I get lots of gluten free recipe requests, and I can’t always provide a recipe as quickly as one might wish! That’s why I’m happy to be able to share a reader recipe for Gluten Free Chicken and Dumplings!
Chicken and dumplings is a classic comfort dish with roots deeply embedded in American culinary history, dating back to early settlers who adapted European stew traditions to the resources available in their New World. While this dish was originally a simple combination of chicken, vegetables, and doughy dumplings — and has indeed evolved with fancier culinary interpretations — the basic recipe has always remained uncomplicated and satisfying.
This gluten free chicken and dumplings recipe retains all the heartwarming qualities of the originals: tender pieces of chicken simmered in a rich broth alongside fluffy, gluten free dumplings to soak up all the savory flavors.
Here’s why reader April Copeland loves her family’s tried and true gluten free dumplings recipe so much, and was so excited to share!
Know that you can simply use my gfJules Flour and make your own chicken and noodles for lots of kinds of yummy comfort food dishes like this by following a regular recipe — it’s that simple!
I made from scratch chicken and noodles with your flour and man that is so good! Hadn’t made noodles for 20 years because of GF flours wouldn’t hold or were goopy or etc.
And here’s what another reader had to say when she made this comfort food classic:
This was such a menu changer for all of us GF people I almost cried to get to have an old favorite!!! Thanks so much for your flour!~Linda U.
Another recipe tester had this to say about this fantastic comfort food recipe:
I used bacon fat instead of chicken fat since the chicken I boiled didn’t have much fat on it. I was skeptical about adding the dumplings directly to the soup for fear they would fall apart, but they didn’t break and they cooked up perfectly in the soup. They even held together beautifully when I reheated leftovers of the soup the next day. My whole family enjoyed this recipe! ~Alexa
I hope these reviews encourage you to try this recipe for yourself, too! There’s no time like the present to enjoy favorite comfort foods again, and to share!
Enjoy the recipe and if you try it, be sure to leave a comment thanking April for the recipe!
Gluten Free Chicken and Dumplings Recipe
Gluten Free Chicken and Dumplings Recipe
Chicken and dumplings is a classic comfort dish that shouldn't be left behind on a gluten free diet. This gluten-free adaptation retains all the heartwarming qualities of the original because it's made with soft, grit-free gfJules Flour.
Ingredients
Soup Base
- 1 stick (8 Tbs.) butter or vegan butter
- gfJules™ All-Purpose Gluten Free Flour to dredge chicken
- 2 chicken breast halves (w/bones & skin)
- Salt and pepper
- 2-3 large carrots, diced
- 4-6 celery stalks w/heart, diced
- 2 medium onions, diced
- 3 large cloves garlic smashed and diced
- 1/2 tsp. poultry seasoning (split between dredge/vegetables)
- 10 cups chicken broth (or water with 2 tbsp. chicken base-be sure to use a gluten free one!)
- 2 medium brown potatoes cut into smallish rectangles
- 3/4 cup milk of choice or half & half
Gluten Free Dumplings
- 3 cups gfJules™ All-Purpose Gluten Free Flour
- 3/4 tsp. baking soda
- 3/4 tsp. salt
- 2 tbsp. chicken fat (skimmed off broth after an hour of simmering & refrigerated till firm) or lard (or see reader note about using bacon fat)
- 4 tbsp. vegetable shortening
- 1 cup milk of choice or half & half
Instructions
To Make Soup:
- Sprinkle chicken pieces generously with salt and pepper and lightly with poultry seasoning, and then dredge both sides in gfJules™ All-Purpose Gluten Free Flour.
- Melt butter in a pot over medium-low heat. Brown chicken nicely on both sides and remove to a clean plate. (Chicken is not cooked through yet, so don’t eat it!)
- In the same pot, add diced carrots, celery, onions, and garlic. Stir and cook for 3 to 4 minutes over medium heat. Stir in poultry seasoning (and chicken base if using water), and then pour in 8 cups chicken broth (or water). Stir to combine, and add browned chicken. Cover pot and simmer for 1 hour.
- Skim enough chicken fat off the top of the stock to give you 2 Tablespoons (after refrigeration) for dumplings. Continue to simmer covered…up to another hour if you like.
- Carefully remove chicken from pot with a giant spoon, cool and pull (discarding skin/bones). Once pulled, set aside for later. Add more chicken broth or water to pot (eyeball it – up to two more cups); continue to simmer stock with lid off. Smash some of the vegetables in the pot with a couple of spoons (you’ll be leaving them in there!).
