This recipe is one of the most famous recipes to come out of Hungary. Chicken stewed in Hungarian paprika and sour cream makes for an easy and delicious meal!
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I had Chicken Paprikash during a trip to Hungary and have been thinking about it since! It is a simple but delightful, crowd-pleasing meal.
Chicken paprikash is a Hungarian comfort food. The flavor is rich and complex, the texture is creamy and the whole meal leaves you feeling full and warm.
The base of the flavor comes from high-quality sweet Hungarian paprika. I don’t recommend grabbing just any old paprika off your shelf. Order something new and open it fresh for this dish. Ground spices tend to lose some flavor over time and paprika is the main seasoning in this dish so it needs to be powerful.
This traditional Hungarian dish is the perfect meal for a cold evening. The richness of the tender chicken and sour cream, the deep flavor of the paprika, spooned over noodles or dumplings is something everyone around the table will surely crave again and again.
Recipe Origins
Chicken paprikash may have actually been inspired by French cuisine.
For centuries Hungarians enjoyed a very simple, rich stew known as pörkölt. This stew was originally made with chicken, or other kinds of meat, and plenty of onions, a simple dish that was affordable for even the poorest of homes. Over time paprika was added and a bit of tomato.
While this dish is still a popular Hungarian specialty today, in the early 1900s a Hungarian chef, trying to recreate the rich and creamy French sauces he had tried, added sour cream, a popular Hungarian ingredient.
The result was a rich and creamy sauce, thicker than pörkölt and with a new added tanginess to it.
The simplicity of the dish aided in its popularity and as more farmers began to cook it at home, chicken became the meat of choice–although the word paprikash is not specific to only chicken. Paprikash is the name given to any paprika-based stew and it can be made with just about any meat.
This Hungarian recipe really solidified the popularity of paprika in Hungary, making it a key ingredient in Hungarian cuisine. There you can find paprika in many different forms, hues, and flavors, depending on the different peppers used to make it. You can also find paprika sold in flakes, puree, or powder and each has a unique purpose.
Why Make This Recipe
- “Travel” to Hungary: If you want to taste the flavors of Hungary, this Chicken Paprikash Recipe is a great way to do so!
- Minimal Ingredients: For how flavorful this recipe is, you’ll be surprised at how little ingredients there are. Chicken, paprika, onions, sour cream and garlic make for one delicious dish.
- Customizable: There are so many iterations of Chicken Paprikash, including other vegetables, spices, etc. This recipe is a base recipe with pretty standard ingredients and instructions. Feel free to add more flavorings as you desire!
What Do I Need to Make this Recipe?
Ingredients
Here is a visual overview of the ingredients in the recipe. Scroll down to the recipe at the bottom for quantities.
- Lard: If you can find it, cook your onions in lard. If not, you can also use vegetable shortening, vegetable oil, or butter. Lard adds a unique and delicious flavor to this dish. If possible, don’t use a substitute.
- Paprika: Use sweet paprika (as opposed to spicy paprika). I imported mine from Hungary to make sure it had the best flavor. This isn’t necessary but I would certainly recommend it! It makes a huge difference. Using a high-quality paprika is important because it is the only seasoning in the dish.
- Chicken: Use bone-in, skin on chicken pieces. I used legs and thighs.
- All Purpose Flour: Optional, for thickening the sauce if desired.
- Sour cream: You could substitute Greek yogurt for a healthier option but the taste and texture will not be exactly the same.
Tools
- Dutch Oven + Lid: Can also use a pot if necessary
- Utensils: Wooden spoon, tongs
- Meat Thermometer: Chicken must come to 165 degrees Fahrenheit
- Immersion Blender: Can also use a food processor or regular blender
- Small Bowls
How to Make this Recipe
Step 1: Cook the Onions
Season the chicken with salt. Set aside.
In a Dutch oven add the lard and heat it up. Once it’s melted, add the onion. Saute the onion until translucent.
