Margarita's International Recipes

HUNGARY

Paprikás Csirke

Chicken Paprika


Chicken Paprika


Chicken Paprika is one of Hungary's most traditional dishes and no wonder: it's relatively simple and absolutely delicious. Perhaps for that reason, it seems to have traveled wide through the Austro-Hungarian Empire and beyond. I've already made a Czech and a Hungarian-American version and the recipe for Goldbroiler, a popular dish in East Germany during Soviet times, seems to be a "poor man's" version of chicken paprika.

There aren't huge variations among chicken paprika dishes, but this particular one comes from a food blogger who researched the history of the dish. This is almost as classic as Paprikás Csirke's recipes get. Almost, because the blogger introduced two innovations which I followed and approve of: she browned the chicken before simmering it in the sauce and she used chicken broth instead of water. Both give the dish more flavor.

Like most sauces and stews, this dish tastes better the next day, after the flavors have had more time to sink in.

A final note: the key to chicken paprika is the paprika. Using good quality Hungarian paprika is a must. I use Szeged sweet paprika because it's the easiest to find in California at an affordable price.

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Chicken Paprika

Ingredients

  • 2 Tbsp butter or lard
  • 3 lbs chicken pieces
  • 2 yellow onions, finely chopped
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 2 Roma tomatoes, finely diced
  • 3 heaping Tbsp. sweet Hungarian paprika
  • 1 1/2 tsp. salt
  • 1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
  • 2 cups chicken broth
  • 3/4 cup sour cream
  • 1/4 cup whipping cream
  • 3 Tbsp. flour

Directions

Melt butter over medium-high heat in a sauté pan. Add chicken pieces and brown on all sides. Remove the chicken from the pan and set aside.

Add the onions and cook, stirring frequently, until light brown. Stir in the garlic and then the tomato. Turn down temperature to medium and cook for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Turn off the heat and mix in the paprika, making sure it doesn't get burned. Stir in the salt and black pepper. Return the chicken to the pot and add the chicken broth. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce temperature to medium-low and cook for 40 minutes.

Meanwhile, mix together the sour cream and whipping cream in a small bowl. Stir in the flour. Add 2/3 cup of the simmering liquid and mix well.

Once chicken is cooked through, carefully remove it from the pan. If desired, use an immersion blender to puree the sauce until smooth. Gradually whisk in the sour cream mixture into the sauce, making sure there are no lumps. Simmer until the sauce thickens. Taste and adjust seasoning. Return chicken to the pan and heat through.


Adapted from a recipe at The Daring Gourmet


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