To Make Gluten Free Dumplings:
- Sift together all dry ingredients, cut in chicken fat (skimmed earlier) and shortening with a pastry cutter, and then add milk gradually (you may use slightly less than 1 cup), until a ball forms. Wrap in plastic wrap, cover with kitchen towel, and set aside for 30 minutes.
- Roll out the dough onto a surface with gfJules Flour that you don’t mind cutting on. Roll about ¼ inch thick. Using a pizza cutter or sharp knife, cut dough into rectangles about 1 inch wide by 2 inches long. Place strips (use thin spatula/scraper to peel them up), on cooling racks or wax paper and allow to dry a teensy bit, about 30 minutes.
- Add potatoes to stock and simmer for 20-30 minutes until soft. Keep stock to a gentle simmer and drop in dumplings. Cover and cook/steam for 4-6 minutes.
- Reduce heat to low, add pulled chicken and 3/4 cup milk. Allow to cook a little longer stirring intermittently (and gently), approximately five minutes, and serve.
Recommended Products
I may earn a small amount from qualifying affiliate purchases; this amount goes to fund this blog and does not cost you anything additional.
Nutrition Information
Yield 8 Serving Size 1Amount Per Serving Calories 364Total Fat 24gSaturated Fat 12gTrans Fat 1gUnsaturated Fat 10gCholesterol 85mgSodium 1717mgCarbohydrates 18gFiber 2gSugar 7gProtein 18g
Please keep in mind that nutrition information provided is per serving, which may vary. While we have taken care to provide you with the most accurate nutritional values possible, please note that this information may differ significantly depending on the exact ingredients and brands that you choose to use to make this recipe. Additionally, where options are given for ingredients, the resulting calculation may include all ingredient options instead of only one per line, skewing the totals significantly.
Pin for later!
some people still use Crisco. Mine is in the fridge.
Absolutely – it’s a totally viable ingredient option, and the nice thing is that you can find it in any grocery store!
~jules
Crisco went out with high button shoes. Nobody uses it anymore. Its unhealthy.
Hi Sylvia, I’m sure you could use another solid shortening instead — I personally like Spectrum Organic Palm Oil Shortening for recipes where shortening is called for.
~jules
What am I doing wrong? I wanted soft and fluffy dumplings. It seemed like a lot of dough and not soft. Reading some of the responses, Are these rolled dumplings? I wanted drop dumplings, these aren’t them I am guessing. Can I salvage this mass of flour in another recipe? It’s sitting in my fridge for now.
Hi Gloria – are you using my gfJules Flour? From the directions, you would be rolling the dough out, yes. It’s not my recipe, so I have to defer to her written directions. She does describe them as being soft though – I hope that helps!
~jules
ok….So there are two kinds of dumplings. There are the puffy, soft ones like my mother used to make —> sauerkraut and dumplings.
Then, there are the ones that are more of Amish tradition, which are more like noodles.
To make the soft fluffy kind (that are made by dropping from a tablespoon into boiling liquid), I use gluten-free Bisquick! The recipe for dumplings has been on the back of regular Bisquick for years.
I know that defeats the purpose of mixing from scratch, but this gives some insight into dumplings. It also might answer some of the questions posed on this site about the consistency of the dumplings.
Thanks for the primer on dumplings, Becky! To make a gluten-free Bisquick-like mixture using my gfJules Flour (so you can use the recipe on the box), just whisk these ingredients togeher:
1 ½ cups gfJules Flour
4 Tbs. Dari-Free™ Non-Dairy Milk Powder (or dry dairy or other milk powder)
1 ½ tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
Which are your favorite kinds of dumplings?
~jules
Regular Bisquick has shortening in it. Does this recipe need some oil of some kind? Can we use this cup for cup for Bisquick?
Thank you.
Hi Joan, to make a homemade Bisquick-type mix, follow this recipe (and yes, you’ll need to add shortening):
Here’s a recipe for a baking mix like Bisquick using gfJules All Purpose Gluten Free Flour:
1 ½ cups gfJules Flour
4 Tbs. Coconut Milk Powder (or dry dairy or soy milk powder)
1 ½ tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
In this recipe, April has used chicken fat and shortening to make the dumplings with my gfJules Flour.
If you’re just looking for gluten free biscuits, check out my gluten free Buttermilk Biscuit Recipe!
~jules
I just made some drop ‘fluffy’ dumplings! I was so excited! I’m with you, it’s been hard since going gluten free to get the same textures with some things!
I used 1 cup GF Jules flour, 3 tbs spectrum palm oil, 2tbs butter, 2tsp baking powder, 1/2tsp salt, all cut in together. Add 3/4- 1 cup milk, then drop on hot meat& vegetables, cook for 10 minutes, then cover and continue to cook 10 minutes! So close to the ones I was used to!
