Slow Cooker Chicken and Dumplings {Super Easy!}
Slow Cooker Chicken and Dumplings – An easy version of the comfort-food classic that simmers away all day in the crockpot. You will love this simple and delicious recipe!
For more easy Crockpot Recipes, be sure to check out my Old Bay Shrimp Boil, Crockpot Chicken and Noodles, and Mississippi Pot Roast.
Chicken and dumplings has to be the epitome of comfort food.
And when you want a bowl full of home cooked goodness, but you don’t want to spend all day in the kitchen preparing it, Slow Cooker Chicken and Dumplings is the way to go.
As much as I love scooping up delicious spoonfuls of it now, Chicken and Dumplings was never really a meal that we ate growing up.
My mom is a good cook, but there are were only a few select meals that I can remember her making. I think part of that comes from her trying to keep things as simple as possible while raising four kids!
The first place I discovered my love for Chicken and Dumplings was actually at Cracker Barrel. The delicious dumplings and gravy….SWOON!
Now, I love to make this easy version of Slow Cooker Chicken and Dumplings at home. The dumplings are actually made from prepared biscuit dough, and let me tell ya: they are SO darn good! It’s hard to stop at just one bowl!
Ingredients for Slow Cooker Chicken and Dumplings
- chicken breasts (or thighs)
- unsalted butter
- onion
- dried parsley
- seasoned salt
- garlic powder
- poultry seasoning
- chicken broth
- cream of chicken soup
- canned, regular size buttermilk biscuits
How to Make Slow Cooker Chicken and Dumplings – Step by Step
Step 1: Add ingredients to crockpot
To get started, simply add some chicken, a chopped onion, spices, a little butter, chicken broth, and some cream of chicken soup to the bowl of your crockpot. Cook it all together on low for 6-8 hours, or high for 4-5 hours.
Step 2: Shred the chicken
After you’ve let it all cook for at least 4 hours on high or 6 hours on low, remove the lid and use a fork to break up the chicken, stirring everything well.
Step 3: Add the chopped biscuits
Chop up some refrigerated biscuits into quarter size chunks and add to the slow cooker. Push them down so that they soak up the gravy while they cook.
Step 4: Cook for 1 more hour
I also like to scoop up some of the gravy from the crockpot and pour it over the top. Put the lid back on and cook your crockpot chicken and dumplings for 1 more hour on high.
Slow Cooker Chicken and Dumplings – Tips and Notes
- Cream of chicken soup: I LOVE to use the Cream of Chicken soup made by Pacific Foods. It’s organic, it tastes good, and every ingredient is recognizable, which makes me feel a lot better about using it. It comes in a box instead of a can and can be found in the soup aisle.
- Cook the biscuits for at least one hour. All crockpots cook differently, so your biscuits may require more time. Mine are done after an hour on high, but yours may need to cook for a little longer.
- Avoid using flaky biscuits or Grands style. I recommend using REGULAR size buttermilk biscuits. Other types of biscuits will not always cook properly. Most store brands will carry a regular size canned biscuit. If you can only find Grands size biscuits, just cut them into smaller pieces and use about 4-5 biscuits total.
- Add some veggies. A small bag of frozen vegetables can be added to the crockpot when you shred the chicken, right before you add the biscuit dough on top.
- Storing leftovers: Any leftover slow cooker chicken and dumplings can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to three days.
FAQs
Add all ingredients to the Instant Pot except for the biscuits and stir well. Place the chopped biscuits on top and add the lid. Turn the valve to sealing and cook over manual high pressure for five minutes. Allow the pressure to release naturally before removing the lid and serving.
Yes! You can use frozen chicken in either the crockpot or Instant Pot version. You might need to increase the cook time by about 1-2 hours for the crockpot chicken and dumplings. For the Instant Pot version, increase the pressure time to 10 minutes.
Yes, feel free to use chicken breasts or thighs. They both turn out great.
More Amazing Chicken Recipes You Should Try!
If you try this recipe, please leave a comment and rating below. I love to hear from you and always appreciate your feedback!
