Chicken Paprikash… Out-of-this-world Delicious! Paprika basks in the limelight here, in a rich, comforting Hungarian Chicken Stew, Paprikas Csirke, as it’s known belovedly in Hungary.
This silky, smooth stew is cold weather comfort food at its finest!! Chicken is braised in a paprika laced gravy and finished off with a dollop of sour cream.
This is a super easy dish that will wow you with both its flavor and simplicity.
Many of us are aware of Hungarian Goulash, with that unmistakable flavor profile from their famous sweet Hungarian paprika. Well, it’s about time to make their other family favorite world famous, this time putting chicken in the pot.
One bite into this and you realize that it’s comfort food, even if you’ve never had it before in your life. Chicken smothered in warm, smoky, rich, buttery, tangy sauce is the ultimate to dig into when your heart craves cozy on a chilly winter night. So, if you ask me…
What is Chicken Paprikash?
Sometimes referred to as Hungary’s national dish, it is locally known as Paprikas Csirke (pronounced as Paprikash Cheerke). It simply translates as “Paprika Chicken”.
It’s all in the name. Paprikash gets its name from the ample use of paprika. The chicken is slowly braised in the sauce created by onion, garlic, peppers and tomatoes, most often with a little help of chicken broth or simply water, and tooons of paprika.
It’s always rounded up in the end with sour cream to make it silky smooth textured deliciousness.
Hungarian Paprika
Paprika is the STAR here in this Eastern European classic. Yes, it is a classic, dating back several centuries. Paprika was imported into Hungary from Turkey and has been grown in southern Hungary for 500 years.
So it’s no surprise that paprika is quite iconic in Hungarian cuisine. In fact, it’s so popular that they spoon it into pretty much any dish you can think of.
Paprika comes in all colors from orange to bright red, and heat levels from spicy to sweet. Hungarian paprika ranges from hot to sweet. The Hungarian sweet paprika is so sweet, it can be even used in desserts (pun intended here).
A good quality, authentic Hungarian paprika is a MUST for authentic Chicken Paprikash. You can either find in specialty stores or order it online. Hungarian sweet paprika is almost smoky sweet, with fruity peppery notes. That’s why, if you are using their sweet variety, a ton of it goes into chicken paprikash.
No, it won’t make it spicy hot. It lends a very distinctive flavor, along with the creamy tang the recipe gets from sour cream in the end.
Ingredients and Substitutions
You can find exact ingredient amounts in the recipe card at the end of this post. Here are the things you will need:
- Chicken – I use bone-in thighs. More on that below.
- Butter – For sautéing. Lard is also very traditional in Hungarian cooking, so if you have some around, that is a great option. Alternately you could use olive oil or another neutral oil.
- Onion – Any variety will do.
- Bell peppers – I use a mix of colors.
- Garlic – Freshly minced.
- Tomato paste – My preferred tomato element for this dish, because I like to let it cook and concentrate a little. In a pinch, you can replace it with ⅓ cup tomato sauce.
- Hungarian paprika – The STAR. Please don’t try to get away with any other paprika variety.
- Chicken broth – I always use Better than Bouillon, because it’s easy to make however much I need. Any good quality broth or stock will work though.
- Sour cream – This is where the creaminess comes in. I use full-fat, because this is meant to be an indulgent dish. You can use light sour cream if you prefer.
- Salt and pepper – To taste.
What Cut of Chicken to Use
Traditionally, whole chicken is used. Bone-in chicken is the most flavorful in any stew.
We are using bone-in, skin-on thighs for maximum flavors. Personally, we don’t like skin in the final dish, so we just kept it on while browning the chicken, to keep the meat moist and have the maximum flavors retained in the pot. We removed it prior to braising the chicken.
Boneless skinless chicken thighs would also work well here.
How to Make Chicken Paprikash
Season: Season the chicken thighs with salt and pepper on both sides.
Sear chicken: Heat up butter in a skillet over medium high heat. Add chicken skin side down and sear undisturbed for 6-7 minutes. Flip and cook for another 3-4 minutes. Plate it out and discard the skin.
Sauté veggies: Discard the excess fat from the skillet leaving about a couple of tablespoons. Add onions and sauté onions till they start turning brown. Add in bell peppers and sauté till soft. Add in garlic and cook for a minute.
Add tomato paste and paprika: Stir in tomato paste and cook for a couple of minutes. Remove from heat and stir in sweet Hungarian paprika and mix well.
Simmer: Return back to heat and add in chicken broth and cook for a couple of minutes. Add chicken back into the skillet and spoon the sauce all over the chicken. Cook, covered, for 40-45 minutes, until chicken is fall of the bone tender.
Temper sour cream: Place sour cream in a bowl and slowly mix in a spoonful of the hot paprikash sauce. Do it 4-5 times. This ensures the sour cream slowly comes to the temperature of the sauce and does not curdle, resulting in a smooth sauce.
Finish the dish: Mix the tempered sour cream into the skillet and mix well. I add an extra 1 tsp of sweet Hungarian paprika at this point too (optional). Taste and adjust the seasonings like salt and pepper. Simmer on low heat for 8-10 minutes.
That’s it, your authentic chicken paprikash is ready!
