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French Onion Dumplings – best for nights when you’re craving steaming hot french onion soup but want something a little heartier too. Easy homemade dumplings made with chicken or mushroom filling, enclosed in sesame-crusted wrappers, and served in a steaming rich french onion style broth. These are a fun dinner to make any night of the week, especially during these cold months. So warming, cozy, and delicious.
Happy Monday, happy almost Thanksgiving! Thanksgiving week is always so odd. We’re prepping and gearing up for all the food and festivities on Thursday, but at the same time we still have to live a normal like Monday through Wednesday…and get dinner on the table too.
Sometimes we can forget that we’ll be needing dinners this week too! Between friends and family coming, it can all be a lot. But I thought ahead, and I’m bringing you some of the best dumplings.
These dumplings are different, and definitely not traditional, but they sure are delish. A cross between a good bowl of french onion soup (minus the cheesy bread) and crispy bottomed dumplings. Sounds odd, but I promise, these are SO GOOD.
The idea
Honestly, it was kind of simple how this recipe came to be. I was thinking about this week and what would be just the right recipes to share. More appetizers? Desserts? Sides? Nothing seemed perfect, but then I figured that by now your menus are probably pretty much set. So you may just be looking for a really delicious dinner to eat during these days leading up to Thanksgiving.
I love to serve Asian or Mexican meals this week since they’re so different from the traditional Thanksgiving meal.
Dumplings sounded awesome, but then I thought how delicious they could be in a rich french onion broth. And that was that.
The details
Make the filling. It’s very simple but very good. Just some garlic mixed with ground chicken and spinach. I add a splash of soy sauce for saltiness, and a pinch of pepper for a little kick.
I also did a mushroom filling for anyone who prefers no chicken. It’s the same as above, just minus the chicken and plus sautéed mushrooms. Both are really delicious.
Assembling is easier than you’d think. I chose to make round dumplings because I find the assembly easier and I’m able to make them prettier too. You can also fold the dough into half-moons. Either way, it’s an easy process. Simply spoon the filling into the center of your dumpling wrapper. Then lift the edges of the dough up and over the filling, pinching at the top to seal. Don’t stress about making these look perfect. Each little dumpling is unique and cute in its own way!
Brush the bottom of each dumping with water and coat in sesame seeds. I don’t believe this is traditional, but those crispy sesame seeds on the bottom are delicious.
Now the broth
The key to this is to caramelize the onions with a touch of wine just like I do in my french onion soup. They add so much flavor and make the broth feel rich and indulgent. When the onions have caramelized, add the broth, a splash of soy sauce, and then a bay leaf and star anise. The soy sauce, bay leaf, and star anise really create a flavorful broth and help to tie in the Asian flavors too.
Let the broth simmer while you cook the dumplings. I like to pan-fry the dumplings. Then add water to steam and finish cooking. It can be a little messy of a process, but it’s pretty easy. Once the water evaporates, I like to leave the dumplings on the pan another minute to allow the bottoms to get crispy again.
When pan-frying/steaming, it’s important to note that the pan will splatter when you add the water. So please be careful and stand back when doing so.
Serve them up
To serve, I like to arrange the dumplings in low bowls. Then spoon the steaming broth overtop and top with fresh green onions for a nice pop of color and flavor.
SO DELICIOUS. Even my dad, who doesn’t love onions, loved this dinner. These were his words, “Damn, these mushroom potstickers are amazing!!”.
Yeah, he called them potstickers, that’s ok, just so he loved them!
Our nights are so much longer these days, so sometimes I find it nice to be able to spend a little extra time in the kitchen making dinner. These are especially fun to make with others, so grab a few friends, your husband, kids, whoever. Then make this into a fun night.
Trust me, everyone is going to love this recipe. It’s surprising but in a good way!
