Alex's book of recipes

Chicken Paprikash

Comforting and rich Hungarian chicken dish, seasoned with plenty of paprika.

ingredients

2 tbsp pork lard, or butter

3 pounds chicken pieces, bone-in and skin-on

2 medium yellow onions, very finely chopped

2 cloves garlic, finely minced

2 Roma tomatoes, seeds removed and very finely diced

1 Hungarian bell pepper, diced

4 tbsp sweet Hungarian paprika

2 cups favourite chicken broth

1½ tsp sea salt

½ tsp freshly ground black pepper

3 tbsp flour

180 ml tejföl (or full fat sour cream), room temperature

60ml heavy whipping cream, room temperature

instructions

Heat the lard in a heavy pot and brown the chicken on all sides. Transfer the chicken to a plate.

In the same oil, add the onions and fry until golden brown. Add the garlic and tomatoes (and pepper if using) and fry another 2-3 minutes. Remove the pot from the heat and stir in the paprika, salt and pepper.

Return the chicken to the pot and place it back over the heat. Pour in the chicken broth; the chicken should be mostly covered. Bring it to a boil. Cover, reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 40 minutes. Remove the chicken and transfer to a plate.

In a large heat-proof bowl, stir the flour into the sour cream/cream mixture to form a smooth paste. Temper the mixture by slowly ladling some of the hot liquid into the mixture and stirring well, until the volume is approximately doubled and the mixture is warm. Then stir the cream mixture into the sauce, whisking constantly to prevent lumps.

Simmer for a couple of minutes until the sauce is thickened. Add salt and pepper to taste. Return the chicken to the sauce and simmer to heat through.

notes

Best served with nokedli.