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This comforting Chicken Paprikash will fill you up and keep you warm on a cold and rainy day. Chicken Paprikash is a Hungarian dish but it’s also very popular in Eastern Europe. Some European countries have their own version of the Hungarian chicken Paprikash or Paprika Chicken. Growing up in Eastern Europe, I remember my grandmother cooked a similar dish with lots of peppers and onions. It was my favorite, especially topped with lots of crumbled feta cheese. I could eat it every week and I was so happy when she cooked this meal – it made my heart sing. ♩ ♫ ♪♪ ♩
This easy chicken paprikash is made with chicken, peppers, onions, garlic, stock, sour cream, and of course paprika. It is important to use fresh, high-quality paprika for this recipe. I recommend sweet Hungarian paprika available on Amazon or at Penzys online. If you enjoy spicy food, you could try replacing 1 tsp of the paprika with hot Hungarian paprika. Paprika can go flat or tasteless if it is too old. So check your paprika first, before starting this dish.
This Hungarian chicken paprikash is very easy and quick to make. It is made with just a handful of ingredients, and it takes about 30 minutes to make from start to finish. I love simple yet delicious recipes! And this one is a winner. The chicken paprikash sauce is absolutely amazing!
3 Tips for Cooking the Best Chicken Paprikash:
- Sear the chicken – Searing the chicken (which means cooking the food at high temperature until a caramelized crust forms) adds a lot of flavor and produces a more complex sauce.
- Saute the paprika with the vegetables for a couple of minutes – toasting the paprika in high heat helps the paprika develop all-new flavor, adding complexity and depth to the spice.
- Use fresh good quality paprika – there is a huge difference between a good paprika and regular store-bought paprika.
How to Make Chicken Paprikash
There are many ways you can make chicken paprikash. Some add tomatoes, others omit the peppers and tomatoes, and third, add a lot more peppers and onions. I like to add peppers, onions and minced garlic to my chicken paprikash. I also like to top it with crumbled feta cheese and pine nuts which are optional. Topping the chicken paprikash with feta cheese makes it so creamy and delicious!
You can serve chicken paprikash with noodles, dumplings, spaetzle or even with the best mashed potatoes (shown with egg noodles).
If you love this recipe, I am sure you will also love this delicious Chicken Penne with Creamy Mushroom White Wine Sauce.
Easy Chicken Paprikash
INGREDIENTS
- 1.5 lbs chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch cubes
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 2 Tablespoon sweet Hungarian paprika, plus extra for seasoning the chicken
- 1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 large onion, thinly sliced
- 1 large red bell pepper, thinly sliced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 cup chicken stock
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 6 oz egg noodles
- feta cheese
- pine nuts, optional
INSTRUCTIONS
- In a large skillet, heat oil over medium high heat. Season chicken on both sides with salt, pepper and sweet Hungarian paprika, and add to the skillet. Cook without moving the chicken pieces for about 4 minutes per side and flip them over, and cook for another 3-4 minutes, or until cooked through. When chicken is done, transfer to a plate.
- In the same skillet, add more olive oil and sliced onion and red bell pepper. Cook for few minutes until vegetables are soft, about 3 minutes. Add garlic and cook for another 30 seconds. Season with salt, pepper and sweet Hungarian paprikato taste, and saute the vegetables for couple of minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Add chicken stock, sour cream and stir well.
- Add chicken to the skillet and stir everything. Reduce heat to medium low, cover and simmer for about 10 minutes until flavors blend and sauce thickens. Taste for salt and pepper and add more if needed.
- While the chicken paprikash is cooking, cook egg noodles according to package directions.
- Serve chicken paprikash over egg noodles. Garnish with pine nuts, crumbled feta cheese and parsley. Enjoy!
NUTRITION
Use the tag #DeliciousMeetsHealthy when posting a picture of your recipe, and make sure to follow @deliciousmeetshealthy on Instagram!
I love peppers and onions sautéed together! Such a good combo!
First off, I love your photos Neli. Such gorgeous, vibrant colors! Hungarian Paprika is one of my favorite spices; I’m lucky to live close to a spice shop that grinds it in small batches, so it’s especially fragrant. I can’t wait to make this dish with it! Love the suggestion of serving it over spatezle.
Yes, fresh paprika smells and tastes amazing! Wish I had a shop close by that would grind fresh spices. Hope you enjoy this dish when you make it! 🙂
I’ve never had Chicken Paprikash but I definitely need to. I absolutely LOVE paprika so the more the merrier and I think this recipe agrees. I love that you top it with feta and nuts too! YUUUUM!
Hope you enjoy it, J!
I have never had this dish, but I love paprika, onions and peppers, so it’s a winner! The pine nuts and feta sound like the perfect addition to this! Sounds like a lovely dinner!
Thank, Leah! It was a delicious dinner indeed! 🙂
This reminds me of a dish my grandma used to make when I was little(one we don’t have a copy of the recipe for.) Your addition of the pine nuts and feta are such a great idea! I cant wait to make it when my brother comes over and see if he remembers eating it when we were little…
Yay, another grandmother cooked a similar dish! Hope you and your brother enjoy it! 🙂
Chicken Paprikash was one of the first meals I made my husband after we got married, so it holds special memories for us. However, the recipe we had just didn’t quite do it for us. I’m excited to try this one out and finally have a version of this in our rotation that is as pleasant as our memories of those first weeks of marriage are!
Oh, that is sweet! I hope that this recipe exceeds your expectations! 🙂
I adore paprika so I must try this! It looks sensational.
Thanks, Kate! 🙂 I am sure you will love it!
I tried Paprikash a few times in my life and it’s so good. I have never made it at home, though. Thanks for the recipe!
You are welcome! Hope you give it a try! 🙂
This looks like a light and delicious meal; perfect and easy for a weeknight! Yum!
We have so many rainy and snow days here and recipes like this make it fun staying indoors. Love the comfort food aspect of your paprikash.
This really does look like a hearty and satisfying meal. I do agree with you regarding paprika, not all paprika is created equal, great tip.
Thanks, Sara! Good paprika makes all the difference in this recipe! 🙂
That’s funny someone else mentioned “When Harry Met Sally” – also first thing that entered my mind 🙂 This looks amazingly delicious!
Okay, I had to google and watch a youtube video to see what you all are talking about. 🙂 I haven’t seen that movie before – just watched it, so funny!
Thanks for stopping by, Jill! 🙂
Sounds delicious. Feta cheese is so great, especially with pasta. I love paprika, and use it all the time. This would make great leftovers too.
Thanks, Gloria! yes, it’s incredibly delicious with feta cheese and I think it brings out the paprika & peppers flavor much more.
This reminds me of the scene in “When Harry Met Sally” and he talks about paprikash. Your recipe sounds good and I love your photos, too.
I had to watch that part of the movie on youtube – had no idea what you all are talking about. Haha. Funny! Thanks for stopping by! 🙂
Had not heard of chicken Paprikash as of yet.., but the dish and the recipe looks fairly easy to try.
Thanks, Aish! Hope you give this recipe a try and let me know how you like it. I am sure it will turn out amazing!