Gluten Free Southern Chicken and Dumplings Recipe
My momma’s biscuits and dumplings are my absolute favorite, so I found a way to make her recipe gluten free, and it is hands down the best Gluten Free Southern Chicken and Dumplings Recipe you’ll ever eat!
Momma uses biscuits for her drop dumplings, so I created a gluten free biscuit dough and used it as dumpling dough. If you like flat dumplings, you can roll the dough out and cut it into flat strips using a pizza cutter. I personally prefer fluffy dumplings, so that’s what I use in this recipe.
What ingredients are needed to make biscuit-like dumplings with chicken:
Rotisserie chicken: I use the whole chicken for this recipe and shred it, but you can use just chicken breasts if you prefer. Any chicken will do, rotisserie chicken is just convenient and easy. Chicken thighs are popular in southern homemade chicken and dumpling recipes. If you have leftover chicken from batch cooking, that will work perfectly in this recipe
Chicken broth: I use Pacific chicken broth or chicken bone broth for this recipe, both of which are low in sodium. When using a broth with sodium, you’ll want to adjust salt accordingly when seasoning this dish. If all you can find is chicken stock, that works too
Water: just plain old tap water is all you need
Onion: white, yellow, sweet onions are my favorites for this recipe. Red is too pungent so I don’t recommend it for this homemade southern chicken and dumplings recipe
Celery: there’s not much to say about celery other than sometimes you can find onion and celery already diced together in the produce section of your grocery store and that makes prep work for this meal ridiculously easy
Salt and black pepper: season to taste at the end
For the biscuit-style dumplings:
Gluten free all purpose flour: I use Cup4Cup, you can find it at Walmart. King Arthur gluten free measure for measure is also great. I personally don’t like the flavor and texture of Bob’s Red Mill, especially for this biscuit dumpling dough
Salted butter: Salted butter is a must in these homemade dumplings. You’ll also want to cut the cold butter into tiny pieces or use a grater like I do. The butter must be cold
Milk: I use 2% milk for the biscuit dough. I haven’t tried it with non-dairy milk
Baking powder: I know we aren’t baking the biscuit dough since we’re using it for biscuit-style dumplings, but the baking powder helps them get a fluffy texture
Salt: you don’t want to skip this step, even when using salted butter
How to make this gluten free dumpling recipe
In a large pot or large dutch oven, add broth, water, celery, onion, and chicken, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat
Make the biscuit dumplings by adding flour, baking powder, and salt to a large bowl and whisking the dry ingredients together. Then add the cold grated butter and using a pastry cutter or your clean fingers (it amazes me that I have to give the disclaimer that your hands should be clean, but we live in a world where Tide has to remind people not to eat laundry detergent), cut the butter into the dry ingredients until a shaggy dough begins to form.
Stir in the milk until you have a tacky dough. Knead dough on a lightly floured surface if your dough is sticky until it no longer sticks to your hands. Add extra flour as needed
Pinch off about 1 inch of dough and roll it into a ball and then carefully drop it into the boiling broth mixture in your large pot. Continue until you have used all of the dough. Once all of the dumplings are in the pot, stir, and continue to cook for 30-40 minutes until the dumplings puff up and begin to float. If you need to add more liquid, add cold water and adjust salt accordingly at the end
Season with salt and pepper to taste prior to serving
Storing leftover chicken and dumplings
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. It’s best reheated in a large pot on the stove over medium heat. Add water as needed and adjust salt to taste.
I haven’t frozen this recipe because I’ve never had enough left to freeze, but if you’re into freezing meals, allow it to cool to room temperature and then place chicken and dumplings in a freezer safe container and freeze for up to 3 months. Reheat on the stovetop or in a slow cooker over low heat for 3 hours.
This is one of my favorite meals on a cold night, but It’s such an easy recipe that happens to be a family favorite that I find myself making it in the middle of summer too. It’s a comforting meal because my momma has been making it for me my whole life, and now it can be the ultimate comfort food for your family too!
More comforting meals made with a handful of ingredients (and they’re all gluten free)
Buffalo Chicken Tater Tot Casserole
Crockpot Ground Beef Stroganoff
Gluten Free Lasagna Recipe (high protein)
Gluten Free Southern Chicken and Dumplings Recipe
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup diced onion
- 1/3 cup diced celery (about 3 large stalks)
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 3 cups water
- 4 cups cooked shredded chicken I use one whole rotisserie chicken
For the dumpling dough
- 2 cups gluten free measure for measure flour I use Cup4Cup because it's the best
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 6 tbsp cold butter grated or diced
- 1 cup milk I use 2%
Instructions
- In a large pot or large dutch oven, add broth, water, celery, onion, and chicken, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat
- Make the biscuit dumplings by adding flour, baking powder, and salt to a large bowl and whisking the dry ingredients together. Then add the cold grated butter and using a pastry cutter or your clean fingers, cut the butter into the dry ingredients until a shaggy dough begins to form.
- Stir in the milk until you have a tacky dough. Knead dough on a lightly floured surface if your dough is sticky until it no longer sticks to your hands. Add extra flour as needed
- Pinch off about 1 inch of dough and roll it into a ball and then carefully drop it into the boiling broth mixture in your large pot. Continue until you have used all of the dough. Once all of the dumplings are in the pot, stir, and continue to cook for 30-40 minutes until the dumplings puff up and begin to float. If you need to add more liquid, add cold water and adjust salt accordingly at the end
- Season with salt and pepper to taste prior to serving
