Gluten-Free Chicken and Dumplings

Name: Gluten-Free Chicken and Dumplings
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 40 min
Yield: 1 1/2 cups
Ingredients: 4 cups chicken stock; 2 cups cooked chicken, shredded; 1 cup chopped carrots; 1/2 cup chopped celery; 1/2 cup frozen peas; 1 bay leaf; 1 teaspoon dried parsley; 1 teaspoon salt; 1 teaspoon black pepper; 2 cups Pamela's Gluten-Free Pancake & Baking Mix, for the dumplings; 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme; 1/2 teaspoon dried parsley; Dash of ground nutmeg; 1/2 teaspoon salt; 2/3 cup milk

on Jan 11 2024

Table of Contents

Chicken and dumplings is the dish people ask for when they are not feeling well, and the dish you make when someone else is not. Broth, chicken, vegetables, and soft dough cooked right in the pot.

Almost every quick version starts with a tube of refrigerated biscuit dough torn into pieces. If you are gluten-free that tube does not exist, which is why so many people end up searching for another way.

Pancake mix is the answer, and it works better than it sounds like it should. Pamela's Pancake & Baking Mix already has the leavening and salt in it, so the dumplings go together in about a minute and come out light instead of heavy.

Recipe courtesy of Chandice from Gluten-Free Frenzy. So good, no one will guess they are gluten-free, the way Pamela's has done it since 1988.

Can You Make Dumplings with Pancake Mix?

Yes, and it is one of the better uses for a box of it.

A dumpling needs three things from its dough: leavening to go light, salt for flavor, and enough structure to hold together in liquid. A complete pancake and baking mix has all three already balanced, which is why the dumpling half of this recipe is four ingredients and one of them is milk.

The mix these are built on Pamela's Gluten-Free Pancake & Baking Mix A complete baking mix with the leavening and salt included. Pancakes, waffles, muffins, quick breads, biscuits, and dumplings. GFCO-certified.

It also solves the problem that sends most people here. There is no gluten-free refrigerated biscuit dough on any shelf, from any brand, so the usual shortcut is not available. A box of mix in the pantry is.

Keeping the Dumplings from Falling Apart

Three things, and the first matters most.

Keep the broth at a low simmer, never a rolling boil. Hard boiling knocks the dumplings around and breaks them before they set. You want small bubbles and very little movement.

Leave space between them. They swell to roughly double, and dumplings pressed against each other cook unevenly and stick.

Mix the dough lightly. Stir just until the dry mix disappears. An overworked dough makes dense, gummy dumplings.

They are done when a toothpick comes out of the center clean and the tops look dry rather than wet. If the centers are still doughy, give them another few minutes.

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 25 minutes

Total Time 40 minutes

Yield 6

Serving Size 1 1/2 cups

Ingredients

4 cups chicken stock
2 cups cooked chicken, shredded
1 cup chopped carrots
1/2 cup chopped celery
1/2 cup frozen peas
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon dried parsley
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
2 cups Pamela's Gluten-Free Pancake & Baking Mix, for the dumplings
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried parsley
Dash of ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup milk

Shop Gluten-Free Pancake & Baking Mix, 24 oz.

Directions

Combine the stock, chicken, carrots, celery, peas, bay leaf, parsley, salt, and pepper in a large stock pot.
Cook until the carrots begin to soften, about 10 minutes. Remove the bay leaf.
Make the dumplings. Combine the Pancake & Baking Mix, thyme, parsley, nutmeg, and salt in a bowl. Slowly add the milk and mix lightly, just until the dry mix disappears.
Bring the soup to a gentle simmer, not a rolling boil. Hard boiling breaks the dumplings before they set.
Drop heaping tablespoons of dough into the simmering soup, leaving space between them. They swell to roughly double.
Cook 10 to 15 minutes, until the dough is cooked through. A toothpick inserted into a dumpling should come out clean.
Taste and season before serving.

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Gluten-Free Pancake & Baking Mix, 24 oz.

One mix, a whole recipe box

Pancakes are just the beginning. This is the mix behind our most-loved waffles, banana bread, blueberry muffins, drop biscuits, crepes, and coffee cake. If you keep one gluten-free mix in the pantry, this is the one that earns its shelf space.