Once the onion is translucent, add the garlic and stir for another minute. Remove the Dutch oven from the heat. Add the paprika and stir to coat the onions completely.
Step 2: Cook the Chicken
Add the chicken in a single layer and stir to coat the chicken in the paprika. Put the pot back on the heat.
Add the lid to the pot for 5 minutes. Check the chicken. If it is releasing liquid (enough to come up the sides of the chicken), you do not need to add more water. If the pot still looks dry and like the onions are sticking to the bottom of the pan, add about 1 cup of water into the Dutch oven, or enough to cover the paprika chicken about halfway.
Add the lid back onto the pot and let it cook for 20 minutes. Then open the lid, flip the chicken, put the lid back on, and cook for another 30 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through and reaches 165 degrees Fahrenheit.
Use tongs to remove the cooked chicken from the Dutch oven and set aside.
Step 3: Finish the Sauce
Put the sour cream in a small bowl and spoon in a few spoonfuls of the sauce from the pot. Mix it up in the bowl to make it smooth. Add the sour cream mixture into the Dutch oven and mix to combine.
Then, use a food processor or immersion blender to blend the creamy paprika sauce until it is completely smooth.
If your sauce is very thin: Add 1 tbsp of flour into a small bowl with a few spoonfuls of sauce from the Dutch oven. Mix until smooth, then pour into the pureed sauce, allowing it to cook for a few minutes over medium heat. This will thicken the sauce.
Add the chicken back into the sauce. Serve with noodles, dumplings, or mashed potatoes. Enjoy!
Other Flavors
There are so many Chicken Paprikash Recipes on the internet and each family has their own iteration and flavors they add. Even in Hungary, you will find different chefs prepare this dish in different ways and have their own type of paprika they prefer.
The base of authentic chicken paprikash is chicken, onions, lard, and sweet paprika. In my research, I have found recipes that include each of the following. Feel free to try them out if you’d like!
Vegetables + Meat
- Carrots
- Fresh Tomatoes
- Tomato paste
- Hungarian peppers
- Bell peppers
- Red peppers
- Celery
- Bacon
Spices
- Garlic powder
- Maggi
- Cumin
- Caraway Seeds
- Garlic Salt
Expert Tips
- If you want crispier chicken skin, you can brown the chicken until golden brown in the Dutch oven before cooking the onions. However, most recipes I watched of Hungarians making a Chicken Paprikash Recipe did not do this.
- Use fresh, good-quality paprika! Ground spices lose their flavoring over time, so it’s best to use a fresh bottle, especially because the paprika flavoring is so important in this Chicken Paprikash Recipe.
- Remove the Dutch oven from the heat when adding the paprika. This ensures that the paprika doesn’t burn.
- If you are adding flour to your sauce to thicken it: Add some of the sauce into the flour bowl and mix to combine until completely smooth. Then add the flour into the sauce. If you skip this step, you will end up with flour lumps in your sauce.
- Many authentic chicken paprikash recipes include several different versions of paprika. The base should be sweet paprika but feel free to add some hot paprika or even pureed paprika if you can get your hands on it for even more flavor.
- This dish is made with skin-on chicken or a whole chicken cut into pieces but the bone-in chicken pieces do tend to take longer to cook. You could save some time by using boneless skinless chicken breasts or boneless chicken thighs but the taste will not be as authentic.
Paprika Tips for this Chicken Paprikash Recipe
What is the Best Paprika to Use?
True sweet paprika will be bright red in color and the best place to get this rich, flavorful paprika is Hungary. You can order some online through Amazon.
Hot paprika will be less vibrant with a slightly brown color. Smoked paprika is known for its spice. Neither can be used as a substitute for sweet paprika. The flavor is not the same.
The normal paprika sold at most grocery stores is not specific about the peppers used to make it. Often the peppers in American paprika are grown and ground in America. If picked too soon or too late, the result is a pepper with little to no flavor.
