Instant Pot Chicken and Dumplings
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This Instant Pot Chicken and Dumplings can be on your dinner table in under 30 minutes! Savor this classic, hearty, comforting, and satisfying soup with chicken and biscuit dumplings.
Easy Instant Pot Chicken and Dumplings Recipe
Chicken and dumplings is a classic soup I grew up with. My mom would make us a dish similar to this quite often and it was one of my favorite soups. It still is. Of course the dumplings were my favorite thing about the soup. I would eat all the soup and the veggies and leave the dumplings for last so I could savor them.
I love this version of Instant Pot Chicken and Dumplings because I get to use my Instant Pot. The Instant Pot is probably my most used appliance in the house right now and I just love it. It’s quick, easy to clean and I can make pretty much anything in it.
Why You’ll Love This Instant Pot Chicken And Dumplings
- Classic Comfort Food! A classic comfort food we all know and love with dumplings, chicken and lots of veggies. It’s hearty and so delicious.
- Quick And Easy! This dish is a pretty much dump and cook type of dish and the Instant Pot does all the work, plus it’s all ready in just 30 minutes!
- Family Favorite! Hands down this Instant Pot chicken and dumplings recipe is a keeper and one the whole family will love! Not to mention, the leftovers make a fantastic lunch for the little ones as well as the big ones.
- Refrigerated Biscuits – One of the main ingredients in this soup, I used Pillsbury biscuits. It’s what makes this soup quick and easy to make.
- Olive oil – Sunflower, safflower, vegetable, canola, or avocado oils will work instead.
- Onion – Mild flavored onion such as white or yellow work best.
- Carrots & celery –You can add more or less as you prefer.
- Salt & pepper – Season to taste.
- Chicken or Vegetable Broth – Use no sodium added chicken/vegetable broth or chicken/vegetable stock to control the saltiness of the final dish. Water can also be used if you prefer.
- Flour – I’m using all purpose as a thickening agent for our soup.
- Frozen peas – Don’t worry mom, I’m including veggies.
- Thyme – Even if you’re not the biggest thyme fan, there are just some recipes that absolutely need it, and this is in one of them. I used dried for this dish.
- Chicken – I like to use chicken breasts that are boneless and skinless but thighs would work as well.
- Chicken Bouillon – I love adding this for extra flavor but you can also use vegeta instead.
- Bay Leaves – They add another layer of flavor to this soup that helps lighten it up with its tea-like aromas.
- Parsley – Fresh is best! I like a little fresh parsley to garnish my soups with.
This comforting classic is pretty simple to make in just about 30 minutes. You sauté your veggies right in the Instant Pot, add the rest of the ingredients and let your beloved Instant Pot do all the work.
Before starting anything, you need to get your dumplings ready. To do so, open the can of biscuits and flatten out each biscuit with your fingers or a rolling pin. Now, cut each biscuit in 4 strips, or as large or small as you like. Set them aside until needed.
To begin, you need to sauté your veggies in the Instant Pot. But before you do, take a look at your manufacturer’s guide for detailed instructions on how to use your particular model. Next, turn your IP on to the sauté setting. Add the olive oil and cook until oil is hot. Then once the oil is hot, add the onion, carrots, and celery to the pot and sauté for 3 minutes or until the onion is soft and translucent. Season with salt and pepper.
Now sprinkle the flour over the veggies and stir well. Cook this for 1 minute to remove the raw flour taste. Add 1 cup of the chicken broth and whisk until the all the flour has absorbed all the liquid.
Next, you’ll need to stir in the thyme, chicken bouillon or poultry seasoning, and add the bay leaves. Add the remaining chicken broth, water and stir. If you prefer, you could use all chicken broth or all water. If using only water, you might need to add a bit more poultry seasoning.
Now, you can add the chicken to the pot and the biscuit pieces. You might need to separate the biscuit pieces a bit because they sometimes tend to stick together.
Next, it’s time to cook the soup and create a super flavorful broth! To do this, close the lid on your Instant Pot and set the valve to the sealing positing. Then set the IP to the Soup setting and set the timer to 7 minutes. It will take the Instant Pot a few minutes to come to pressure before you see the timer counting. This is totally normal, so don’t worry. If your IP doesn’t have the soup setting, simply use the Manual setting on high pressure for 7 minutes.
When the Instant Pot is done pressure cooking, allow the natural release cycle to complete. It will take about 10 minutes for all the steam to release itself. However, if you are in a rush you can also use the quick release function as instructed in your manufacturer’s guide. Then carefully remove the lid of the Instant Pot once all the steam has been released.
Now, remove the chicken from the Instant Pot with a slotted spoon or tongs. Next, shred the chicken with 2 forks or chop it up into bite-size pieces. Add the shredded chicken back to the pot and add the peas. Stir everything together. Taste for seasoning and adjust as necessary. Cook for 2 more minutes until the peas are cooked.
