Easy Peasy Slow Cooker Chicken and Dumplings

I am usually one to make every aspect of chicken and dumplings from scratch.  And, I'm not sure that I had ever made them in the slow cooker before.  I, normally, like to start with a fresh, whole chicken.  I use the meat and stock from boiling the chicken for my traditional recipe.  And, I like to make my dumplings from scratch.  My favorite recipe for this method can be found within my Tim McGraw's Chicken and Dumplings post.

But, I had a lot of stuff to get done around the house Sunday and knew I didn't have a lot of time to go the labor-intensive, from-scratch route.  So, I utilized my slow cooker and a couple of ingredients that I try to use only in moderation in my everyday cooking - canned soup and refrigerated biscuits - to make this super simple version of chicken and dumplings.  (I almost titled this post "Cheater's Chicken and Dumplings" because it's just so easy!)

Our family loved it. The slow cooker did all of the work while I was able to get tons of stuff done around the house and spend the latter part of the day relaxing with my family. 

This yielded enough for two adults and three children ... with a couple of servings of leftovers.

Ingredients:

2 large boneless/skinless chicken breasts, each cut in half
Salt
Black pepper
1 teaspoon garlic powder
Pinch of dried thyme (optional)
4 chicken bouillon cubes
1 can cream of chicken soup
Water
1 can Grands biscuits (8 ct.)

Directions:

Add the cream of chicken soup to the slow cooker.  Add in 4 cans worth of water (I use the soup can for this).  Drop in the bouillon cubes.  Sprinkle in the garlic powder and thyme.  Use a fork or small whisk to blend everything together right in the slow cooker. 

Season chicken with salt and pepper.  Place in slow cooker.

Cook on low for 5 - 6 hours.  Then, break the chicken up a bit using two forks ... you can remove the chicken or do this right in the slow cooker.  We like large chunks, but you can shred or break it up as much as you'd like.

Cut each biscuit into 8 - 10 pieces.  (I prefer clean kitchen scissors for this task.)  Add the pieces into the slow cooker.  Stir gently to coat the biscuit pieces with the liquid/gravy.

Cover and cook for an additional 2 hours.  If the biscuit pieces stick to the sides of your insert or some are starting to brown/crisp up, you can press them down or very gently stir them into the liquid during the cooking process.  But, after your initial stir when you add them, don't do this again until the biscuits are set.  Otherwise, you'll have a mushy blob of dough.

A little more water (hot) can be stirred in once the dumplings are cooked if your gravy is a little too thick for your liking.

Give everything a slight stir before serving.  Garnish with a little more thyme, if desired.

Excellent served with or over mashed potatoes.