Hungarian sweet paprika is sweeter and more flavorful. It is produced with care, choosing only the very best peppers to produce a spice that is noticeable. It is the only spice acceptable for this classic Hungarian dish.
Is it Possible to Burn Paprika?
Yes, it is very possible to burn paprika, and once it is burnt it tastes bitter. Be careful not to use too much heat for this dish or you will burn your paprika.
Can Paprika Go Bad?
Paprika, like all spices, has a best-by date on the bottle. It is probably safe to use past that date but it will not be as flavorful. The longer a spice sits, the more intensity it loses.
Recipe FAQs
Adding the sauce to the sour cream is an important step in this delicious recipe. Adding the warm sauce to the cold sour cream warms the temperature of the cream, bringing it closer to the temperature of the sauce. That way, it will be incorporated smoothly into the sauce.
If you skip this step, the cold sour cream will lump up when added into the warm sauce.
You do not need to puree the sauce if you do not want to. Some recipes do not do this, but others do.
In an effort to replicate the recipe I ate in Hungary, I chose to puree my sauce.
Some Chicken Paprikash Recipes call for thickening the sauce with flour but not all of them. In trying to imitate the recipe I ate in Hungary, I decided my chicken needed a thicker sauce.
If you like a thinner sauce, you do not need to follow this step.
Usually, this dish is served with egg noodles or dumplings called nokedli. Nokedli are similar to German spaetzle but have a different shape which gives them a different texture.
I also really like to enjoy chicken paprikash with mashed potatoes (though this is not traditional), rice or potato gnocchi. Serve this dish with your favorite green vegetable or a salad to make it a full meal.
You can easily store leftovers! Put them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
I wouldn’t recommend freezing your Chicken Paprikash Recipe. The sour cream in the sauce leads to a strange texture when thawing.
If you’d like to freeze the recipe, do so before adding the sour cream into the sauce. You can then add the sour cream after you have thawed the chicken.
To reheat this recipe, I find it easiest to heat it up in the microwave.
Chicken Paprikash comes from Hungary.
Authentic chicken paprikash is made with just water. You want to watch your dish carefully to avoid adding too much water. Too much water will make your sauce runny and take away some of the richness.
You could also use broth or chicken stock to make your sauce. The broth will add a bit more flavor. Some people like that addition of salt and flavor, but it is not necessary to still have a very tasty dish.
Did you enjoy this Chicken Paprikash Recipe? If so, make sure to check out these other recipes I picked out just for you:
Chicken Paprikash Receipe
Equipment
- Meat Thermometer
- Small Bowls
Ingredients
- Table Salt, for seasoning
- ¼ cup lard, or vegetable oil/butter
- 2 onions, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tbsp sweet paprika
- 6 chicken bone-in, skin on chicken pieces (I used thigh and leg)
- 6 tbsp sour cream
- 1 tbsp all purpose flour, optional
Instructions
- Season the chicken with salt. Set aside.
- In a dutch oven add the ¼ cup lard and heat it up. Once it's melted, add the 2 diced onions. Saute the onion until translucent.
- Once the onion is translucent, add the 2 minced garlic cloves and stir for another minute. Remove the dutch oven from the heat. Add the 2 tbsp paprika and stir to coat the onions completely.
- Add the chicken and stir to coat the chicken in the paprika. Put the pot back on the heat.
- Add the lid onto the pot for 5 minutes. Check the chicken. If it is releasing liquid (enough to come up the sides of the chicken), you do not need to add more water. If the pot still looks dry, add about 1 cup of water into the dutch oven, or enough to cover the chicken about halfway.
- Add the lid back onto the pot and let it cook for 20 minutes. Then open the lid, flip the chicken, put the lid back on and cook for another 30 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through and reaches 165 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Use tongs to remove the chicken from the dutch oven and set aside.
