Here are two healthy easy recipes for chicken and dumplings – one cooked on the stove and another that cooks in the slow cooker.
If you love chicken and dumplings made from scratch but don’t have the time or desire to cook the chicken, cool it and then remove the skin and bones, here are two great quick and easy alternatives that use already cooked chopped chicken and chicken broth instead.
I never make chicken and dumplings from scratch. Instead I make it when I have leftover chicken to use. It’s so much easier.
Healthy Easy Chicken & Dumplings
Cooking Note: If you prefer to make Bisquick dumplings instead of dumplings from scratch, the Bisquick dumpling recipe from the box says to mix 2-1/4 cups Bisquick and 2/3 cup milk until a soft dough forms.
Easy Healthy Old Fashioned Chicken and Dumplings Recipe
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 45 minutes
Yield: 4 servings
This is a simple chicken & dumplings recipe. Easy to make, delicious and healthy. It’s packed full of good for you vegetables and low fat dumplings. To make this recipe healthier, you could substitute whole wheat pastry flour for some of the all-purpose flour in the dumplings.
Ingredients
For the soup:
2 teaspoons olive oil
3 celery stalks, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
1 onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1-1/2 cups chopped cooked chicken,
4 cups reduced sodium chicken broth
1 bay leaf
1 cup frozen cut green beans, optional
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
For the dumplings:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup water
Recipe Instructions
Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the celery, carrots, onion, garlic and thyme and cook, stirring occasionally until the vegetables begin to soften, 5 to 6 minutes. Add the chicken, chicken broth and bay leaf. Bring the mixture to a boil, then lower the heat and cover the pot. Allow the mixture to bubble gently until the vegetables are almost tender, 10 to 15 minutes. Add the green beans, if using, and continue to simmer gently with the cover on, until the vegetables are tender, another 10 minutes. Stir in the parsley.
Meanwhile to make the dumpling dough, place the flour, baking powder, salt and pepper in a bowl and stir to combine well. Add the water and stir just until the mixture is moistened. Drop the dough by rounded teaspoonfuls onto the simmering chicken vegetable mixture, making 12 dumplings. Cover the pot and simmer, without lifting the lid, until the dumplings have doubled in size and are cooked through, 15 to 20 minutes. Discard the bay leaf and serve.
Source: Adapted from Weight Watchers Comfort Classics : 150 Favorite Home-Style Dishes
Healthy Easy Slow Cooker Chicken and Dumplings Recipe
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 4.5 to 6.5 hours in the slow cooker
Best Size Slow Cooker: 4 quart
Yield: 8 servings
This soup cooks in the slow cooker, but it’s best to transfer it to a soup pot just before you make the dumplings. This healthy chicken and dumplings is packed with nutritious vegetables – onions, celery, potatoes, green beans, carrots and peas. And the dumplings use a combination of white and whole wheat flour, olive oil and nonfat milk. It’s chicken and dumplings that’s both good and good for you, which is what healthy eating is all about, isn’t it?
Ingredients
For the soup:
4 cups chopped cooked chicken
6 cups low sodium chicken broth
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1 cup chopped onions
1 cup chopped celery
6 cups diced potatoes
1 cup chopped green beans
1 cup chopped carrots
1 cup peas, optional
For the dumplings:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon salt
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 egg, beaten
2 tablespoons olive oil
2/3 cup non-fat milk
Recipe Instructions
Combine all the soup ingredients, except peas, in the slow cooker. Cover and cook on low for 4 to 6 hours.
Transfer the chicken vegetable soup to a large soup pot with a lid. Add the peas, if desired. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat so that the mixture bubbles gently.
To make the dumplings, combine the flour, salt and baking powder in a large bowl. In a separate bowl combine the egg, olive oil and milk and mix until smooth. Add this mixture to the flour mixture and stir just until moistened. Drop by large spoonfuls on top of the simmering broth until the dumplings cover the surface of the soup. Cover and simmer without lifting the lid for 18 minutes.
Source: Adapted from Fix-It And Forget-It Big Cookbook: 1400 Best Slow Cooker Recipes
More Easy Healthy Chicken Soup Recipes
