Why Chicken Paprikash Is the Comfort Food You’ve Been Missing

Chicken paprikash is one of those dishes you can hardly go wrong with. All you need is good, quality meat, onions and spices you probably already have on hand, and a spoonful of sour cream at the end gives it an especially good taste. Today we‘re bringing you two recipes: one for classic Hungarian chicken paprikash and another for chicken paprikash according to the recipe of our famous chef Mario Mihelj, who recently shared it with us. Both versions are excellent, one is a bit simpler than the other, but the most important thing is that after both, plates are licked clean and everyone asks for seconds. And yes, always serve paprikash with bread, you‘ll need it to scoop up all the thick, creamy sauce.

HOW IS TRADITIONAL HUNGARIAN PAPRIKASH COOKED?

Chicken paprikash in Hungary is called paprikas csirke and is considered one of the most famous traditional dishes there. It is believed to have been invented in the 19th century, thanks to the popularity of ground red paprika. The Hungarian version is made with lots of onions, lots of paprika, which makes sense, and sour cream is added at the end. Drumsticks and thighs are most often used for preparation, but if you have a whole chicken on hand, you can easily cut it into pieces and use every part.

Just like with every traditional recipe, the recipe varies from family to family, but the idea of the dish is always the same. Everything is cooked in one pot, only a few simple ingredients are needed, and the result is a thick, rich, creamy dish that, if you‘re making it for the first time, you‘ll want to return to from now on.

Chicken paprikash in Hungary is traditionally served with nokedli, a type of pasta similar to spätzle, for which we once wrote down the recipe here. In addition, it can also be served with noodles or boiled potatoes.

CLASSIC CHICKEN PAPRIKASH

1 kg drumsticks and thighs or other chicken pieces with bones
about 500 ml stock
2 tablespoons lard or oil
3 onions
2 tablespoons tomato paste
6 garlic cloves
2 tablespoons ground red paprika
3 tablespoons sour cream
salt and pepper
fresh parsley
Preparation:
Finely chop the onion, and season the chicken with salt and pepper. In a larger pot, heat the oil or melt the lard and sear the pieces of meat. Let them brown, then remove them from the pan. Add the onion to the same fat, add a little salt, and sauté until it gets a nice golden color. Add the tomato paste, mix, then add the pressed garlic. Sauté for a minute then add half the stock. Let it heat up and scrape the bottom of the pan with a spoon if any chicken skin bits are stuck. Add the paprika and the rest of the stock, mix everything well, then return the chicken so the skin is facing up. Let it boil, cover, and cook on low heat. If needed, season further with salt and pepper. After about 40 minutes, take out some of the liquid and mix it with the sour cream. If you want an even thicker sauce, add a teaspoon of flour. Mix everything together and stir it back into the pot with the meat. Shake and cook for about five minutes or until you get a nice, silky sauce. Finally, sprinkle with finely chopped parsley and, if desired, serve with a spoonful of sour cream.

CHEF‘S RECIPE

The version of chicken paprikash revealed to us by chef Mario Mihelj is somewhat different from the traditional Hungarian one, more complex, but just as tasty. After cooking the meat in the sauce, he removes the bones and returns the shredded meat to the sauce. Interestingly, Mihelj makes the sauce by blending the vegetables and does not add cream. Mihelj serves his paprikash with homemade wide noodles.