Hearty and comforting potato dumpling soup with vegetables, this chicken soup will warm you up during the cold months of the year.

DUMPLING SOUP WITH VEGETABLES

If you have followed this blog for a while, you might have noticed that we love soups. Any kind of soup, from the always present Romanian Chicken Soup with Dumplings to typical German soups like the German Beef Soup, fish soups, vegetable soups like the Broccoli Soup or the Creamy Mushroom Soup with Cream Cheese and many many more.

Have a look at the Soups category in the blog, there are so many recipes for soups there, you will have a hard time choosing. 🙂

So, today another soup recipe.

Have you ever tried potato dumplings?

Today a chicken soup with lots of vegetables and nice, soft potato dumplings.

I initially meant to make this either with potatoes or rice instead of any dumplings at all, but then I thought I might try another sort of dumplings, something I haven’t had for a while: potato dumplings.

They were indeed something different from my usual soft yet structured semolina dumplings or from the heartier marrow dumplings.

These potato dumplings are really soft, almost melting in your mouth, similar in taste and structure to the German potato dumplings, which are larger and are served as a side dish for meat roasts or stews with lots of sauce.

Two ways to make the soup!

There are two ways to make this potato dumpling soup: the fast and super easy way and the still easy yet more time-intensive way.

Easy way:

• Use bought very good quality chicken stock.
• Poach two large chicken breasts in the stock. Or use leftover or rotisserie chicken.
• Cook 2 chopped carrots, red pepper and cauliflower in the stock as well.
• Shred or chop the chicken and add it to the soup as required by the recipe.

Festive way with homemade chicken stock:

• I always recommend making homemade chicken stock, there is nothing better than that.
• So, if you have the time to make it, please do! Especially, if you plan to serve the soup as part of a festive meal, the homemade chicken stock will really bring this dumpling soup to another level.
• Place the chicken in a large pot and add cold water to cover it.
• Add carrots, celeriac, onion, garlic, spices, and salt.
• Bring to a boil and simmer, uncovered, for 1 hour until the chicken is cooked through.
• Remove the chicken from the soup and leave it until cool enough to handle.
• Strain the broth into a clean soup pot and keep the carrots.
• Discard the rest of the vegetables and spices.

HOW TO MAKE POTATO DUMPLINGS FOR SOUP?

• While the chicken cooks, bring another pot of water to a boil and cook the potatoes in their skin.
• Drain and peel immediately.
• Mash in a bowl with a potato masher.
• Let cool for about 5 minutes.
• Add the lightly beaten egg, flour, a few good gratings of nutmeg and salt to taste.
• Check if you need more flour!
• Make only one dumpling at first.
• Dip a teaspoon into the soup and take a small amount (about ¾ teaspoon) out of the potato mixture. Let it slide into the soup and watch if it holds its shape.
• If it disintegrates, add a very small amount of extra flour and incorporate it well. Try again.
• The exact amount of flour needed depends on the size of your egg.
• Mine was a medium one, about 60g/ 2.1 oz.
• Carefully add the potato dumplings to the soup, then add the defrosted peas as well.
• Let simmer for about 10 minutes or until the dumplings are puffed up and cooked through.
• Do not let the soup boil anymore while the dumplings are in it.

Alternatives to potato dumplings

• This chicken and vegetable soup is delicious with or without the potato dumplings.
• You can replace the dumplings with small potato cubes, which should be cooked together with the cauliflower and red pepper.
• Or with cooked rice added at the end of the cooking process.
• Small pasta shapes or small gnocchi would be great as well.

HOW TO SERVE?

To finish the dumpling soup, add the shredded chicken, adjust the taste with salt and pepper, sprinkle with chopped parsley and serve.

The soup is a meal in itself, you can serve it with some fresh bread if you wish.

If served as a first course, the soup will be enough for about 10 people.

If you think there is too much meat for the soup, you can only use some of it for the soup and save the rest for a salad or something else.

You could try this Romanian beef salad, which is actually made with chicken and not with beef. Or make a leftover chicken and noodle bake. Or enchiladas!

MORE DUMPLINGS?

HUNGARIAN CHICKEN PAPRIKASH WITH DUMPLINGS – This chicken paprikash is one of the best traditional Hungarian dishes.

ROMANIAN SEMOLINA DUMPLINGS – How to make chicken stock and semolina dumpling soup – Romanian supa de galusti.

