Instant Pot Chicken and Dumplings
A big bowl of Instant Pot Chicken and Dumplings is pure delicious comfort food. Ready in a flash with an “it cooked all day” taste, you’ll flip over this healthy recipe! No pressure cooker? No problem! You’ll also find directions to make this soup in the crockpot as well as a stovetop option.
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If there was such a thing as a hug in a bowl, it would be this Instant Pot Chicken and Dumplings. My picky ten-year-old said, “mom, I know we’re supposed to be working on table manners, but I want to drink this bowl of soup so I can eat it faster”.
To increase the healthy factor, I’ve doubled down on the veggies you’d normally find in a traditional recipe. We’re also letting the quality ingredients shine through and are keeping things simple.
This is a “dump and cook” kind of recipe. There is no sauteing of the veggies, no browning of the chicken and you’re going to cook the dumplings with everything else in the Instant Pot.
Push button, walk away, become a dinnertime hero.
And if you love this soup (and you will), you’ll adore our Creamy White Bean Soup and Instant Pot Matzo Ball Soup!
What’s in this soup?
This soup is rocking:
- Chicken! I used boneless skinless chicken breasts from Butcher Box, but you could also use chicken thighs
- Veggies – carrots, celery, and onions. Don’t like one of those things? Leave it out!
- Flavor squad – garlic, sage, parsley
- Chicken stock (related: How to Make Chicken Bone Broth and Where to Buy Bone Broth)
- Dumplings – flour, baking powder, salt, butter, milk, and parsley
If you’re in a pinch, you can sub in a storebought can of biscuits instead of making your own dumplings. Use one can of biscuits and cut each into four pieces.
Many recipes will call for the chicken to be cooked and then shredded. If you prefer the chicken shredded, feel free, but know that it will add an extra step to the process.
Or, you could use leftovers from a Paleo Roasted Chicken or even a grocery store rotisserie chicken. Save any leftover chicken for this Instant Pot Chicken Chili or BBQ Chicken Mac and Cheese.
If you find yourself looking at a recipe that calls for cream of anything soup, run screaming. This recipe is so easy to make from scratch there is no need to use some creepy can of soup.
While I have not tested this recipe with gluten-free flour, you could make Dairy-Free Chicken Gnocchi Soup for a very similar flavor.
What to serve with it?
I save this easy recipe for busy school nights because it is a complete meal in just one bowl. It has protein, veggies, starch, and enough depth to keep you full for hours.
But, if you wanted a few sides to serve with the soup, a simple plate of roasted veggies is delicious. Check out this post on how to roast frozen vegetables for a fast and easy option.
Even with the dumplings in the soup, you might want a bread option for the side. Check out Cheesy Garlic Bread, Red Lobster Cheddar Bay Biscuits from scratch, and Homemade Pretzel Rolls.
How to Tell if the Dumplings Are Done
The dumplings will rise to the surface of the pot when they are cooked through. They’ll be smooth on the outside but have a bread-like texture when cut in half.
The dumplings will be soft but shouldn’t be undercooked or overly doughy.
How to Thicken this soup
I purposely didn’t include any thickening agents in this recipe because I wanted to keep.it.simple. Cooking the dumplings with the soup does an excellent job of naturally thickening the soup.
Adding a peeled and chopped potato would add some lovely starch that will thicken the broth up quite a bit. You could also decrease the chicken stock by 1 cup.
If you really want this recipe to be bonkers thick, combine 1 tbsp of cornstarch or arrowroot powder to 1/3 cup of hot chicken stock from the pot and add it to the soup after it has finished cooking.
Pro Tips/Recipe Notes
- Feel free to add in a peeled and cubed russet potato or even peas for extra flavor.
- Sub in buttermilk for the regular milk in the dumplings for a homestyle flavor.
- This soup will naturally thicken up over time. If making this as part of your easy healthy meal prep, consider adding 1 extra cup of chicken stock or add it when you’re reheating.
- I have used both whole wheat pastry flour and all-purpose flour and both will produce delicious dumplings.
- If using leftover chicken that is already cooked, add it after the soup has finished cooking.
- Make your prep even easier by learning how to freeze celery, how to freeze garlic and how to freeze onions.
More Recipes Like This Healthy Soup
- Instant Pot Chicken Pot Pie
- Instant Pot Zuppa Toscana
- Spicy Vegan Butternut Squash Soup
- Instant Pot Chicken Gnocchi Soup
- Instant Pot Beef Tips and Gravy
- Whole30 Potato Soup
- Instant Pot Jasmine Rice
- Instant Pot Tortellini
- Paleo Chicken and Pot Pie Soup
- Whole30 Beef Stew
- Instant Pot Tortilla Soup
- Check out all my Instant Pot Soup Recipes
WEIGHT WATCHERS POINTS
One serving has 4 WW Freestyle SmartPoints.
