Cracker Barrel Chicken and Dumplings

Our copycat version of Cracker Barrel Chicken and Dumplings is an easy, delicious Southern style family dinner that is perfect for any night of the week. Tender chicken is cooked in a savory sauce with soft, fresh dumplings.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

• INEXPENSIVE – With just a handful of common pantry ingredients that you probably already have in your kitchen, there actually might be no reason for you to even run to the store to buy what you need!
• DELICIOUS – Full of flavor without being too rich or fulling, these Chicken and Dumplings are the perfect comfort food for any occasion. And leftovers taste just as great (if not better) the next day!

Cracker Barrel Chicken and Dumplings

Cracker Barrel has been known for it’s simple, wholesome comfort food offerings for decades. We’ve had some fun coming up with our own versions of some of their   more famous recipes (see our list below!). Our latest adventure is these Copycat Chicken and Dumplings!

For step-by-step instructions, check out our printable recipe card below. But here is what you’ll need to get started.

Chicken and Dumplings Ingredients

• CHICKEN BROTH – Use your own homemade or store bought. You can substitute with vegetable broth if needed, but it may not be as rich.
• WATER – Combine with your broth to make our savory sauce.
• CHICKEN – We used boneless, skinless chicken breasts. But you can also use dark meat if you’d like. Boneless chicken thighs would work. Shred chicken after cooking it.
• FLOUR – All purpose Flour used to make your dumplings. To make this gluten free, you can use Gluten Free Flour.
• BAKING POWDER – Helps the dumplings rise and be soft.
• SHORTENING – Adds the fat to the dumplings to keep them soft and moist.
• MILK – We used 2% milk. But you can use anything you’d like. You could also substitute with Buttermilk.
• SALT AND PEPPER – To taste!

Storage, Leftovers and Freezing

Store your leftovers in an Airtight Container in your refrigerator. They will be good for 4-5 days in your fridge. This recipe reheats great in your microwave.

You can freeze Chicken and Dumplings. Just allow to fully cool and dish into a freezer safe container. You can keep them in your freezer for 3-4 months. Allow to thaw overnight in your refrigerator and reheat in microwave.

Can You Make Chicken and Dumplings With Bisquick?

Yep! You sure can! You can mix 2 cups of Bisquick Baking Mix and 2/3 cups of milk for a quick, easy dumpling dough. We also have a BISQUICK CHICKEN AND DUMPLINGS RECIPE if you want to check that out!

Can You Make Chicken and Dumplings In An Instant Pot?

Yes! Our sister site, amomsimpression.com, has a great INSTANT POT CHICKEN AND DUMPLINGS recipe. It’s super quick and easy if you have a pressure cooker and are short on time!

Notes, Tips and FAQs

• CHICKEN SHORTCUT – You can use cooked chicken for this recipe. This is great if you are short on time. I like to just grab a rotisserie chicken from the store. Or, if you have leftover chicken, it’s a great use for it (leftover turkey too!)
• HOW DO YOU KNOW WHEN YOUR DUMPLINGS ARE DONE? – The best way to tell is when they are nice and fluffy, yet slightly firm. You can stick a toothpick or a cake tester into the middle of them and see if they come out clean.
• LET THE KIDS HELP! – Making the dumplings is so easy and would be a lot of fun for little hands. This is a great recipe to let the kids help prepare.
• ADD VEGGIES – Feel free to add some celery, frozen carrots, corn or peas or even some mushrooms to this dish.
• DON’T OVERWORK THE DOUGH – Combine all the ingredients for the dumplings until JUST incorporated. Don’t overmix or the dumplings will be dense and dry.

We hope you enjoy this Copycat Cracker Barrel Chicken and Dumplings Recipe. We’d love to hear how it turns out in the comment section. Happy eating!

Rate this Recipe

Cracker Barrel Chicken and Dumplings

Course Main Course

Servings 6 servings

Our copycat version of Cracker Barrel Chicken and Dumplings is an easy, delicious Southern style family dinner that is perfect for any night of the week. Tender chicken is cooked in a savory sauce with soft, fresh dumplings. 

Print Recipe

Pin Recipe

Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 30 minutes mins

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• 1 32- ounce container chicken broth
• 4 cups water
• 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts
• 2 cups flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/3 cup shortening
• 1 cup milk
• Salt and pepper

Instructions

• Pour the chicken broth and water into a large stock pot and cook over high heat until boiling.
• When the liquid begins to boil, add the chicken and reduce heat to medium. Season with salt and pepper. Simmer until the chicken is cooked through.
  
• While the chicken is cooking, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl.
  
• Add the shortening and use a pastry cutter or fork to cut it into the flour mixture until the mixture resembles coarse sand.
• Add the milk and stir until a soft dough forms.
  
• Turn out the dough on a floured surface and roll the dough until it’s around 1/8th inch thick. Cut the dough into equal squares.
  
• When the chicken is finished cooking, remove it from the broth and set it aside.
• Drop the dumplings into the broth one at a time to keep them from sticking together. Continue adding the dumplings until all have been added. Cook the dumplings over medium heat for around 20 minutes, until the dumplings begin to float to the top and the broth has thickened.
  
• While the dumplings are cooking, shred the chicken and return it to the pot.
  
• Season the dumplings with additional salt and pepper, as needed, before serving.

Nutrition

Calories: 359kcal

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