Why I love this chicken and dumplings soup
Happy first day of September! It’s a beautiful fall day here, and I’ve been celebrating all day. This morning I actually put on a sweater and drove to my doctor appointment with the windows down and cinnamon coffee in hand.
So now, I’m sharing one of my favorite fall recipes – apple rosemary chicken and dumplings soup. It’s warm, comforting and laced with autumn flavors. I know you’ve been craving fall, too, so you’re welcome.
This recipe is everything I remember about dumplings from when I was a kid, but with a grown-up touch of appley sweetness and aromatic fresh rosemary. The homemade dumplings cook on top of the soup, plumping in the heat of the Dutch oven. Even as an adult, dumplings are still the best part of chicken and dumplings soup, right?
If you like this comforting soup recipe, you have to try this lemon ginger chicken soup, this creamy vegan tomato soup and this minestrone soup recipe.
Searching for more apple recipes? maple bourbon apple tarts / fennel apple salad / cinnamon apples / apple cider sangria / apple pie bars
Ingredients & substitutions
- Coconut milk – I made the recipe dairy free by swapping full-fat coconut milk for what would normally be heavy cream, but I’ve also made them with plain, unsweetened almond milk and they’ve turned out just fine, so feel free to substitute as long as it’s unsweetened.
- Chicken breasts – This recipe uses boneless, skinless chicken breast, but you can definitely speed things up by using cut up rotisserie chicken meat. If you do, you’ll just need to simmer the soup long enough to soften the veggies.
Making changes to a recipe can result in recipe failure. Any substitutions listed below are simple changes that I believe will work in this recipe, but results are not guaranteed.
How to make chicken and dumplings without cream
Sauté the vegetables. Heat a large stockpot or Dutch oven to medium high heat. Add the olive oil, chopped veggies and a pinch of salt. Let them cook, stirring as needed, until the onions are translucent and starting to soften.
Simmer the chicken. Place the chicken into the pot and add the liquids, herbs and salt. Cover the pot and bring it to a simmer, letting the chicken cook thoroughly.
Once the chicken is cooked, take out out and either shred or chop it. Then return it to the pot.
Make the dumplings. In a small bowl, whisk the dry dumpling ingredients together. The stir in the coconut milk and water. Mix them until smooth.
Scoop the dumplings into the hot soup – you should make about 8 – 9 dumplings – and cover the pot. Let the dumplings steam in the soup for about 15 minutes, or until they’ve puffed up and are fully cooked through.
FAQS and tips for making chicken and dumpling soup
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil - divided
- 2 large boneless - skinless chicken breast
- 2 carrots - chopped
- 2 celery stalks - chopped
- 1 medium sweet onion - chopped
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 1 cup apple juice
- 1 cup water - optional
- 2 sprigs fresh rosemary
- 1/4 – 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
- Black pepper - to taste
- 1 cup flour
- 1/4 cup cornmeal
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
- 3/4 cup coconut milk
- 1/2 – 1 tablespoon water
Instructions
- Whisk together dry dumpling ingredients. Add coconut milk, stir to combine.
- In a Dutch oven or large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil to medium-high. Brown chicken until it easily releases from pan, about 3 minutes per side. Remove from pan and set aside.
- Add remaining oil, onion, celery and carrot. Add a pinch of salt and sauté for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently to release brown bits from pan.
- Return chicken to pan. Add apple juice, chicken broth, water, rosemary and salt & pepper. Cover pot and cook for 15 minutes. Remove and shred chicken. (Reduce heat to low and cover while doing this to prevent liquid loss).
- Return chicken to pot and drop dumpling mixture in 2 tablespoon scoops. Increase heat to medium, cover and cook for another 10 minutes or until dumplings are cooked.