Also your waffle mix

The waffle recipe is printed right on the bag: separate the eggs, whip the whites, and fold them into the batter for waffles that bake up crisp outside and tender inside. Want extra crunch? Leave them in the iron a little longer.

Why it works

Cultured buttermilk gives a tender crumb, almond meal adds richness, and whole grains bring flavor most gluten-free mixes leave behind. It all started in Pamela's own Northern California kitchen in 1988, and it's still the #1 gluten-free pancake mix.

Brown Rice Flour, White Rice Flour, Cultured Buttermilk, Almond Meal, Tapioca Starch, Sweet Rice Flour, Potato Starch, Baking Powder (Sodium Acid Pyrophosphate, Potato Starch, Sodium Bicarbonate), Baking Soda, Sea Salt, Xanthan Gum.

Contains Milk and Almonds.

Pamela's Products are manufactured in a Gluten-Free Certified Facility and peanut-free facility. Our products are produced on equipment that processes Tree Nuts, Coconut, Eggs, and Soy.

Recipe Tips & Notes

Make It with Drop Biscuit Mix Instead

Pamela's Buttermilk Drop Biscuit Mix makes an excellent dumpling and gives you a slightly richer, tangier result, since it contains real buttermilk.

Use 2 cups of the mix with 3/4 cup of cold water in place of the pancake mix and milk. Keep the herbs and the nutmeg. Stir about fifteen stirs, until the dough looks shaggy.

Drop and simmer exactly as written. The dough is slightly stiffer, so the dumplings hold their shape a little better and spread a little less.

The Cheddar Garlic Drop Biscuit Mix works too, with 1 cup of water and 2/3 cup of shredded sharp cheddar folded in. Very good against a plain broth, and you can skip the added herbs.

Make-Ahead and Storing

The soup is better the next day. The dumplings are not.

If you are making this ahead, stop before the dumplings go in, cool the soup, and refrigerate up to 3 days. Reheat to a simmer and make the dumplings fresh. It takes fifteen minutes.

Leftovers with the dumplings already in keep 2 days refrigerated. The dumplings soften and swell further, which some people prefer.

The soup freezes well without dumplings, up to 3 months. Do not freeze it with them in, since they turn to paste on thawing.

Reheat gently. A hard boil breaks the dumplings apart.

Ways to Change It Up

Rotisserie chicken, which is what most people use and nobody can tell. Check that it is labeled gluten-free, since seasoning blends vary.

Fresh herbs instead of dried, at three times the quantity.

More vegetables. A cup of corn or green beans added with the peas.

A splash of cream stirred in at the end for a richer broth.

A squeeze of lemon before serving. Not traditional, and it lifts the whole pot.

Black pepper, generously. Chicken and dumplings should be peppery.

What This Contains

This recipe contains milk and tree nuts.

Pamela's Pancake & Baking Mix contains almond meal and cultured buttermilk, so these dumplings cannot be made nut-free or dairy-free. The milk in the dumpling dough adds more dairy.

Check your chicken stock and your cooked chicken. Both sometimes contain wheat, and rotisserie seasoning blends vary by brand.

Everything from Pamela's is certified by the Gluten-Free Certification Organization and made in a certified gluten-free, peanut-free facility.

Recipe FAQs

Yes. A complete pancake and baking mix already has the leavening and salt balanced, which is exactly what a dumpling dough needs. Combine 2 cups of mix with 2/3 cup of milk and a few herbs, mix lightly, and drop heaping tablespoons into simmering soup.

No. Every refrigerated biscuit dough on the shelf is wheat-based and no brand makes a gluten-free version. A complete baking mix is the closest equivalent and the dough goes together in about a minute.

Usually the soup was at a rolling boil rather than a simmer. Hard boiling knocks them around before they set. Keep the heat low enough that you see small bubbles and very little movement, and leave space between the dumplings so they cook evenly.

A toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean and the tops look dry rather than wet. They take 10 to 15 minutes in a gentle simmer. If the centers are still doughy, give them another few minutes.

Yes, and it makes a slightly richer dumpling since it contains real buttermilk. Use 2 cups of Pamela's Buttermilk Drop Biscuit Mix with 3/4 cup of cold water in place of the pancake mix and milk, keeping the herbs. The dough is stiffer, so the dumplings hold their shape a little better.