On a crisp, cool evening, few things can rival the deep, satisfying comfort of a hot bowl of soup. Yet, when time is short, the desire for a wholesome, home-cooked meal can feel like an impossible challenge. We’re here to change that. Imagine a rich, flavourful soup brimming with tender chicken and cloud-like dumplings, all prepared in one pot and ready in less than an hour. This is the magic of our definitive One Pot Chicken Dumpling Soup, a recipe designed to deliver maximum cosiness with minimum effort.

This dish is a heartfelt nod to traditional British comfort food, evoking the warmth of family kitchens and meals that soothe the soul. We’ve refined the recipe to be wonderfully straightforward, ensuring none of the rich, savoury character is lost. Say goodbye to a sink full of pans and complicated steps. This is a recipe for modern life—perfect for hectic weeknights when you need a nourishing dinner fast, or for those slow weekend afternoons dedicated to pure, unadulterated comfort. Let’s begin.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

• Effortless Single-Pot Cooking: From searing the vegetables to simmering the broth and steaming the dumplings, every step happens in one pot. This not only allows the flavours to develop beautifully but also makes washing up incredibly simple.
• A Perfect 40 minute dinner: When you need a delicious meal on the table without delay, this recipe is your answer. It has all the depth of a slow-cooked classic but comes together with surprising speed.
• Simple, Pillowy Dumplings: If the thought of making dumplings from scratch seems daunting, let us reassure you. Our method is incredibly simple, resulting in light, fluffy dumplings that soak up the savoury broth perfectly every time.
• A Complete, Nourishing Meal: Filled with succulent chicken and wholesome vegetables, this soup is a well-rounded meal in its own right. It’s hearty, comforting, and certain to leave everyone feeling wonderfully satisfied.
• Wonderfully Adaptable: While we adore this recipe just as it is, it’s also brilliantly flexible. Feel free to use different seasonal vegetables, add leftover cooked chicken, or throw in your favourite herbs to truly make it your own.

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp olive oil or unsalted butter
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 2 medium carrots, peeled and diced
• 2 celery stalks, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 500g boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs, cut into bite-sized chunks
• 1.5 litres good-quality chicken stock
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 100ml double cream (optional, for extra richness)
• A small handful of fresh parsley, chopped, for garnish
• 200g self-raising flour
• 100g cold suet (or cold butter, grated)
• 1 tbsp fresh parsley or chives, finely chopped
• A pinch of salt
• Approx. 100-120ml cold water or milk, to mix

For the Dumplings:

• 200g self-raising flour
• 100g cold suet (or cold butter, grated)
• 1 tbsp fresh parsley or chives, finely chopped
• A pinch of salt
• Approx. 100-120ml cold water or milk, to mix

How to Make Our One Pot Chicken Dumpling Soup

We believe that making this heart-warming meal should be just as comforting as eating it. We’ve broken down the process into four straightforward stages, guiding you from a handful of fresh ingredients to a truly spectacular one-pot dinner.

Step 1: Build Your Flavour Base

Every exceptional soup starts with a fantastic foundation of flavour, which is precisely where we’ll start. In a large, sturdy pot or a Dutch oven, warm the olive oil or butter over a medium heat. Add the chopped onion, carrots, and celery—the classic ‘mirepoix’ that forms the savoury backbone of countless dishes.

Gently cook the vegetables for 8-10 minutes, stirring now and then, until they are soft and the onion has become translucent. The aim is to sweat them, not to brown them, co coaxing out their natural sweetness. Stir in the minced garlic and dried thyme, cooking for another minute until their wonderful aroma is released. This initial stage is crucial for the depth of flavour in the finished soup.

Step 2: Simmer the Soup

With our flavour base ready, it’s time to transform it into a proper soup. Add the chunks of chicken to the pot, seasoning them well with salt and pepper. Stir for a minute just to lightly seal the outside. Next, pour in the chicken stock, drop in the bay leaf, and bring the liquid to a gentle boil. As soon as it’s bubbling, lower the heat, pop the lid on, and allow it to simmer for 15 minutes. This gentle cooking ensures the chicken becomes perfectly tender while its flavour melds beautifully with the broth, creating the essence of a great creamy chicken soup.

