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Creamy Turkey & Dumplings (With The Best Dumplings Ever)

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Turkey and dumplings is the perfect winter supper. We tested and tested to find the best dumplings ever!  1 hour weeknight simple recipe for a warm cozy dinner.
creamy-turkey-and-dumplings

Cozy up with a steaming bowl of this soup and a good book and you are set for the afternoon.

Can you believe we are already a week into December? I feel like I’ve said this before but it feels like this year is flying by. We broke out the Christmas decorations and picked out our tree this weekend and the house is feeling so festive these days.

Kevin and I devoured this soup last week for date night and I have to say, this is one for the winter rotations. The kids couldn’t hardly stand waiting while I photographed this the next day and insisted that I make more “turkey and dumpwings mama”. It’s perfect comfort food for this cold dreary winter weather and I think I enjoyed the next batch just as much as the first.

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But what we really need to talk about are these dumplings! I have tried and tried to make chicken and dumpling soup for years and every time I am unhappy with the dumplings. So we set out to try a bunch of different variations to find the true perfect dumpling.

I am happy to report that we did! Though I cannot take credit for them….one of my favorite blogs to read is A Cozy Kitchen and Adriana over there recently came out with a beautiful cookbook called A Year of Cozy. It is amazing and nestled inside it’s beautiful pages is a fantastic recipe for chicken and dumplings.

It was one of our most recent tests and I am thrilled to announce it officially passed everyones taste test as the best dumpling and is my new go to recipe.

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We take our recipe testing quite seriously and it passed with flying colors. We tried the dumplings using buttermilk (as is originally called for) and half and half with equally great results. And we tried them with whole wheat as well as with all purpose white flour and they were still incredible. It is quite rare for a recipe to provide equally delicious results with a whole wheat swap without any modifications so my hat goes off to Adriana on this one.

They are light and biscuity with the perfect amount of density still. When you drop them in the soup they puff up incredibly well and don’t end up super soggy like many others we tested.

Start to finish this soup is made in under an hour making it perfect for weeknights or whipping together on a lazy weekend afternoon.

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Are you loving soups as much as I am lately? Got your Christmas decorations up yet or are you waiting until the last minute this year?

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Turkey & Dumplings (With The Best Dumplings Ever)

Turkey and dumplings is the perfect winter supper. We tested and tested to find the best dumplings ever! 1 hour weeknight simple recipe for a warm cozy dinner.
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 40 minutes
Total Time 1 hour
Servings 6 -8 servings
Print Pin Recipe

Ingredients

  • For Soup Base:
  • 3 containers 32 oz low-sodium chicken stock
  • 2 medium onions diced
  • 4 carrots peeled and sliced into 1 inch” rounds
  • 1 head broccoli chopped
  • 2 tablespoons butter approximately
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil approximately, we use Delallo Olive Oil
  • 2-3 cups leftover chopped turkey meat chicken subs great!
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme or a few fresh sprigs
  • 1 teaspoon powdered garlic or add in a few cloves fresh
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon pepper
  • 1/2 cup half and half
  • 2 tablespoons cornstarch
  • For Dumplings:
  • 1 1/2 cups flour we tried with Bob’s Red Mill Whole Wheat and all purpose with equal results
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup buttermilk or half and half
  • Serve with: grated parmesan cheese fresh black pepper
  • Bring chicken stock to a boil in large stockpot while you prep ingredients.

Instructions

  • Saute onions, carrots, and broccoli in a large saute pan with butter. Add olive oil as needed if the pan looks dry. Cook until onions are translucent and carrots are beginning to soften. If using fresh garlic add it in for the last 3 minutes of cooking time.
  • Add sauteed vegetables, chopped turkey meat, and seasonings to the stockpot. Boil for 20-30 minutes until vegetables are softened to the desired state. Adjust seasoning if needed.
  • Whisk cornstarch into half and half until all lumps are gone. Whisk into the soup and boil for 5 minutes until slightly thickened.
  • In a medium bowl mix dumplings together. Swirl soup with a wooden spoon and add heaping tablespoons into the center of soup (needs to be at a rolling boil). Continue adding quickly until all batter is used up. Put the lid on and cook on high for 2-3 minutes.
  • Serve immediately. Top with grated parmesan and a bit of fresh cracked pepper

Nutrition

Serving: 1g | Calories: 574kcal | Carbohydrates: 54g | Protein: 49g | Fat: 18g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 11g | Cholesterol: 132mg | Sodium: 1664mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 7g
Author: Dani Meyer
Course : Entrees
Cuisine : American
dumplings, turkey, turkey dumplings, dinner, easy recipe, weeknight dinner, soup, comfort food, stew

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About Dani Meyer

Hi, I’m Dani! I’m most importantly mama to 3 wild little dudes. I spend my days cooking, photographing and exploring the Pacific Northwest. I'm a full time food blogger and online business coach.

I’m the author of Stress Free Camping, a 120+ page guide on making epic food in the woods. I’m also the founder of Food Blogger Entrepreneurs, the leading online academy and private community for food bloggers. → More About Dani

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12 thoughts on “Creamy Turkey & Dumplings (With The Best Dumplings Ever)”

    • Hey James,

      Generally rubbery doughs are from overmixing the dough, cooking them for too long or boiling them at too high of a temperature!

      You are probably working too hard at it 😉

      Warmly,

      Dani

      Reply
  1. 5 stars
    Teens ate seconds. Used my leftover turkey carcasses and made broth all day after Thanksgiving dinner. I made this recipe as listed except I added celery and dropped the broccoli. It was delicious!

    Reply
  2. Hi!
    This soup looks delicious! I’m just wondering, do you mean 3, 32oz containers of chicken broth? Or do the 3 containers come to 32 oz?
    I apologize to be asking, I’m currently living in Japan where they don’t sell chicken broth, but the cubes.
    Thank you!!

    Reply
    • Hi Deanna,

      It is 3 containers that are 32 oz a piece. If you are unable to source chicken stock I would suggest making it yourself with the chicken or turkey carcass. Lots of cold water, poultry carcass, and plenty of onion, carrot and celery. Simmer for several hours or in the slow cooker. The cubes are packed with sodium and other not so great stuff for you usually 🙂 Hope that helps!

      Dani

      Reply
      • Hi Dani,
        Thank you for you response.
        Great advice! I’ve never made chicken stock before, so this will be an adventure!
        It’s frustrating coming to this country (I’m from the US) with limited access to the produce and items I want. But I’ll make do!
        Thanks again,
        Deanna

        Reply
  3. This dish looks like total comfort food! I love dumplings made like that too. I’m always on the fence whether I want my dumplings a little biscuity and on top or thrown into the mix and all doughy….yum!

    Reply

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