That’s so great to hear, Tracey!!! Thanks for sharing your Dumplings recipe made gluten free with my gfJules Flour – it sounds delightful. I can’t wait to give this one a try, too!!!!
~jules
do you NEED the congealed fat? My recipe is a much faster version, using bought rotisserie chicken and organic broth. My traditional flour version for the dumplings just uses butter. I’ll try it like that unless there is a specific reason for the chicken fat???
Hi Cindi, it’s not my recipe so I’m not 100% sure, but I would not think it would be necessary. Try it your way with butter and if it’s too soft, next time just try vegetable shortening. Let me know how it goes!
~jules
I just asked you about a rolled dumpling recipe a week or so ago, but didn’t get to see the answer. So glad I found this. I made dumplings last night with your biscuit recipe and they are delicious, but the dough was so soft, it was hard to peel them off the baking mat so they sort of fell apart. I’ll try this recipe next time. I have really been missing chicken and dumplings since having to go gluten free.
Wonderful to hear that you forged ahead on your own to make dumplings, Deb. Also great to hear that the biscuits were so soft and yummy! Not necessarily ideal for dumplings, but great success for biscuits! I can’t wait to hear how this dumplings recipe works out for you!
Wow! Just saw some people have tried my recipe. Yay! I will go through and try to answer some of the questions.
I have been making c and d for a very long time and really missed this dish. I have to say this is the BEST recipe ever!!! Absolutely lick your bowl clean kind of delicious. WOW! The dumplings were perfect and the chicken very tender. I used the thighs and legs as well. Thank you so much Jules.
So wonderful to hear, Tina! I’m thrilled that you tried the recipe and that it was everything you had hoped for!
Wahoo!!! Another rolled dumpling lover! I am so glad you like the recipe
Thank you Jules for sharing my recipe with you wonderful fans <3
I wonder if butter could be substituted for the Crisco? I have a homemade dumplings recipe that of course calls for regular flour. I may just try substituting Jules flour and see how it goes.
I did make dumplings tonight using my old recipe. They were delicious. They did not rise very well so my family has asked me to make them again tomorrow and just make more dumplings. So I will do this again and not roll my dumplings out as thin and making more of them.
Wonderful, Linda! Let me know how it goes that way!
They were delicious. They rose just a little bit, I used fresher baking powder. The broth didn’t thicken up as well as I would have liked, but was trying to get them done before our daughter needed to leave for work. The next day we warmed up the left overs and the broth was thicker. I ended up tripling the recipe so that was a lot of GF flour. 6 cups! As I learn more I am going to play around with the recipe.
That’s great to hear, Linda! And yes, sometimes sitting for a while will help thicken up soups and broths. Glad you tried the recipe!
I actually stopped using Crisco and have opted for the Spectrum Non-Hydrogenated shortening and this works great and tastes better. I think might have too much water content but worth a try.
I made this tonight, and although it was a lot of work, it was AMAZING!!!! Thanks for sharing!!!!
FANTASTIC! So glad to hear it, Julie (I mean, the fact that it was amazing, not that it was a lot of work!)!!
YAY! I’m so happy you tried the recipe and like it!!! – This is my daughter’s favorit meal, especially when she is sick. It does take a long time so I don’t make it often…
Can you freeze these for later use?
Hi Teri, I freeze my ravioli and pierogies by letting them cool and then sealing in a zip top bag with wax paper in between them. I would think that would work for these as well.
I have frozen the dumplings (flash freezed and then single layer between parchment). The dumplings get fluffier when cooked and also fall apart easier but still were delicious!
I had a really hard time following the timing of the dumpling prep vs the soup prep
Also, my dumplings did not rise at all. They look like fat noodles.
I’m sorry, I tried to make sense of directions as I was making the soup. Just know there should be LOTS of simmering time and you can make the dumplings after you’ve skimmed some fat for them and the fat is congealed. These dumplings do not rise and are noodly. They resemble nothing like the balls at all O_o There’s lots of schools of thought on what a dumpling should be, I’ve always preferred the noodly kind. I believe that if you follow the link to Ree Drumonds recipe above, she’ll have an alternative you’ll like better! (I’m just not sure what they’ll do because I haven’t tried it)
Do you think this dumpling recipe can be used to make drop dumplings? I have no counter space to roll out dumplings.
Hi Beth – I would give it a shot! Just don’t make them too thick. Let me know how it goes!
This is a traditionally rolled recipe but you could probably make small balls and the smoosh them flat.