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Instant Pot Chicken and Dumplings
Ingredients
Soup Ingredients
- 1 lb chicken breast (cut into small pieces)
- 3 cups carrots (peeled and sliced) (~7 carrots)
- 2.5 cups celery (sliced) (~6 stalks)
- 1 cup onion (chopped) (~1 medium onion)
- 4 cloves garlic (minced)
- 1 tsp dried parsley (or 1 tbsp chopped fresh)
- 1/2 tsp dried sage (or 1.5 tsp chopped fresh)
- 4.5 cups chicken stock
Dumplings Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp dried parsley
- 3/4 tsp sea salt
- 2 tbsp butter (melted)
- 3/4 cup milk
Equipment
Instructions
Instant Pot Instructions
- In a mixing bowl combine flour, baking powder, salt, and dried parsley. Add in butter and milk and stir until it is a mostly solid dough. If it is too sticky, add flour 1 tbsp at a time until the dough is no longer tacky.
- Combine the veggies, chicken, stock, and seasonings in the Instant Pot. Stir to combine.
- Drop spoonfuls of the dumpling mixture into the Instant Pot.
- Lock the lid into place and set the steam release handle (valve on top) to “Sealing”. Press Manual>High Pressure>5 minutes.
- When the soup has finished cooking, the instant pot will beep and switch to ”keep warm". Allow it to sit with the lid on for 20 minutes for an 8 quart (25 minutes if you have a 6 quart) and then do a manual release with the nozzle set to venting.
Crockpot Instructions
- Follow step 1 above.
- Combine the veggies, chicken, stock, and seasonings in the slow cooker. Stir to combine.
- Put the lid on and cook on high for 4 hours or low for 6.
- Just prior to adding the dumpling dough, turn the crockpot to high for a few minutes.
- Drop the dough in spoonfuls into the crockpot, put the lid back on, and wait 25 minutes. The dumplings will start popping to the surface once they have cooked through.
Stovetop Instructions
- Follow step 1 above.
- Combine the veggies, chicken, stock, and seasonings in a dutch oven or stockpot. Stir to combine.
- Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer. Cook until veggies have softened and chicken is cooked through.
- Bring the soup back to a boil, and drop spoonfuls of the biscuits in the soup.
- Reduce the heat to a simmer and leave the lid on for about 15 minutes. Resist the urge to open the lid.
Notes
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In the instructions for the instant pot you say after cooking switch to keep warm but do you release the pressure 1st or leave it sealed?
Hi Ross, in step 5 it notes you release after it has sat for a bit of time (on keep warm): “Allow it to sit with the lid on for 20 minutes for an 8 quart (25 minutes if you have a 6 quart) and then do a manual release with the nozzle set to venting”.
If you vent it immediately after it has finished cooking, the dumplings will disintegrate, and you’ll have a lovely soup “geyser” coming out of the vent..
How do I convert this for a 3 qt IP?
You can simply cut the recipe in half (yahoo)!
In the recipe card if you hover over the “servings” section (currently says 10), you will get a little pop-up option to adjust the servings. Slide it back to 5 and you should be fine.
With the 3 quart I would allow for a full 20 minutes natural release before doing a quick release.
Dumplings ended up just a little more dense than I would like, however I did use whole wheat flour and since I was out of milk I substituted heavy cream and water…thinking it might work. Other wise I filled the recipe and the soup itself was delicious
Whole wheat plus a thicker milk would definitely lead to a denser dumpling! Glad it worked out other than that. 🙂
Can you use chicken that’s frozen?
It should work but I haven’t tried it myself. If you’re using frozen breasts, I would think that when the soup is done you’d need to shred it.
This looked exactly like the pictures. The flavor was delicious. The next time I make this I might cut the dumpling recipe in half. Overall, super easy and tasty.
So glad you liked it! 🙂 And thanks for taking the time to leave a review.
My family really enjoyed this Chicken and Dumplings recipe. It is so hard to make everyone happy, especially with new recipes. Thanks so much for working so hard to create these recipes for us, especially with the different methods! My next goal is to try the Healthy Orange Chicken.
Rebecca, I’m so glad to hear it was a hit with the family! I have 2 picky eaters so I get the challenge. I’m thrilled my soup helped solve a “what’s for dinner” problem. 🙂
I was so excited for this but my dumplings did not turn out in the instant pot version. I pressure cooker 5 min and released pressure after 15 min but they were still so doughy. 🙁
How big with your dumplings Ashley? I usually get about 8-10 in each batch. I’d love to help you troubleshoot it. I’m wondering if yours were too big?
Oh my gosh! This was the perfect winter meal. My husband went back for thirds. So yummy and easy to make. Can’t go wrong! Did the instant pot version and the dumplings turned out perfect. Who knew?!
It’s such a fun one-pot meal and I love that he went back for seconds! Thanks for taking the time to leave a review. 🙂
I loved the simplicity of recipe, but the dumplings did not work for me at all under pressure. Basically they disintegrated into the broth. I did end up thickening the broth with corn starch but would prefer a roux instead.
Hi Tracy, sorry to hear that! We and others have made this recipe tons of times and have never had that issue. Did you do a quick release as soon as it was done cooking or did you do the full 15 minute natural release? How large were your dumplings?
I’d love to help you troubleshoot it!
So good! Had to do stovetop version for multiple reasons. My daughters mind was blown with the idea that the dumplings could cook in the soup and not be mushy. She is my little chef, this was a revelation that was the topic of discussion for the entire meal!🤣 Loved the added seasonings in the dumplings. Will be making again👍👍
So glad you and Z had a good time making it! Glad I could blow her mind. 🙂