Looking for other weeknight dinners? Here are my favorites:
Ginger Sesame Chicken Potstickers
Crispy Cauliflower Tinga Tacos with Honey Lime Avocado Crema
Lastly, if you make these French Onion Dumplings, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
French Onion Dumplings
Servings: 6
Calories Per Serving: 2038 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
Chicken Filling
- 1 pound ground chicken or pork
- 1 clove garlic chopped
- 2 cups roughly chopped spinach
- 2 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce or tamari
- black pepper
- 24-26 round dumpling or wonton wrappers
- 1/4 cup raw sesame seeds
Broth
- 3 tablespoons salted butter
- 2 yellow onions, thinly sliced
- 1/2 cup dry white wine
- chili flakes
- 2 1/2 cups low sodium chicken or vegetable broth
- 2 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce or tamari
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 star anise (optional)
- sesame or olive oil, for cooking
- sliced green onions, for serving
Instructions
- 1. In a medium bowl, combine the raw chicken, spinach, garlic, soy sauce, and a pinch of black pepper.2. To assemble, spoon 1 tablespoon of filling onto each wrapper. Brush water around the edges of the wrapper. Fold the edges of the wrapper up and around the filling and pinch in the center to seal. Repeat with the remaining wrappers. Place the sesame seeds in a shallow bowl. Brush the bottoms of the dumplings with water and then dredge them in the sesame seeds. *vegetarian mushroom filling in the notes.3. To make the broth. Melt together 2 tablespoons butter and the onions in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook, stirring occasionally until softened, about 10 minutes. At this point, you'll want to slowly add the wine, 1/4 cup at a time, until the wine cooks into the onions. Continue to cook another 10 minutes until you've used all wine and the onions are deeply caramelized. Add 1 tablespoon butter, and season with chili flakes and pepper. Add the broth, soy sauce, bay leaf, and star anise. Simmer over low heat, 10 minutes. 4. Meanwhile, heat a few tablespoons of oil in a large skillet set over medium heat. Add the dumplings and cook until the bottoms are golden brown, about 2-3 minutes. Carefully pour 1/4 cup of water into the skillet, it will splatter, so stand back. Immediately cover with a tight-fitting lid. Turn the heat to medium-low and let the dumplings steam for 5-6 minutes. Remove the dumplings from the skillet to a plate.5. Arrange the dumplings in shallow bowls. Ladle the steaming broth and onions over top. Top with green onions. Enjoy!
Notes
Mushroom Filling: 1. Heat 2 tablespoons sesame oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add 2 chopped shallots and cook until fragrant, 2 minutes. Add 3 cups finely chopped mushrooms and 2 cloves chopped garlic. Cook, stirring occasionally until the mushrooms have cooked down, about 5 minutes. Add 2 cloves chopped garlic, 2 tablespoons soy sauce, and a large pinch of pepper. Stir in 2 cups chopped spinach. Cook another 2-3 minutes, until the mushrooms are caramelized. Remove from the heat and let cool.
This was sooooooooo delicious! Perfect for a chilly winter evening! I added some ginger to the filling mixture and some mushrooms to the broth! I was a tad nervous to make this since I’d never made dumplings before – but it was totally straight forward!
Hey Liz,
Fantastic! Thanks so much for making this recipe, I love to hear that it was enjoyed! xTieghan
I am a first time commenter and I have to say first that I love your blog and have been making your recipes for some time, they are always a hit in my house. Over the weekend I made this dish and it was incredible! I accidentally used beef broth instead of chicken broth but the flavors were still amazing. Thank you so much for this recipe, I will definitely be making it again!
Hey Jennifer,
Fantastic! Thanks so much for making this recipe, I love to hear that it was enjoyed! Thanks so much for your kind message!! xTieghan
These were AMAZING. I used bork (mix of beef/pork) because its what I had on hand and it was wonderful. This broth is DREAMY. I made like 50 small dumplings instead of the allotted large because we didn’t have large round dumpling dough at my large store. Anyway, it turned out perfect. There is only 2 of us so we had 6 ish each and froze the rest (unsteamed) and now we have leftovers. YAY. Thanks for this beautiful dish!!
ALSO for anyone who is too intimidated to make your own dumplings, just buy your favorite frozen dumplings or potstickers and make the broth. Also makes it take only 30 ish minutes if you don’t have to assemble the dumplings. Don’t let that stop you though, this recipe is worth it!!
