Both my fraternal grandparents as well as my father spoke Hungarian fluently, since that part of Slovakia was under Hungarian influence. Chicken paprikas, as well as many Hungarian dishes were often cooked and enjoyed in our house when growing up.
Ingredients:
- 2 tbs butter (or bacon grease for the more authentic flavour)
- 1 onion chopped
- 3 garlic cloves chopped
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper (or crushed pepper flakes if you want it spicy)
- 3 tbs Hungarian paprika (sweet paprika from grocery store works as well)
- 10 chicken thighs (original recipe calls for chicken pieces bone and skin on. I prefer skinned and bones chicken thighs)
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 3 pealed, diced and seeded tomatoes – see notes
- 4 tbs sour cream
- 1 sweet red pepper, diced – optional
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 tsp vegeta – optional
- pinch of cayenne pepper
- 2 slices of bacon diced
Directions:
- In a large pan melt butter on medium high heat
- Add onion and cook until translucent (about 3 minutes)
- Add garlic and bacon and cook for 1 minute
- Add paprika and cook for 1 minute (CAREFUL! If you overcook paprika it will go bitter)
- Add chicken chicken pieces and pour stock over them until just covered
- Season with salt, pepper, vegeta and cayenne
- Add bay leaf and tomatoes
- Cover and simmer for 1 hour
- Taste and adjust seasoning
- Add red peppers and cook for 5 minutes
- Stir in sour cream
Notes:
Canned tomatoes, or tomato paste can be substituted for fresh tomatoes.
Most of home cooking relies more on tasting the dish along the way and adding salt, pepper, cayenne, vegeta and sour cream as needed, rather than precise measurements.
