Chicken Liver Dumplings for Soup

One of the most famous Czech soups is a liver dumpling soup. I'll show you a simple recipe on how to make homemade chicken liver dumplings from scratch. These are so delicious!

➜ About liver dumplings for soup

Czechs add liver dumplings to soups based on clear broths, mainly beef or chicken ones. Clear beef broth with liver dumplings is a popular dish in Czech cuisine. It is a traditional first course for holiday meals.

FUN FACT: In some families, liver dumplings are boiled separately in a large pot of salt water and added to the soup already cooked. This is because the dumplings can make the broth slightly muddy during cooking. On the other hand, dumplings cooked directly in the broth can boost their flavor. That's the reason why I personally boil the dumplings in the soup.

MY TIP: If you like Bohemian soups, try cesneska, traditional hangover garlic soup!

➜ Pronunciation

The Czech name for liver dumplings is "játrové knedlíčky." To give you an idea of how to pronounce this Czech word, I have recorded a short audio clip for you.

➜ Ingredients

To make Czech liver dumpling dough, you will need:

• Chicken livers; this organ meat is tender and contains very little gristle. Even if you are a cooking beginner, chicken livers are very friendly to prepare and clean before you use them for cooking. Another option is to use beef liver, but this needs to be cleaned well first. If you can't get liver in a regular store, try a local butcher.
• Garlic; fresh, peeled, and sliced
• Egg; it helps the liver dumplings to stick together and not fall apart while cooking.
• Breadcrumbs; made from dried French baguette or old white bread dinner rolls (more on this later in the article)
• Unsalted butter; softened at room temperature
• Dried marjoram, typical Czech spice that makes food a real Czech thing!
• Salt
• Black pepper; freshly ground

Prepare also clear chicken or beef soup into which you drop the dumplings to simmer.

✅ You’ll find the exact amount of ingredients below in the recipe card, which you can also print out.

➜ Instructions with photos

STEP 1: Rid the chicken livers of any visible white veins. Place them in a food processor and blend for a few seconds.

STEP 2: Add peeled and sliced garlic, an egg, dried marjoram, softened butter, salt, and ground black pepper. Mix again.

STEP 3: Transfer the mixture to the bowl, and add breadcrumbs. Stir until combined.

STEP 4: Let the mixture sit for 30 minutes. Don't worry that the mixture is runny; it will get stiffer over time.

STEP 5: Shape the liver duplings. There are two possible ways:

Method 1: If you want beautifully round dumplings

Dump the mixture onto a work surface dusted with breadcrumbs. Quickly use your hands to form a cylinder. Dip your hands in water. Scoop out an equal amount of the mixture. Roll a ball between your wet hands about 1 ½ inch (4 cm) in diameter. Drop it into the simmering broth. Quickly proceed to shape the dumplings further.

Method 2: If you want to make dumplings quickly

Using two spoons dipped in water, scoop up the mixture and shape it as round as possible. Drop the dumpling into the simmering broth.

Here you see the difference between a hand-shaped round dumpling (left) and a spoon-shaped one (right):

STEP 5: Cook the dumplings in a simmering broth for about 5 minutes. During this time, the dumplings will come up to the surface.

➜ Serving

Serve the liver dumplings as part of the soup you cooked them in. Depending on their size, about 3-5 dumplings should go on a soup plate.

➜ Breadcrumbs for liver dumplings

Traditional Czech liver dumplings do not include flour but breadcrumbs. Czechs prepare breadcrumbs from dried plain white bread. A typical example is a French baguette, veka bread, rohliky bread rolls, or housky braided rolls.

Grind the dried white bread on a hand grinder with a cheese grating insert. For fine breadcrumbs, grind down the dry bread in a food processor.

➜ How to freeze liver dumplings

If you intend to make liver dumplings for a stock, boil them in salted water. Cool the just-cooked dumplings briefly in cold water - they will not dry out and will remain soft.

Once the dumplings have cooled completely, place them in an airtight container and freeze.

➜ Useful tips

• If the liver dumpling mixture is still too runny after 30 minutes, add a tablespoon or two of breadcrumbs, stir, and let rest for another 5 minutes.
• The mixture for the liver dumplings should be soft, not too stiff. Otherwise, the dumplings will also be tough and will tend to fall apart when cooked.
• The dough for liver dumplings should have a sharper taste. The broth or water will take away some of the flavors while boiling.

You'll also find this soup in Germany, which borders the Czech Republic to the west. Germans call the soup "Leberknödelsuppe" – literally translated as soup with liver dumplings.

More tasty recipes

• Egg dumplings – for soup
• Leek and potato soup
• Czech garlic soup
• Egg noodles for soup

Chicken Liver Dumplings for Soup

One of the most famous Czech soups is a liver dumpling soup. I'll show you an easy recipe on how to make homemade chicken liver dumplings from scratch. These are so delicious!

5 from 5 votes

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Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 5 minutes minutes

Resting Time: 30 minutes minutes

Total Time: 50 minutes minutes

Servings: 4 people

Calories: 157kcal

Author: Petra Kupská

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

Course: Soup

Cuisine: Czech

Keyword: Authentic Czech Food

Ingredients

• ▢ 7 ounces chicken livers (200 g)
• ▢ 3 cloves of garlic
• ▢ 1 egg
• ▢ ½ cup breadcrumbs (60 g) plus for dusting the work surface
• ▢ 1 Tablespoon unsalted butter softened at room temperature
• ▢ ½ Tablespoon dried marjoram
• ▢ ½ teaspoon salt
• ▢ ⅛ teaspoon black pepper ground

Instructions

• Rid the chicken livers of any visible white veins. Place them in a food processor and blend for a few seconds.
• Add peeled and sliced garlic, an egg, dried marjoram, softened butter, salt, and ground black pepper. Mix again.
• Transfer the mixture to the bowl, add breadcrumbs. Stir until combined.
• Let the mixture sit for 30 minutes. Don't worry that the mixture is runny; it will get stiffer over time.

Shaping liver dumplings (2 methods):

• For beautifully round dumplings: Dump the mixture onto a work surface dusted with breadcrumbs. Quickly use your hands to form a cylinder. Dip your hands in water. Scoop out an equal amount of the mixture. Roll a ball between your palms about 1 ½ inch (4 cm) in diameter. Drop it into the simmering broth. Quickly proceed to shape the dumplings further.
•  If you want to make dumplings quickly: Using two spoons dipped in water, scoop up the mixture and shape it as round as possible. Drop the dumpling into the simmering broth.
• Cook the dumplings in a simmering broth for about 5 minutes. During this time, the dumplings will come to the surface.

Notes

• Makes about 15-18 dumplings (depending on their size).
• SERVING: Serve the liver dumplings as part of the soup you cooked them in. About 3-5 dumplings should go on a soup plate.
• If the liver dumpling mixture is still too runny after 30 minutes, add a tablespoon or two of breadcrumbs, stir, and let rest for another 5 minutes.
• The dough for liver dumplings should have a sharper taste. The broth or water will take away some of the flavors during the boiling process.

DISCLAIMER: Because I come from Central Europe, my recipes are based on metric units such as grams or milliliters. Check out how I convert metric units to the U.S. system:

Conversion chart

Nutritional Estimate pro portion

Calories: 157kcal | Carbohydrates: 11g | Protein: 12g | Fat: 7g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 220mg | Sodium: 441mg | Potassium: 170mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 5664IU | Vitamin C: 10mg | Calcium: 45mg | Iron: 6mg

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