Chicken & Dumplings (Self-Rising Flour)
Adapted from The Cozy Cook • Modified to use self-rising flour
Serves:  6 Prep:  20 min Cook:  40 min
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Soup — Ingredients

For the soup base (keep unchanged)

  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 small yellow onion, diced
  • 1 cup carrots, diced
  • 1 cup celery, diced
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1/3 cup all-purpose flour (for thickening)
  • 6 cups chicken broth (low sodium recommended)
  • 1 cup half-and-half or heavy cream
  • 1 teaspoon hot sauce (optional)
  • 1 teaspoon soy sauce
  • 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
  • 1/2 teaspoon each onion powder & garlic powder
  • 1/2 tsp dried thyme
  • 2 teaspoons fresh parsley, chopped (plus more for garnish)
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • 3 cups cooked, shredded chicken

Dumplings — Ingredients

  • 2 cups self-rising flour
  • ½ tsp garlic powder
  • 2 tsp sugar
  • ½ tsp salt (optional)
  • ¾ cup cold sour cream
  • ¼ cup cold milk
  • 4 tbsp melted butter

Directions

  1. Sauté the vegetables: In a large Dutch oven, melt butter with olive oil over medium heat. Add onion, carrots and celery; cook 5 minutes until softened. Add garlic and cook 1 more minute.
  2. Make the roux: Sprinkle 1/3 cup all-purpose flour over the vegetables and stir constantly for 1–2 minutes to remove the raw flour taste.
  3. Add the liquids: Gradually whisk in chicken broth. Add half-and-half, hot sauce (optional), soy sauce, Worcestershire, onion & garlic powder, thyme, and parsley. Simmer gently 10 minutes until slightly thickened.
  4. Add the chicken: Stir in shredded chicken. Taste and season with salt & pepper as needed.
  5. Make the dumpling dough: In a bowl, combine self-rising flour, garlic powder, sugar and (optional) salt. Stir in sour cream, milk, and melted butter until a soft, slightly sticky dough forms. Do not overmix.
  6. Drop the dumplings: Bring the soup to a gentle simmer (not a boil). Drop ~2 tablespoon portions of dough onto the surface of the simmering soup.
  7. Cover and steam: Reduce heat to low, cover tightly and DO NOT lift the lid for 15 minutes. The dumplings will steam and become light and fluffy.
  8. Finish: Test a dumpling with a toothpick — if it comes out clean, they are done. Garnish with parsley and serve hot.

Notes

  • Self-rising flour already contains baking powder and salt — that's why the dumpling recipe removes extra leavening.
  • Store leftovers in the fridge 3–4 days; reheat gently with a splash of broth or milk. Dumplings are best fresh; you can freeze the soup base separately.
  • If you want lighter dumplings, gently fold the dough and avoid overworking it.