Recipe: {Easy} Slow Cooker Chicken and Dumplings
Ingredients
- 1 1/2-2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 2 Tablespoons butter
- 2 teaspoon dried parsley
- 1/2 teaspoon seasoned salt
- 1/4 teaspoon poultry seasoning
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 2 cans, or boxes cream of chicken soup
- 8-10 canned, REGULAR size, buttermilk biscuits
Instructions
- Place chicken in the bottom of slow cooker, along with chopped onion and 2 TB butter. Sprinkle with dried parsley, seasoning salt, poultry seasoning, and garlic powder.
- Add chicken broth and cream of chicken soup to crockpot, and stir all ingredients to combine. Place lid on top and cook over low heat for 6 hours, or high heat for 4 hours.
- After cooking for at least 6 hours on low, or 4 hours on high, remove lid and stir mixture with a spoon or fork, breaking apart the chicken into smaller chunks.
- Chop the biscuits into quarters and add to the crockpot. Push biscuit dough down into the crockpot a bit so that they will absorb the gravy as they cook.
- Replace the lid and continue cooking for 1-2 more hours over high heat until biscuits are cooked through and begin to turn golden brown. Enjoy!
Notes
- Cream of chicken soup: I LOVE to use the Cream of Chicken soup made by Pacific Foods. It’s organic, it tastes good, and every ingredient is recognizable, which makes me feel a lot better about using it. It comes in a box instead of a can and can be found in the soup aisle.
- Cook the biscuits for at least one hour. All crockpots cook differently, so your biscuits may require more time. Mine are done after an hour on high, but yours may need to cook for a little longer.
- Avoid using flaky biscuits or Grands style. I recommend using REGULAR size buttermilk biscuits. Other types of biscuits will not always cook properly. Most store brands will carry a regular size canned biscuit. If you can only find Grands size biscuits, just cut them into smaller pieces and use about 4-5 biscuits total.
- Add some veggies. A small bag of frozen vegetables can be added to the crockpot when you shred the chicken, right before you add the biscuit dough on top.
- Storing leftovers: Any leftover slow cooker chicken and dumplings can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to three days.
I’ve made this several times for friends and family. Everyone LOVES it! I’m not big on cooking so this definitely impresses them! 🙂 Thanks for sharing your recipe!
So glad to hear y’all are enjoying it! It’s always nice to impress your friends and family!!
Thank you this was soooo yummy. Made it for dinner tonight and my son loved it (he is a picky eater) I used Trader Joes biscuits rolled them and cut them into smaller bites they are my favorite and cut back a bit on the season salt. One more thing I did was I cut the chicken in strips instead of putting in whole whole and they chicken has soaked up all the yumminess ( ok not a word lol ) of the sauce and were so moist. Keep these coming I am a huge fan !!
So glad you enjoyed this, Eleni! Love hearing when picky eaters enjoy it, too. My kiddos are the same! Thank you so much for coming back to leave a comment!
Can I use onion powder instead of chopped onions? if so, how much?
Hi Angela, sorry for the late response. I’ve been sick and have been taking a break. The fresh onions give it a really nice flavor, so it will taste slightly different if you leave them out. I think you could still add about 1/2 – 1 teaspoon of onion powder though to make up for it.
How many servings does this recipe make?
Do you use raw chicken on the bottom or do you pre cook it?
So sorry for the late response, CJ. I’ve been very sick and have been taking a break for awhile. I use raw chicken for this.
Sooo, i found this recipe on yesterday and have Lloyd the ingredients going in my crockpot today! I can’t wait to get home from work and smell what I am sure is a pleasant aroma! My only concern is the comments I have seen with the issue of mushy dumplings! Can you provide any EXTRA tips to ensure it is a good consistency? I purchased the butter tasting Grands biscuits… will cut them in smaller pieces ensure a better outcome?
I think smaller pieces would be best with the Grands biscuits. I never have an issue with them being mushy, but if they are it might just be that they need to cook a bit longer. Hope you enjoy it!
