One of the prominent dishes in Hungarian cuisine is Chicken Paprikash. As it’s name suggests, the main flavor comes from generous use of paprika. Paprikash is not too spicy because of the use of sour cream yet it has a distinct tangy flavor and aroma from all the paprika. You will be blown away by the flavors of this dish, all by using very simple and easily available ingredients!

While paprika is commonly used in many cuisines around the world, it’s roots can be attributed to Hungary. It has been a commonly used spice from the very beginning of the Ottoman Empire. It’s a very simple spice made from ground bell peppers, yet it provides beautiful color, aroma and flavor to any dish.

Learning to cook Chicken paprikash and many other dishes with ChefParade in Budapest was one of the highlights of our trip. It’s very easy to make and the taste is very difficult to forget. So do try out the recipe and let us know if you like it! 😀

Print Recipe

Prep Time 15 mins

Cook Time 45 mins

Total Time 1 hr

Course Main Course

Cuisine Hungarian

Servings 2

Equipment

• Cheese Grater ( If you have Spätzle maker, then even better)

Ingredients

  

Chicken Paprikash

• 250 grams Chicken Bone-in Legs and Thighs
• 100 grams Onions Chopped
• 1 tbsp Sweet Paprika Powder Readily available in grocery stores. Make sure to choose the less spicy or sweet one.
• 50 grams Tomato Chopped
• 100 grams Sour Cream
• 10 grams Plain Flour
• 1.5 tbsp Oil
• 50 grams Hungarian Sweet Yellow Pepper This is optional and usually not used in traditional recipe.

Spätzle / Noodles

• 1 Egg
• 100 ml Water
• 200 grams Plain Flour
• 0.5 tbsp Oil
• 0.5 tsp Salt
• 1.5 litre Water Used for boiling the Spaetzle

Instructions

 

Chicken Paprikash

• In a flat bottom pan, heat some oil and roast chicken pieces for about 1 minute on high heat just to give them a light brown color. Keep them aside.
• In the same pan, heat remaining oil and add chopped onions. Saute until onions are translucent.
• Remove from heat and add in the sweet paprika powder. Stir well and cook again for about 1 minute.
• Next add salt and water and let it simmer for 5 minutes. (Add more water if it dries).
• Add chicken pieces, tomatoes and cover the pan and let it simmer until chicken is tender. Add water so the chicken doesn't stick to the bottom and burn.
• While the chicken is cooking, mix flour and sour cream in a separate bowl. Whisk to make a smooth paste.
• Take some chicken gravy and add it to this paste if needed ( instead of water). Repeat this process 2-3 times until the mixture is homogeneous. Don't skip this step otherwise you will risk splitting the sour cream when it is added to the hot pan.
• Add the mixture into the pan and stir well. Cover and simmer for 5 minutes.
• The Chicken should be juicy and tender and ready to serve!

Spätzle

• Bring water to a boil.
• Mix flour, egg and salt and water to make a thick dough. Make sure it is not runny or thin as we need to boil it.
• Put the Cheese Grater ( or Spaetzle maker) on the pot of boiling water. "Grate" the dough in boiling water directly.
• Cook until the spätzle start floating on top of the water.
• Remove from water and add oil to prevent them from clumping up together.
• Serve spätzle in a deep dish and top it with chicken pieces and drench it in the delicious Paprikash gravy.

Notes

• Traditionally bone-in chicken is used to make Paprikash but you can use boneless chicken and cut them in small pieces. Please note that you will need much less time to cook the boneless chicken.
• For Vegetarians, you can add mushrooms and it will taste equally great!
• You can add Hungarian Sweet Peppers to give more texture to the gravy. It adds a lovely flavor but is not used in traditional Hungarian home recipes.
• You can use chicken broth instead of water to give a more broth-y flavor but we prefer it with water as it brings out a nice Paprika flavor.

 

Keyword chicken, hungarian, paprika, paprikash, spaetzl