Hungarian Chicken Paprikash
This chicken paprikash is the kind of dish that—upon first bite—reveals itself immediately and inarguably to be comfort food, even if you’ve never eaten it before in your life. We must pause to pay homage to the best mention of the word paprikash in the history of film, in When Harry Met Sally.
What is Chicken Paprikash?
It’s a classic Hungarian dish, which features chicken first browned, and then sauteed and stewed with a mixture of onions, broth, tomatoes (sometimes, not always) and of course copious amounts of paprika.
What Kind of Paprika for Paprikash
I have been playing around with my various tins of smoked paprika for quite a while now (I do have tins), and while I love the flavor, it can come on strong. So here I relied primarily on the typical sweet Hungarian paprika, and then added a little bit of smoked to give it another level of flavor. You could also add a bit of hot paprika to give it a different kind of kick. Or all three, you crazy crazy fun person.
Chicken Paprikash with Sour Cream
When to add the sour cream is important. You don’t want to heat the sour cream in the sauce over the stove, or it might curdle. Just stir it into the pot at the very end, and it will add a tangy-creamy note to the warm sauce.
A classic Hungarian dish, which features chicken, onions, broth, tomatoes, and of course copious amounts of paprika.
Tweet This
What to Serve with Chicken Paprikash
If you are the kind of person to make your own dumplings or noodles, this is a great moment to whip out that skill set. These are excellent traditional accompaniments to authentic Chicken Paprikash. For the rest of us, and for a weeknight dinner, a bag of egg noodles fits the bill perfectly.
Also….a green salad or sprightly green vegetable. Such as:
- Endive, Radicchio and Citrus Salad with Bacon Vinaigrette
- Green Beans with Tarragon Vinaigrette
- Light Green Crunchy Salad
- Mixed Greens with Pomegranate Vinaigrette
- Romaine and Slivered Kale Salad with Lemon Dressing
- Romaine, Pear and Goat Cheese Salad
Like this recipe? Pin it to your favorite board on Pinterest.
Pin This
Chicken Paprikash
Ingredients
- 4 pounds bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs about 8 large pieces
- Kosher or coarse salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
- 1 tablespoon canola oil
- 2 large onions quartered lengthwise, and thinly sliced crosswise
- 2 cloves garlic finely minced
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons sweet paprika
- 1 teaspoon smoked or hot paprika optional
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 14-ounce can crushed tomatoes
- 2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
- ¾ cup sour cream
- 1 12-ounce bag egg noodles
Directions
- Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a very large, deep heavy skillet (such as cast iron) over medium high heat. When the oil is hot, add the chicken, skin side down, and cook for about 8 minutes, until the skin is nicely crispy. Flip the chicken and cook for another 8 minutes or so until the bottom of the chicken is nicely browned (it will not be cooked through). Remove the chicken to a plate.
- Pour off all but 1 tablespoon of fat from the pan. Return the pan to medium heat, and add the onion. Sauté for about 5 minutes, until soft and moderately browned. Stir in the garlic and sauté for another minute. Stir in the flour and the paprika, as well as the additional paprika if using, until is all well incorporated into the oil, one more minute. Add the bay leaves, tomatoes, and broth. Bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally. Return the chicken to the liquid, skin side up, and cook for another 20 minutes until the chicken is cooked through.
- Meanwhile cook the egg noodles according to package directions. Remove the chicken to a clean plate. Remove the bay leaves, and stir the sour cream into the sauce. Place the chicken over the hot noodles, either on a serving platter or on individual serving plates, and spoon over the sauce.
Nutrition Information
The nutrition values are provided as an estimate. It is not intended as a substitute for the advice of a qualified healthcare professional.
Made this recipe? Post a photo of your delicious creation on Instagram with our hashtag #dinnersolved
This was delicious! Husband loved it also and he is alway hesitant to try anything new – but he really liked it! Will definitely make again!
I made this tonight with chicken drumsticks and it is delicious! My family loved the sauce and asked for me to have bread to soak up the extra sauce.
Can the chicken and sauce be made ahead and reheated within 1 – 3 days? I’d like to make it ahead of time and then reheat it in the oven or stovetop on the day I want to serve it. Any recommendations?
make sure when you heat the sauce you do it over low heat so it doesn’t separate!
Great recipe!! Made it for my family visiting from out of town it was a hit.
has anyone rated this recipe. I wondered how it came out. I don’t cook that often and I want to make sure it is good lol
I make this often, its really good! The only thing I changed is I use boneless skinless chicken thighs and add extra paprika. I recommend trying out this recipe
Trying this out!
When you put the chicken back in the sauce for 20mins, covered or uncovered?
Thanks!
uncovered!
Made this last evening. I loved the sauce so delicious. Next time I will use skinless chicken thighs. Very good!!
Made this today. I love the sauce! Next time I will use skinless thighs. Very good!
Made it this evening! I tweaked the amount of garlic for personal preference, but it was super good! Definitely comfort food.
My Hungarian husband introduced me to this dish. No tomatoes and his own home-made galuska though. You’ve made my mouth water – I’m trying your recipe this weekend with wide egg noodles!
I’m curious. Explain the chicken skin. You crisp it up in pan but once you pour sauce over it has to become “un-crisp”. I just can’t imagine eating that. Why not remove it before hand. It isn’t good for you anyway wth all the fat that’s under it.
The skin does retain some of the crisped texture, even though it is sauced. You could definitely do this with skinless chicken, if you prefer, and you’re right — it would have less fat!