Turn off the Instant Pot, by pressing the cancel button. Garnish with a little freshly chopped parsley if you like and enjoy!
What Is Chicken and Dumplings
If you’re not familiar with chicken and dumplings, make sure you try this recipe. It is a classic. It’s a dish that consists of a chicken and vegetable soup base, loaded with biscuit dumplings. I’ll go as far as saying that probably everyone has their own version of chicken and dumplings.
You can either make the dumplings yourself from scratch or use ready made biscuit dough. Because this is such a thick soup, some would call this a stew. Up to you.
Which Dumplings Are Better
Do you use homemade dumplings or ready made canned biscuits. The answer really depends on your preference. Personally, I do like both. If you pressure cook homemade dumplings, they will not be as fluffy and light as when simmered. However, they will have a greater texture, so again it depends on your preference.
Using canned biscuits is both convenient and quick but they still taste delicious. Perhaps it comes down to how much time you have.
Expert Tips
- Speed Up Your Prep! The hardest part of this recipe is the prepping of the ingredients, so to make things easier on yourself, use store bought pre-cut vegetables.
- Veg It Up! Go ahead and add some spinach, kale, corn or green beans and load up your soup with lots of veggies.
- Use Heavy Cream! If you’re the type that likes a super creamy chicken and dumplings, go ahead and add some heavy cream to your soup, just reduce the broth by the amount of cream you add.
Storage
Chicken and dumplings can be stored up to 3-4 days in the fridge in an airtight container or for 3 months in the freezer. Ensure the soup is completely cooled before storing in a shallow container.
Other Delicious Soup Recipes To Try
- Red Lentil and Chicken Soup
- Lasagna Soup
- Broccoli Cheese Soup
- Italian Wedding Soup
- Chicken Gnocchi Soup
- Minestrone Soup
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Instant Pot Chicken and Dumplings
Ingredients
- 8 refrigerated biscuits (I used Pillsbury)
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 large onion (chopped)
- 1 large carrot (peeled and chopped)
- 2 stalks celery (chopped)
- ½ teaspoon salt (or to taste)
- ½ teaspoon pepper (or to taste)
- ⅓ cup all-purpose flour
- 5 cups chicken broth
- ½ teaspoon thyme (dried)
- 1 cube chicken bouillon (or 1 tsp poultry seasoning, I used 1 tsp vegeta)
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 cups water
- 1 pound chicken breast (boneless and skinless (about 2))
- ½ cup peas (frozen)
- 2 tablespoon parsley (fresh, for garnish)
Before You Begin! If you make this, please leave a review and rating letting us know how you liked this recipe! This helps our business thrive & continue providing free recipes.
Instructions
- Open the can of biscuits and flatten out each biscuit with your fingers. Alternatively you could use a rolling pin. Cut each biscuit in 4 strips, or feel free to cut them as large or as small as you like. Set aside.
- Turn your Instant Pot to the sauté setting. (See your manufacturer's guide for detailed instructions on how to use your instant pot.)
- Add the olive oil and cook until oil is hot. Add the onion, carrots and celery and saute for 3 minutes until the onion softens and becomes translucent. Season with salt and pepper.
- Whisk in the flour and cook for 1 minute. Add 1 cup of the chicken broth and whisk until the all the flour has absorbed all the liquid.
- Stir in the thyme, chicken bouillon or poultry seasoning, and add the bay leaves. Add the remaining chicken broth, water and stir. If you prefer, you could use all chicken broth or all water. If using only water, you might need to add a bit more poultry seasoning.
- Add the chicken to the pot then add the biscuit pieces, breaking them apart if needed. Mine stuck to each other a bit, so I had to separate them before adding them to the pot.
- Close the lid (follow the manufacturer's guide for instructions on how to close the instant pot lid). Set the Instant Pot to the Soup setting and set the timer to 7 minutes.
- Once the Instant Pot cycle is complete, wait until the natural release cycle is complete, should take about 10 minutes. Follow the manufacturer's guide for quick release, if in a rush. Carefully unlock and remove the lid from the instant pot.
- Remove the chicken breasts from the pot and shred with two forks. Set the Instant Pot to the saute setting again. Add the shredded chicken back to the pot and add the peas. Stir everything together. Taste for seasoning and adjust as necessary. Cook for 2 more minutes until the peas are cooked.
- Turn off the Instant Pot, by pressing the cancel button. Garnish with chopped parsley and serve warm.
Equipment
Video
Notes
- What is an Instant Pot: An IP is a multi-cooker, it’s like seven different appliances all in one! It does the job of a slow cooker, pressure cooker, rice cooker, steamer, yogurt maker, etc.
- I don’t have an Instant Pot, can I still make this soup: Absolutely, try my classic Chicken and Dumplings recipe here.
