium onion)
- 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 2 (10.75- ounce) cans cream of chicken soup
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 1/2 cups chicken broth
- 2 cups frozen peas and carrots (alternately 1 cup of each)
- 1 (16- ounce) can buttermilk biscuits
Instructions
- Place the diced onions in a medium microwave safe bowl. Heat on high for 1 minute. Stir and heat for another 30 seconds, or until the onions are softened and slightly translucent.
- Place the onions in the bottom of your slow cooker. Arrange the chicken breasts on top of the onions.
- Sprinkle with pepper and thyme.
- Spread the 2 cans of condensed chicken soup evenly on top of the chicken and add in the chicken broth and garlic.
- Cover and cook on high for 4 hours or until the chicken is tender.
- Using two forks, shred the chicken in the slow cooker and stir in the frozen peas and carrots. Alternately you can remove the chicken to shred and place it back in.
- Tear or cut the biscuits into 1- inch pieces and drop into the slow cooker.
- When all the biscuits are added, stir to coat them evenly in the soup mixture, making sure they are all pressed into the liquid.
- Replace the lid and cook for 1 more hour, or until the biscuits are cooked through, stirring once halfway through. Serve warm.
Notes
Store airtight for up to 3 days in the refrigerator. If you prefer a more soup texture, as opposed to thick stew add in 1/2 – 3/4 cup more chicken broth.
Nutrition
- Serving Size:
- Calories: 298
- Sugar: 1.9 g
- Sodium: 578.6 mg
- Fat: 6.9 g
- Carbohydrates: 18.9 g
- Protein: 40.8 g
- Cholesterol: 114.9 mg
Delicious recipe. I made one change after reading reviews about how biscuits didn’t come out to well for dumplings. I prepared my biscuits in the oven like you normally would. When they were done I tore them apart into bite sized pieces and put them in the crockpot, stirred them in real good and let simmer on low for 30 minutes at the end. Absolutely delicious and made the biscuits into dumplings perfectly!
These would have been better if I baked the biscuits separately and served chicken on top. But then it would not be chicken in dumplings. The biscuits are too raw in this recipe, not a dumpling. You certainly need more than an hour to cook in the slow cooker, I added another 30 minutes which helped but was so disgusted with the uncooked dough earlier when testing I decided to spend 20 minutes pulling out what I could of the dough to save the meal.
This is exactly what happened to me. Followed the recipe to a T. But biscuits turned into a mushy mess and didn’t cook all the way through. Next time will bake the biscuits separately
So good! I made sure to really flatten the biscuits before cutting them and dropping them in, otherwise they don’t cook thoroughly.
great tip!
This recipe is soooo good! After reading the reviews I added the frozen veggies in much earlier and I also added celery and green beans! I cooked the cut up biscuits in the oven for about 7 minutes just to make sure they were cooked through and then I folded them into the crockpot and let them cook for another hour or so. They were still doughy but that’s what the consistency of dumplings are so they were really good! My husband and I both loved it and will definitely be making this again!!
Can I double this recipe in a standard 6qt crock pot? Or will it spill over? It sounds delicious
It will be fine!
Super tasty but I also had the raw dough issue after an hour. I just cooked it longer and while they just sort of melted into the soup and didn’t come to the top, it was super tasty and simple. Will it be ok to freeze? I don’t think we can get it eaten in a couple days. Thanks!