01 February 2008

Paprikás Csirke

Paprikás Csirke is oddly similar to the popular Indian dish chicken tikka masala, which isn't authentically Indian but was adapted for British palates. For this dish, you can check out an authentic Hungarian recipe, or you can try something a little easier to read. It's a rich chicken dish that uses a lot of paprika (my preparation called for a quarter cup of Hungarian sweet paprika). I also like to use chicken thighs, as they taste great and hold up well to the stew-like cooking process.

The first time I made this was a few years ago. My buddy Paul and I were hanging out and I made the paprikás along with the traditional homemade Spätzle noodles. Between the onions and the sauce and the heavy noodles, this dish was delicious but seriously damaging. We each had one bowl of it and spent the next three hours on our respective couches groaning and trying not to move. Not wanting to repeat that experience, I lightened it up. I used leeks instead of onions, light sour cream, skimmed most of the fat off the dish, and used some whole-wheat egg noodles as a base. As I type a few hours later, I'm suffering no ill effects and consider the meal a success.

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