I LOVE paprika …. (as you know!) and whenever i’ve mentioned that over the Years I have been continually encouraged by people to try making Chicken Paprikash – or Paprika chicken, which considering I like chicken recipes too it’s an absolute no brainer! A Hungarian dish with a sort of fried chicken vibe and paprika roux that originates in Hungary… and yep, when making it the smells made be Hungary – sorry! Hope you give this recipe a go, I bloomin’ loved it!
Homemade chicken paprikash – Hungarian Paprika Chicken
Start off by mixing together in a bowl two thirds of the paprika, salt and pepper, plus the flour until a consistent colour is achieved. Pat dry the chicken with some kitchen towel and coat each piece of chicken in the mixture to fully cover it. You can also chop the chicken up if you want, put to one side. But any leftover flour from dredging keep for the moment as it’ll be used later.
Warm the vegetable oil in a large frying pan over a steady heat, add in the flour coated chicken and cook until browned on both sides, try not to move it too much or you will lose the coating. Just focus on getting the outsides nice and browned or slightly charred. Once you’ve done that take the chicken out for a moment. And add in the onions, peppers, cayenne pepper, the remaining tbsp of paprika and cook for 3-4 minutes to soften up the vegetable and coat in the ingredients.
One the vegetables are softened, pour in the stock and add the chicken back in the pan. Bring the stock up to a boil, then on a low heat simmer for 40 minutes to cook through the chicken.
With the flour leftover from dredging mix this with 100g of the yoghurt and 100ml of the stock from the pan the chicken has cooked in. Mix this with a wooden spoon until lump free, add this to the pot and keep simmering for 5 more minutes, this should help thicken the sauce slightly. After 5 minutes take the pan off the heat and add the rest of the yoghurt stirring through, you can leave a little extra as a garnish when serving.
Meanwhile cook the fresh pasta to package instructions (if fresh this should take a few minutes). Break the chicken up if you wish with a spatula as it cooks to break it into smaller chunks or keep the pieces whole. Serve with the pasta with lots of sauce, onions and peppers added on top. Super good!
The paprika I used was quite sweet and not too hot, but some can vary do check them before buying and if unsure use standard or smoked paprika!