What to Serve Chicken Paprikash With
They love this winter comfort food with their small noodle-like Hungarian dumplings, called Nokedli. They are made with flour and eggs and can be easily made from scratch while your chicken paprikash pot is simmering.
Another great alternative is Spaetzle, which is the German counterpart for small dumpling-like noodles. You can sometimes find them in supermarkets.
Here in States, where such things may not be readily available, they go great with any egg noodles. Other great options are mashed potatoes, gnocci, or even some crusty warm bread.
Being a rice eater, I just salivated thinking of this butter chicken like dish with with a bowl full of rice.
This low carb dish would go exceptionally well with cauliflower rice or mash.
Leftovers and Storage
It is finger licking delicious for the next few days, as it sits in the refrigerator, enhancing all the flavors. Simply store it in airtight container and reheat it in the microwave or on stove top with a splash of water, if needed.
It does not freeze well in it’s final form, due to the fact that the sour cream will separate. However, if you wish to freeze a portion of it, simply remove the part to be frozen before adding in sour cream. (Of course, you will want to scale down the amount of sour cream).
Helpful Tips
- Use high-quality Hungarian paprika for the best flavor. The sweet variety adds depth without too much heat.
- Brown the chicken well before braising to develop flavors.
- Stir in the paprika off the heat to prevent it from burning and turning bitter.
- Temper the sour cream by gradually adding hot sauce to it before combining with the stew. This prevents curdling.
Well, there you go… one more regional classic, all the way from Eastern Europe. Try it. All you need is good quality Hungarian sweet paprika to make this happen. In today’s world, everything is available at your finger tips and it’s a breeze to order it online and make these amazing new flavors in your kitchen.
Let us know if you try this Hungarian Chicken Paprikash and what you paired it with… we are all ears.
Hungarian Chicken Paprikash, on our Gypsy Plate… enjoy!
Try these other chicken stews!
Chicken Afridata
Chicken Chasseur
Green Chicken Chili
Sudado de Pollo
Jamaican Stew Chicken
Chicken Caldereta
Doro Wat
Recipe Video
Chicken Paprikash
Chicken Paprikash… Out-of-this-world Delicious! Paprika basks in limelight here, in a rich, comforting Hungarian Chicken Stew.
Ingredients
- 6-7 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 1 green bell pepper, diced
- 1 red bell pepper, diced
- 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- ¼ cup + 1 teaspoon sweet Hungarian paprika, divided
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 2 cups chicken broth
- ¾ cup sour cream
- salt, to taste
- pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Season the chicken thighs with salt and pepper on both sides.
- Heat up butter in a skillet over medium high heat. Add chicken skin side down and sear undisturbed for 6-7 minutes. Flip and cook for another 3-4 minutes. Plate it out and discard the skin.
- Discard the excess fat from the skillet leaving about a couple of tablespoons. Add onions and sauté onions till they start turning brown.
- Add in bell peppers and sauté till soft. Add in garlic and cook for a minute.
- Stir in tomato paste and cook for a couple of minutes.
- Remove from heat and stir in sweet Hungarian paprika and mix well.
- Return back to heat and add in chicken broth and cook for a couple of minutes. Add chicken back into the skillet and cook, covered, for 40-45 minutes, until chicken is fall of the bone tender.
- Place sour cream in a bowl and slowly mix in a spoonful of the hot paprikash sauce. Do it 4-5 times. This ensures the sour cream slowly comes to the temperature of the sauce and does not curdle, resulting in a smooth sauce. Mix this tempered sour cream into the skillet and mix well. I add an extra 1 tsp of sweet Hungarian paprika at this point too (optional). Taste and adjust the seasonings like salt and pepper.
- Simmer on low heat for 8-10 minutes. Serve immediately.
Notes
- A good quality, authentic Hungarian paprika is a MUST for authentic Chicken Paprikash. You can either find in specialty stores or order it online.
- You can also use whole, cut up chicken for this recipe.
- Serve with egg noodles, mashed potatoes, crusty bread or rice.
- Store leftovers in and airtight container and reheat it in the microwave or on stove top with a splash of water, if needed.
- It does not freeze well in it’s final form, due to the fact that the sour cream will separate. However, if you wish to freeze a portion of it, simply remove the part to be frozen before adding in sour cream. (Of course, you will want to scale down the amount of sour cream).
Nutrition Information
Yield 6 Serving Size 1Amount Per Serving Calories 400Total Fat 28gSaturated Fat 11gTrans Fat 1gUnsaturated Fat 15gCholesterol 195mgSodium 966mgCarbohydrates 8gFiber 1gSugar 4gProtein 33g
Nutrition information calculated by Nutritionix.
Welcome to GypsyPlate! I'm Alpana, former worldwide tour manager and professional caterer, now full time blogger. I love exploring cuisines from around the world, and my recipes have been featured on sites such as MSN, Parade, Brit + Co, CNET and AOL. You can explore my entire collection of sortable recipes in my Recipe Index or learn more about me here.
Get griddling! Try these Blackstone Recipes!
Never miss a recipe!
Join the GypsyPlate mailing list and get easy dinner recipes right in your mailbox. From homestyle comfort food to exotic dishes from around the world.
