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This chicken paprikash is chicken thighs and legs are simmered in a smoky, decadent paprika based vegetable sauce until tender perfection!
Nothing is more comforting on a cold winter’s night than a nice warm plate full of chicken paprikash. Incredibly simple to make and using only a few ingredients, this recipe is so much more than the sum of its parts.
This is one of those recipes I haven’t eaten since I was a kid and was so excited to make it again! I haven’t made the traditional dumplings or nokedli yet, those are coming up soon!
Chicken Paprikash
Though the recipe seems like it could be complicated from its name alone, this recipe for Chicken Paprikash is basically nothing more than some vegetables, chicken broth, delicious chicken, and some sour cream.
The star of the show is the paprika, which brings with it plenty of really delicious, smoky flavors that turn this dish from a broiled chicken and sour cream soup to a proper, traditional chicken Paprikash. For some more delicious smoky recipes, why not try some Smoked Paprika Baked Chicken Thighs, or even some Smoky Bacon Deviled Eggs?
Chicken Paprikash Ingredients
See the recipe card at the bottom for the exact quantities needed for this recipe.
- Chicken pieces, bone-in, and skin on (thighs are really the best here)
- Salted butter
- Yellow onions
- Green pepper
- Tomato
- Garlic
- Flour
- Hungarian sweet paprika
- Smoked paprika
- Cayenne pepper
- Salt & pepper
- Chicken broth
- Sour cream
How to Make Chicken Paprikash
- Dry your chicken with paper towels
- Melt the butter and, when it is sizzling, fry the chicken pieces skin side down in a large sauté pan with a lid
- Once the skin is brown, flip and cook for 3 more minutes
- Remove chicken, then sauté your onions in the fat for 10 minutes until lightly browned
- Add pepper, tomatoes, and garlic, cooking for 3 more minutes
- Shift vegetables to the side and add in the flour, stirring with the fat to make a roux for about 3 minutes
- Deglaze the pan with a small amount of chicken broth, and then add in the rest of the broth, along with the seasonings
- Top, the mixture with your chicken, cover, and cook on low, simmering for 25 minutes until the chicken reaches 185 Fahrenheit, and the meat starts to fall apart
- Remove the chicken, then stir in the sour cream to the liquid mixture, and serve with egg noodles, potatoes, or sour cream dumplings
Why Use Two Different Kinds of Paprika?
Those that have never made Chicken Paprikash, or other Hungarian cuisine, before might be a bit confused by the use of two different types of paprika in this recipe.
While most paprika sold in the store tends to be the most common variety, there are actually several different types of paprika consumed worldwide, all with their own flavor profiles.
The paprika used traditionally in Hungarian Chicken Paprikash would be their own type of paprika, called Noble Sweet, or Édesnemes in Hungarian, which is both sweeter and more delicately flavored than paprika sold elsewhere.
However, by adding just a little bit of regular smoked paprika to the recipe, the flavors amplify and get even more delicious. Smoked paprika is usually made in the Spanish style, and involves smoking dry using oak wood, and has a wonderful smoky flavor that makes this chicken Paprikash dish taste even more intense and flavorful.
Chicken Breasts or Chicken Thighs?
The eternal debate with any chicken dish is what parts of the chicken do you use; chicken breasts or chicken thighs.
While you can usually swap out breasts or thighs interchangeable based on your preference, for chicken Paprikash, you really want to stick to using chicken thighs and thrown some legs in there as well. Dark meat is the best for this recipe.
If you tried using chicken breasts in this recipe, you would end up with tough, almost stringy chicken breasts that have leeched all of its natural flavors to the sauce. You would also lose all of the delicious fat that chicken thighs provide, leaving you with a rather sad Chicken Paprikash.
So stick to chicken thighs here – by cooking thighs with the Paprikash sauce, the whole thing starts to fall apart like barbeque, and you end up with succulent, tender, and incredibly flavored meat that just can’t be beaten.
Looking for more delicious Chicken recipes? Try these:
- Butter Roasted Chicken – The Only Roast Chicken Recipe You’ll Ever Need Again.
- Mom’s Easy Honey Garlic Chicken
- Crockpot Chicken Cacciatore
Enjoy!! This is one of my very favorite chicken dishes!
Love,
Karlynn
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Chicken Paprikash
- Prep Time
- 30 minutes
- Cook Time
- 30 minutes
- Course
- Main Course
- Cuisine
- Hungarian
- Servings
- 8
- Calories
- 361
- Author
- Karlynn Johnston
Ingredients
- 8 chicken pieces bone in and skin on ( thighs work the best in this recipe)
- 1/4 cup salted butter
- 2 large yellow onions diced small
- 1/4 cup green pepper very finely diced
- 1/4 cup tomato very finely diced
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 3 tablespoons Hungarian sweet paprika
- 1/2 - 1 teaspoon smoked paprika optional, not traditional, but really takes this over this top!
- 1/8 teaspoon of cayenne pepper
- salt
- black pepper
- 1 1/2 cups chicken broth
- 1/2 cup sour cream
Instructions
- Pat the chicken pieces dry with paper towels.
- Place a large braising or sauté pan (that has a lid this is important for later) over medium-high heat and melt the butter. When the butter is sizzling, place the chicken pieces into the pan, skin side down. Fry in the butter until well browned on the skin side. Flip, carefully as not to leave the skin sticking to the pan, and continue to cook another 3-4 minutes on the other side.
- Once done, remove the chicken and place on a plate.
- Place the sliced onions into the frying pan and and cook them until they are slightly browned, 9-10 minutes.. Add in the peppers, tomatoes and garlic and sauté for 3-4 minutes.
- Push the vegetables to one side and add in the flour and cook in the fat remaining in the pan until slightly browned.
- Pour in a small amount of chicken broth to deglaze the pan, making sure to carefully dissolve the flour into it, and removing any browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Mix everything together. Once done, stir in the paprikas and the cayenne. Pour the remaining broth in, THEN add salt and pepper to taste!
- Place the chicken pieces on top of the mixture.
- Cover and cook on a low simmer for 25-30 minutes or until the thighs are 185°F and the chicken starts to fall off the bone, then turn the heat down to low.
- Remove the chicken and place on a clean plate.
- Stir in the sour cream until combined. Remove the pan from the stove.
- Serve with egg noodles, mashed potatoes, dumplings etc.
Recipe Notes
- for an authentic taste you do need the Hungarian sweet paprika!
Nutrition Information
All calories and info are based on a third party calculator and are only an estimate. Actual nutritional info will vary with brands used, your measuring methods, portion sizes and more.
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Sandra Breyer says
authentic paprikash does not contain tomatoes
sue says
Loved the chicken paprikash! Have not had this in years! I made it the other day. Followed your recipe exactly except I left out the cayenne pepper. In fact, my husband (who is hungarian/slovenian descent) thought that it was even better than his Mom’s recipe that he grew up with. I think the combination of the two different paprikas make the flavors pop. Will definitely make this again.
Karlynn Johnston says
Wow Sue, that is the ultimate compliment from your husband!!! Thank you for letting me know how much you guys enjoyed it!
ANGELICA says
Chicken!Chicken!Chicken! Thanks for the yummy recipe ^_^