2 questions: 1.) can this crockpot meal be frozen ahead of time? & 2.) do I cook the chicken before putting it in the crockpot?
Hi Ann! I’ve never frozen this before so I’m not sure how it would turn out. My fear would be that the cream of chicken soup would separate once it’s cooked after freezing. And no need to cook the chicken beforehand; it goes into the crockpot uncooked!
Making this right now. I can’t wait to see how this turns out!
Hope you enjoy it, Cate!
Turned out good, everybody liked it but it was a little salty. next time I make it I’m leaving out the seasoned salt.
Glad y’all enjoyed it, Hannah!
This is gonna sound kinda stupid but bear with me. I’m still learning! What chicken broth would I be using? Am I gonna boil the chicken first and use that broth?
Hi Jessie! Not a stupid question at all! I usually buy my chicken broth pre-made. It comes in either cans or in pourable-boxes and it’s usually right next to the canned soups. Hope that helps!
Sounds like something i’d like to make, but don’t have a cast iron sekillt and don’t plan to buy one ..I guess to make this I’ll have to transfer the meal to a baking pan to finish off this recipe in the over ..will this affect the biscuits from baking properly? .any other ideas????
Hi there! This is actually made in the slow cooker, not in a cast iron skillet. The biscuits are cooked in the slow cooker as well. Hope that answers your question!
Made this last night. The flavor was perfect. Added celery and carrots to add more veggies to it. However the biscuit part was disgusting. I don’t know if the low setting was the problem, the biscuit brand (TJ), or just my taste buds. I will definitely use the base of the recipe for sure and experiment with out dumpling options.
other dumpling options
Sorry to hear your biscuits didn’t turn out well. Did you let you them cook all the way? I always cook them over high for an hour until they are golden on the outside. I also always use Pillsbury biscuits, too, so maybe that makes a difference. They always come out great for me. Let me know if you try something different.
How do you cook the biscuits on hi without burning the soup?
It won’t burn, it just continues cooking!
Hi there just saw this gorgeous looking recipe and was wondering if regular home made biscuits would work. If so is there a hearty biscuit recipe you could recommend that would stand up to the soup and not break apart
Hi Melissa! I think homemade biscuits would work fine, as long as you put the dough in the same as you would the refrigerated biscuits. I’ve made Paula Deen’s biscuits before and have really liked them. They might work well here. Here’s the link for those: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/biscuits-recipe.html
I so wanted to use the Pacific cream of chicken, but I couldn’t find it anywhere. I ended up grabbing their cream of mushroom instead. Do you think it’ll work for this recipe? Thanks!
Hi Cara! The flavor will be a bit different with the mushroom soup, but it should still work. You can always use regular cream of chicken soup, too. Let me know how it turns out!
so far so good! It smells delicious and Im so excited to try it. Does the cook time change if I used chicken breast tenders instead of full breasts?
I tried the chicken and dumplings tonight. I followed the recipe to the “T” …….it was wonderful!!!!!!! My whole family loved it. Thanks so much!
Yay Nicole! I’m thrilled to hear that y’all enjoyed it! It’s one of our faves! 🙂
Absolutely fabulous! This is one of the yummiest recipes I’ve ever made so easily! Thanks for the tip about the Pacific Cream of chicken soup – found it easily at Sprouts – I also found refrigerator biscuits without any yucky stuff in them at Sprouts, also. Loved it, my husband loved it, and I could eat it all day! This is going in my favorites file! Thanks so much for sharing!
Kathy, I am thrilled to hear that you enjoyed this! This really is one of the best easy and yummy crockpot recipes that I have found, and we make it all the time. How awesome that you found some good biscuits, too! I wish we had a Sprouts out here, I’ve heard they are awesome. Thank you so much for coming back and leaving a comment, it means so much! 🙂
My pleasure, Ashlyn! Keep the good recipes coming. Your website is on my favorites lists, too! 🙂
Hi, I can’t wait to try this recipe!! Looks amazing….what kind of biscuits did you find? Thanks ????