Cracker Barrel Dumplings

Who doesn’t love a bowl of piping-hot Cracker Barrel dumplings? These pillows of starchy goodness so often hit the spot when you are looking for something that makes you feel full and warm.

Interestingly, these are served without chicken at the restaurant when ordered as a side dish. If you like, add some cooked shredded chicken and have your homemade chicken and dumplings.

Homemade copycat Cracker Barrel Dumplings on a plate.


Cracker Barrel Dumplings

Southern dumplings aren’t tricky to make and can be quickly put together. This side dish doesn’t require a lot of different ingredients that you may need to go out and buy. But rather it has a lot of ingredients you already have in your pantry, so you won’t need to run out to the grocery store.

So if you are looking for an easy side dish from ingredients you already have, this dumplings recipe may be the right one for you to try.

This homemade dumplings recipe is intended to be a side dish, so there aren’t a lot of extra items in it. This is a meatless recipe. It will be a great addition to the recipe if you have some leftover cooked chicken.

Ingredients for Cracker Barrel Dumplings

  • All-purpose flour
  • Baking powder
  • Salt
  • Whole milk
  • Vegetable oil
  • Chicken bouillon cubes or chicken soup base
  • Butter
  • Sugar
Ingredients for homemade Cracker Barrel Dumplings

Ingredient Notes

After developing this recipe, I switched to using a soup base over bouillon cubes. It is my opinion that the soup base tastes better; it is a fact they often have less sodium.

So it is now my preference to use a soup base instead of bouillon cubes.

How to Make Cracker Barrel Dumplings

  1. In a large bowl, combine flour, baking powder, salt, milk, and oil, and mix with a pastry blender or fork until well combined.
  2. Transfer the soft dough to a floured surface.
  3. Knead the dough a few times.
  4. Divide the dough in half.
  5. Roll out one-half of the dough with a rolling pin.
  6. Cut the dough into pieces. You can cut the dough with a pastry cutter or a pizza cutter.
  7. In a large pot, combine the water and bouillon cubes.
  8. Boil until the bouillon cubes are dissolved.
  9. Add the dough pieces and cook until just about done.
    Homemade Cracker Barrel dumplings in a pot on the stovetop.
  10. Use a strainer to transfer the cooked dumplings to a bowl.
  11. Repeat with the remaining dough.
  12. Melt butter in a saucepan.
  13. Add flour and salt. Stir until thickened.
  14. Combine milk and sugar.
  15. Add the milk to the butter/flour a little at a time, stirring constantly.
  16. Remove the sauce from the heat.
  17. Add the cooked dumplings to the sauce.
  18. Dissolve the crumbled bouillon cubes in cooking liquid.
  19. Add bouillon liquid to the sauce and dumplings. Gently stir it in.
  20. Return the dumplings to the heat and simmer for a few minutes.
Homemade Cracker Barrel Dumplings and a fork on a plate.

How to store dumplings

The best way to store dumplings is in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-5 days or in the freezer for up to 2 months.

What’s the best way reheat dumplings

The best way to reheat dumplings is to place them in a pot with a lid, add a bit of liquid (such as broth or water) to prevent drying, and heat over medium-low heat until the mixture is heated through. You can also use the oven by covering the dish with foil and baking at 350°F until heated, about 20-30 minutes.

Southern Side Dishes

Be sure to check out more of my restaurant sides and easy copycat recipes.

Homemade copycat Cracker Barrel Dumplings on a plate.

Cracker Barrel Dumplings

Cracker Barrel Dumplings can be made at home and they will taste so good. 
5 from 15 votes
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Course: Side Dish
Cuisine: American
Keyword: Cracker Barrel Dumplings, Cracker Barrel Recipes, Southern Dumplings
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 40 minutes
Servings: 4
Calories: 529kcal

Ingredients

Dumplings

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour plus more for kneading and rolling
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup whole milk
  • ¼ cup vegetable oil
  • 2 quarts water
  • 3 chicken bouillon cubes or about 2 teaspoons of soup base

Sauce

  • 3 tablespoons butter
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • ¼ cup all-purpose flour
  • ½ teaspoon sugar
  • 1 cup buttermilk or whole milk
  • 2 chicken bouillon cubes, crumbled or about 2 teaspoons chicken soup base
  • ½ to ¾ cup dumpling cooking liquid (from after dumplings have been cooked)

Instructions

Dumplings

  • Mix the flour, baking powder, salt, milk, and oil, blending well.
  • Turn out the dough onto a floured surface.
  • Knead the dough four or five times.
  • Divide the dough in half.
  • Roll out one half of the dough to 1/8-inch thickness.
  • Cut the dough into 1 x 1½-inch pieces.
  • In a large pot, combine the water and bouillon cubes/soup base.
  • Boil until the bouillon cubes/soup base dissolve.
  • Cook half of the dumplings until just about done. Dumplings are done when they float up towards the top of the pot.
  • Use a strainer to remove them to a bowl and set aside.
  • Finish the other half of the dumplings in the same way.
  • Reserve the cooking liquid.

Sauce

  • While the dumplings are cooking, you can start to prepare the sauce.
  • Melt the butter in medium saucepan.
  • Add salt and flour. Stir until thick.
  • Mix the sugar with the milk.
  • Add the milk to the flour mixture a little at a time, stirring constantly with a whisk until thick and smooth.
  • Remove the sauce from the heat.
  • Add the cooked dumplings to the sauce.
  • Dissolve the crumbled bouillon cubes in ½ cup of the cooking liquid.
  • Add bouillon mixture to the sauce and dumplings. Stir gently to combine.
  • Return dumplings to low heat and simmer until blended.
  • If the sauce seems too thick, gently stir in a little more cooking liquid.

Video

Nutrition

Calories: 529kcal | Carbohydrates: 61g | Protein: 11g | Fat: 26g | Saturated Fat: 18g | Cholesterol: 35mg | Sodium: 1363mg | Potassium: 430mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 460IU | Calcium: 251mg | Iron: 3.4mg

About Stephanie Manley

I recreate your favorite restaurant recipes, so you can prepare these dishes at home. I help you cook dinner, and serve up dishes you know your family will love. You can find most of the ingredients for all of the recipes in your local grocery store.

Stephanie is the author of CopyKat.com's Dining Out in the Home, and CopyKat.com's Dining Out in the Home 2.

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. marlena

    5 stars
    . This recipe was by far the EASIEST and tastes 100% just like CB’s dumplings!!!! YUMM!!!!!! Thank you so much!!! I can’t wait to try more of your recipes now that this one came out so PERFECT!!!!

  2. sandra mcpherson

    I forgot to mention when you roll out the dough that you need to roll them out flat as possible. The recipe says 1/4 inch. When dropping into the chicken stock, put a little at a time and stir, do not put all of them at once , they will stick together and you have one big lump that is raw in the middle.

  3. sandra mcpherson

    As a former C.B. employee that made these countless times I can tell you the 3 ingredients to this recipe. Self rising flour, shortening, we used the brick and buttermilk. It is that easy. I can’t tell you the amounts because I made them in large quantities. Put ingredients in a mixer and mix tell the mixture until all is bound. Put the mixture on a floured table and cut with a sharp knife. We had a special instrument that cut the mixture in equal squares. Drop into boiling chicken stock. You will know when they are done. They usually flow to the top.

  4. Holly

    Hi! I’ve made these before and we all love them – yummy!! Has anyone tried freezing them so you can just pull them out last minute for supper?
    Thanks,
    Holly

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