Step 3: Prepare the Easy Dumpling Dough

As the soup is simmering away, we can prepare the crowning glory of our dish: the dumplings. This is one of those classic biscuit dough recipes that is brilliantly simple yet yields fantastic results. In a mixing bowl, combine the self-raising flour, cold suet or grated butter, chopped fresh herbs, and a pinch of salt. Using just your fingertips, gently rub the fat into the flour until you have a mixture that looks like fine breadcrumbs.

Now, add the cold water or milk a little at a time, using a knife to bring it all together into a soft, slightly tacky dough. Be careful not to add all the liquid at once, and resist the temptation to over-mix it. Overworking the dough will develop gluten and lead to tough dumplings, rather than the light and airy texture needed for the perfect easy dumpling soup.

Step 4: Cook the Dumplings and Finish

Once the soup has had its 15-minute simmer, take off the lid. Give everything a good stir, taste for seasoning, and add more salt and pepper if you think it needs it. Fish out and discard the bay leaf. If you’re after an even more luxurious texture, this is the moment to stir in the double cream.

Bring the soup back to a steady simmer. Using two teaspoons, scoop and drop rustic-looking balls of the dumpling dough directly into the bubbling soup. Try to leave a little space between them, as they will swell up as they cook. When all the dough is in, place the lid back on securely. Now for the most important rule: do not lift the lid! The dumplings rely on the trapped steam to cook through and become fluffy.

Turn the heat down to low and let them steam for 15-20 minutes. At the end of this time, you can finally lift the lid to see beautifully cooked, pillowy dumplings. To be certain they’re done, you can insert a skewer into the centre of one – it should emerge clean. For further guidance on cooking chicken safely, the Food Standards Agency offers clear advice on internal temperatures.

Serve the soup and dumplings immediately in deep bowls, finished with a final flourish of fresh parsley.

FAQ

A Bowl of Pure Comfort Awaits

And there we are—a wonderfully straightforward recipe for a One Pot Chicken Dumpling Soup that we’re sure your entire family will love. This dish is proof that you don’t need to spend hours in the kitchen with a complex recipe to produce a meal that feels genuinely special and tastes absolutely divine. It is the ideal remedy for a cold day, a packed schedule, or simply a craving for true comfort food.

We truly hope you make this dish. It’s more than a recipe; it’s an invitation to enjoy a moment of pure, edible comfort, all served from a single, beautiful bowl. Remember to save or pin this recipe for the next time you need it, and please do let us know how you got on in the comments section below. Happy cooking!

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Prep: 15 mins
Cook: 45 mins
Serves: 4

Ingredients

• For the Soup:
• 2 tbsp olive oil or unsalted butter
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 2 medium carrots, peeled and diced
• 2 celery stalks, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 500g boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs, cut into bite-sized chunks
• 1.5 litres good-quality chicken stock
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 100ml double cream (optional)
• A small handful of fresh parsley, chopped, for garnish
• For the Dumplings:
• 200g self-raising flour
• 100g cold suet (or cold butter, grated)
• 1 tbsp fresh parsley or chives, finely chopped
• A pinch of salt
• Approx. 100-120ml cold water or milk

Instructions

1. Heat oil or butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion, carrots, and celery and cook for 8-10 minutes until soft. Stir in the garlic and thyme and cook for 1 more minute until fragrant.
2. Add the chicken chunks, season with salt and pepper, and stir for a minute. Pour in the chicken stock, add the bay leaf, bring to a boil, then reduce the heat. Cover and simmer gently for 15 minutes.
3. While the soup simmers, prepare the dumplings. In a bowl, combine the self-raising flour, suet or grated butter, fresh herbs, and a pinch of salt. Rub the fat into the flour with your fingertips until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Gradually add the cold water or milk, mixing with a knife to form a soft, slightly tacky dough. Do not over-mix.
4. Remove the lid from the soup, discard the bay leaf, and adjust seasoning. Stir in the double cream if using. Bring the soup to a steady simmer, then drop spoonfuls of the dumpling dough into the pot. Cover tightly, reduce heat to low, and steam for 15-20 minutes without lifting the lid. Garnish with fresh parsley and serve immediately.