- Can I use chicken breast with skin and bones? Absolutely, it will actually result in a deeper more delicious broth.
- Can I use chicken drumsticks or thighs: Yes, you can. Any part of the chicken can be used, as long as you have enough chicken meat to add to the soup after you shred it.
- Can I use frozen chicken: Yes, you can. The time can vary depending on how big your chicken pieces are but I would start with 10 to 12 minutes and go from there.
- Why use chicken broth, can I just use water instead: Yes, you can absolutely replace the chicken broth with water, or if you prefer use only chicken broth.
Nutrition Information
Notice: Nutrition is auto-calculated for your convenience. Where relevant, we recommend using your own nutrition calculations.
Absolutely loved this recipe. Lots of wiggle room with it too!
I wasn’t sure about my dough, and also cubed the chicken beforehand, and even though I was biting my nails waiting for the end result; it all turned out amaaaazing.
Super hearty and tasted like a recipe my grandma used to make, got to share it with my Mom and reminisce about grandma’s cooking. What could be better?
I’m so glad you enjoyed the recipe!
Don’t laugh but are the chicken breasts supposed to be raw when you put them into the IP? How long if you already have cooked chicken?
Yes, the chicken is supposed to be raw. 🙂 I would still do the whole 7 minutes.
The recipe does not start with how much water or broth I have to start with to cook the chicken , I am new with this pressure cooker , never used one in my life ….
You must not be looking at the recipe card, scroll down to see the recipe card or click on jump to recipe at top of page. All the ingredients and amounts are there. Hope this helps.
Love this recipe. I see the approximate calories, but what is a serving size; 1 cup = 332 calories. I have used canned biscuits and have made homemade spaetzle too.
I’m recording every bite I eat on a jet healthy journey and it’s hard to estimate some recipes.
The nutritional information assumes 6 servings, we don’t actually calculate how much in a serving, but if I were to guesstimate it’s about 1 1/2 cups.
I added roasted garlic powder and dried rosemary. Delicious! Would definitely make again.
I love your whole website – so well done and beautiful. You also have very beautiful hands! I haven’t made this dish yet – but I will. Thinking of replacing the dumplings with pasta…. should work well. Can you let me know the brand of the Instant Cooker that you are using? I need to get one and couldn’t make up my mind which one to select. The only thing that I didn’t like is the Vegeta – simply because it contains MSG. Wish there’s a healthier alternative. Thank you for all your recipes!!! 🙂
Thank you, Virginia! Much appreciated. Some egg noodles will be great in this recipe. We use a 6qt Instant Pot. You can always use a bouillon brand that is MSG free!
Made this tonight and it fed two adults and two toddlers and I have a ton left. Used 5 cups of broth and 2 cups of water because I was confused about that part of the instructions but it turned out great and full of flavor. The biscuits were a little mushy and I will probably make homemade biscuit dough next time. I used two large breasts and one thigh and it was great. Jo also has a wonderful chicken noodle soup recipe not too different from this one that is also great so I wanted to try this one too. My husband absolutely loved this.
I made the homemade dumplings (highly recommended) and only used water and 3 chicken bullion cubes. I wanted mine to be thicker so at the end I mixed 1/2 cup flour with the finished soup broth but that might’ve been a little too much because it ended up being really thick but damn was it delicious! Flavors were perfect! Thank you!!
Would love to try this recipe! I am new to IP and I have the 8qt Duo Crisp. My IP does not have a “soup” button. Which setting would you suggest I use instead?
You can use manual high pressure! That’ll work just fine.
This is BY FAR the best recipe I have had. I’ve had my IP now for 2 years
Can you freeze this soup with the dumplings or will they fall apart?
Yes you can! They’re nice and sturdy.
Would it mke any difference if I just cubed the chicken before cooking? Not a fan of the texture of shredded chicken if I’m being honest.
No it wouldn’t, go ahead and cube it.
We made this with skin on, bone in thighs and then removed the skin and bones when we shredded the chicken. It added a lot of depth to the flavor for sure! We also didn’t add the extra water since we like thicker soup and used the homemade dumplings. After adding some of our preferred seasonings, this soup was PHENOMENAL! It’s probably the second best instant pot recipe we’ve tried after our favorite mushroom wild rice soup. It’s absolutely worth the to make the homemade dumplings because they pushed this soup over the edge. This was quick and delicious! We will definitely make it again. Thanks for the recipe!
Thank you so much for this review, Sarah! We’re so glad you love both the soups. They’re a favorite around here as well.
Everything was so tasty, next time I would eliminate the store bought biscuits. Might try to make my own dumplings.
Made this with frozen chicken breasts. Was surprisingly delicious and so easy. I did have to make my own dumplings but they turned out just like my mom used to make.