Hey Nicole,
Happy Friday!! Love hearing that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a bunch for giving it a try! Thanks for sharing your feedback! xxT
Did you make your own dumpling wrappers? If yes, do you have a recipe posted? If no, which ones did you purchase? Thanks!
Hey Leanna,
Yes, I did make my own, here is the recipe:
2 1/2 cups flour + 3/4 cup water, stir, let sit 20 minutes
Please let me know if you give the recipe a try, I hope you love it! xTieghan
I made this recipe as written and it came out amazing! I loved the different flavor combinations and the French Onion soup alone was one of the best I’ve had.
They didn’t have dumpling wrappers at my store so I made them, which was a bit labor, intensive but worth it.
Hey Kellyn,
Awesome! I love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a lot for making it! xTieghan
We had fun making these but definitely takes longer than the suggested time above. Made both fillings and loved. Suggest storing leftovers out of broth so they don’t fall apart so easily
Hey Alexandra,
Wonderful!! I am so so glad to hear that this recipe was enjoyed. Thanks a bunch for making it! xT
Can’t wait to try! Actually, swapping broth with vegetable broth and mushroom filling makes it VEGAN ??? (Even better!)
Hi Sandra,
Wonderful!! I am so so glad to hear that this recipe was enjoyed. Thanks a bunch for making it! xT
So delicious! What a great combination of flavors! Bravo
Hey Leslie,
Wonderful!! I am so so glad to hear that this recipe was enjoyed. Thanks a bunch for making it! xT
This is hands down the most delicious dish I have ever made. I am a vegetarian so I did it with the mushroom filling. I could not believe how well the flavors of the dumplings marry with the flavors of the soup. I would’ve never thought to merge french onion soup with Asian style dumplings but thank god Tieghan did because this is delicious.
Hey Meaghan,
Happy Sunday! I am thrilled to hear this recipe was enjoyed, thanks so much for making it! xTieghan
Very tasty! Both the soup and the dumplings are super tasty but I think they would be better separate. I think the soup would be delicious with some crusty bread and cheese melted on top and the dumplings would be really good with a dipping sauce. Together it’s not my favorite but still good!
Hey Devyn,
Thanks so much for giving the recipe a try and sharing your feedback! xTieghan
Question! Do you not cook the ground chicken at all before putting it in the dumplings?! Thank you!
Hi Jess,
Yes, that is correct, the chicken will cook in the dumplings. I hope this recipe turns out amazing for you, please let me know if you give it a try! xTieghan
So, it’s 4 total cloves of garlic for the mushroom filling, added at different times? Also, would you imagine 3 cps of chopped mushrooms is about a pound?
Hey Summer,
Yes, 4 cloves of chopped garlic and then yes that sounds about right. Please let me know if you give the recipe a try, I hope you love it! xTieghan
This was amazing. I didn’t even think I liked french onion that much until I made this. I’m currently sitting here eating the leftovers for lunch from 3 days ago thinking I need to make this again this weekend.
Hi Kelli,
Awesome!! Thanks a lot for trying this recipe out, I love to hear that it was enjoyed! xTieghan
Before making this I joked with my daughter that it would probably turn out to be a great sarcastic ‘nailed it’ photo but much to our surprise it turned out amazing! It looked great and tasted amazing!
Every one of your recipes that I have made, which is numerous, have turned out beautifully and your photos inspire me to try more and more of your recipes.
Hi Cory,
Awesome!! Thanks a lot for trying this recipe out, I love to hear that it was enjoyed! Thanks so much for your kind message! xTieghan
I made this last night.. hands down my favorite meal I have made, it’s delicious!!!!!
Hi Jenn,
Wonderful! I really appreciate you giving this recipe a try, I love to hear that it was enjoyed!! xTieghan
This recipe is to DIE for!!
Hi Erin,
Awesome!! Thanks a bunch for trying this recipe out, I love to hear that it was a winner! xTieghan