CAULIFLOWER SOUP WITH FLOUR DUMPLINGS – Another comforting chicken soup with cauliflower, carrots and flour dumplings.

HAZELNUT DUMPLINGS FOR SOUP – Tender dumplings in homemade vegetable broth.

GNUDI – RICOTTA DUMPLINGS – Tender ricotta dumplings or gnudi in a velvety tomato sauce with lots of olive oil and garlic – Italian food at its best.

ROMANIAN COTTAGE CHEESE DUMPLINGS – Serve these sweet dumplings as dessert.

PIN IT FOR LATER!

Potato Dumpling Soup

Yield: 6

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour 30 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour 50 minutes

A hearty and comforting potato dumpling soup with vegetables, this chicken soup will warm you up during the cold months of the year.

Print

Ingredients

• Chicken broth (See note):
• 1 small chicken
• 2 large carrots
• 1 piece of celeriac (about 200 g/ 7 oz) or 2 celery sticks
• 1 large onion
• 2-3 garlic cloves
• 5 bay leaves
• 10 black peppercorns
• 5 cloves
• 5 juniper berries
• 5 allspice berries
• fine sea salt
• Soup:
• 1 red bell pepper
• 200 g/ 7 oz cauliflower
• 100 g/ 3.5 oz peas, defrosted
• fine sea salt and pepper
• some parsley
• Potato dumplings:
• 370 g/ 13 oz potatoes
• 1 egg, about 60g/ 2.1 oz (weighed whole, with shell)
• 30 g/ 1 oz/ ¼ cups all-purpose flour (more as needed, depending on the size of the egg)
• nutmeg
• fine sea salt

Instructions

Soup:

1. Place the chicken in a large soup pot and add cold water to cover it, about 2 ½ – 3 liter/ 10.5 – 12.5 cups. Clean and halve the carrots, celeriac piece, and onion. Add them to the pot. Add the whole garlic cloves, all the spices, and some salt.
2. Slowly bring everything to a simmer, turn the heat down immediately and simmer, uncovered, for about 1 hour until the chicken is cooked through and really soft.
3. Remove the chicken from the soup and leave it until cool enough to handle. Strain the broth into a clean soup pot and keep the carrots. Discard the rest of the vegetables and spices.
4. Chop the pepper into small cubes, divide the cauliflower into small florets and add them to the strained chicken broth. Bring to a boil and cook them gently until half cooked about 5 minutes.

Potato dumplings:

1. During the last half hour of the chicken's cooking time, cook the potatoes in their skins. Drain and peel immediately. Mash in a bowl with a potato masher.
2. Let cool for about 5 minutes, add the lightly beaten egg, flour, a few good gratings of nutmeg and salt.
3. Start adding the potato dumplings to the soup using a teaspoon. Make only one dumpling at first. Dip the teaspoon into the soup and take a small amount (about ¾ teaspoon) out of the potato mixture. Let it slide into the soup and watch if it holds its shape. If it disintegrates, add a very small amount of extra flour and incorporate it well. Try again.
4. The exact amount of flour needed depends on the size of your egg. Let the dumplings slide into the soup.

Finish the soup:

1. Add the defrosted peas to the soup together with the dumplings. Let simmer for about 10 minutes or until the dumplings are puffed up and cooked through. Do not let the soup boil anymore while the dumplings are in it.
2. In the meantime remove the skin and the bones of the chicken and shred the meat into bite-sized pieces. If you think there is too much meat for the soup, you can only use some of it for the soup and save the rest for another dish.
3. Chop the reserved carrots into cubes or slices. Add them to the soup and let the soup stand for about 10 minutes more, so that the chicken and the carrots can get hot again. Adjust the taste with salt and pepper, sprinkle the soup with some chopped parsley and serve.
   
   
   

Notes

You can use bought good quality chicken stock to make the soup. In this case, poach two chicken breasts (about 450 g/ 1 lb) in the soup and cook the carrots, pepper, and cauliflower in the stock as well. Make the dumplings and finish the soup as indicated in the recipe.

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 6 Serving Size: 1/6 of the dish
Amount Per Serving:Calories: 255 Total Fat: 4g Saturated Fat: 1g Trans Fat: 0g Unsaturated Fat: 2g Cholesterol: 44mg Sodium: 777mg Carbohydrates: 48g Net Carbohydrates: 0g Fiber: 12g Sugar: 14g Sugar Alcohols: 0g Protein: 11g

Nutrition information isn’t always accurate.