- Put the 6 tbsp sour cream in a small bowl and spoon in a few spoonfuls of the sauce from the pot. Mix it up in the bowl to make it smooth.
- Add the sour cream mixture into the dutch oven and mix to combine. Then, use a food processor or immersion blender to blend the sauce until it is completely smooth.
- If your sauce is very thin: Add 1 tbsp of flour into a small bowl with a few spoonfuls of sauce from the dutch oven. Mix until smooth, then pour into the pureed sauce, allowing it to cook for a few minutes over medium heat. This will thicken the sauce.
- Add the chicken back into the sauce. Serve with noodles, dumplings, or mashed potatoes. Enjoy!
Notes
- Lard: If you can find it, cook your onions in lard. If not, you can also use vegetable shortening, vegetable oil, or butter. Lard adds a unique and delicious flavor to this dish. If possible, don’t use a substitute.
- Paprika: Use sweet paprika (as opposed to spicy paprika). I imported mine from Hungary to make sure it had the best flavor. This isn’t necessary but I would certainly recommend it! It makes a huge difference. Using a high-quality paprika is important because it is the only seasoning in the dish.
- Chicken: Use bone-in, skin on chicken pieces. I used legs and thighs.
- All Purpose Flour: Optional, for thickening the sauce if desired.
- Sour cream: You could substitute Greek yogurt for a healthier option but the taste and texture will not be exactly the same.
- If you want crispier chicken skin, you can brown the chicken until golden brown in the Dutch oven before cooking the onions. However, most recipes I watched of Hungarians making a Chicken Paprikash Recipe did not do this.
- Use fresh, good-quality paprika! Ground spices lose their flavoring over time, so it’s best to use a fresh bottle, especially because the paprika flavoring is so important in this Chicken Paprikash Recipe.
- Remove the Dutch oven from the heat when adding the paprika. This ensures that the paprika doesn’t burn.
- If you are adding flour to your sauce to thicken it: Add some of the sauce into the flour bowl and mix to combine until completely smooth. Then add the flour into the sauce. If you skip this step, you will end up with flour lumps in your sauce.
- Many authentic chicken paprikash recipes include several different versions of paprika. The base should be sweet paprika but feel free to add some hot paprika or even pureed paprika if you can get your hands on it for even more flavor.
- This dish is made with skin-on chicken or a whole chicken cut into pieces but the bone-in chicken pieces do tend to take longer to cook. You could save some time by using boneless skinless chicken breasts or boneless chicken thighs but the taste will not be as authentic.
Gary Szabo says
I like this recipe, however, I don’t know of anyone in Hungary who eats it with mashed potatoes. Traditionally it is served with Galuska (Hungarian dumplings) or rice and eaten like curry
The Foreign Fork says
Hi Gary, I mention that in the article 🙂 Mashed potatoes are not traditional, but I do think its delicious! So glad you like the recipe 🙂
Joanne says
There was no chicken broth or water added (except for that 1 cup). Was that missing from the recipe? I added about 1-1/2 C chicken broth…otherwise the recipe was delish! And I will make it again
The Foreign Fork says
Hi Joanne, I’m not sure I understand your question. The water step that is written out in the recipe is the only time water should be added. If you added the liquid, you did it right!
Susan says
I’m glad you added recommendations for other vegetables like carrot and pepper. So many variations depending on the area of Hungary. Your recipe is right on. I was taught early. We added green pepper, chopped with the onion. We didn’t use garlic. I strain the broth into a plastic pitcher then whisk in the flour and sour cream and strain back into the pot. No need to remove the chicken. I buy my paprika from Hungary through Amazon. Olyan nagyon jó!
The Foreign Fork says
Thanks for the input Susie, I love hearing your experience! I will need to try it with green pepper next time 🙂
Carol says
Can you provide a link to the paprika you use and imported from Hungary? The recipe looks delicious.
The Foreign Fork says
Yes! This is the one I bought 🙂 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08CZLTCP8?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2_dt_b_product_details