[I post this on occasion hoping that someone will try it. I prepared
it for the extended family for 2003 Christmas and my professional-chef
bro-in-law said it was the best meal he's had in a year.
My Dad came to the states via Austria during the 1956 revolution.]
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Chicken Paprika

This is a recipe for Chicken Paprika, a recipe my father brought over
from hungary. It is simply marvelous. (It bears no relationship to
Cacciatore. Resist adding peppers, onion, etc.)

(This recipe produces 6 or more servings.)

Sauce Ingredients:
1 whole chicken + 6 chicken thighs
1 pint sour cream ( Don't use no-fat
or low-fat versions, as this is not a meal for dieters, but an
occasional, sinful treat.)
1/2-1 pint whole milk (No skim or low-fat)
2 heaping Tbsp Paprika (Again, the best you can find. I use
"Budapest's Best"--Sweet Delicate Hungarian Paprika.)
1 heaping tsp salt, salt to taste
Water
1 Tbsp chicken base (paste type, the best you can find.
Bouillon cubes work, but are not as good.)

Noodle Ingredients:
1 level cup unsifted, unbleached white flour
1 level tsp salt
1 egg
water

Sauce procedu
1) Cut whole chicken into it's constituent parts (breasts, thigh,
back, etc.) and remove skin.

2) Trim fat deposits and rinse all chicken
thoroughly

3) This step is critical. Cut all chicken pieces in half, including
thighs. I use a cleaver . This exposes the crucial bone marrow. The
more marrow you expose, the better the sauce. I chop the wings into 4
or five pieces. Do not add giblets and neck.

4) In large pot, combine chicken, salt, Paprika, chicken base, and
enough water to just cover the chicken pieces. Cook, partially
covered, at such temperature that a simmer to very gentle boil is
achieved. You want just a bit of bubbling. Do so until the chicken is
thoroughly cooked and easily removed from the bone--About 1.5 hrs. (I
cook the chicken until it is on the verge of falling off the bone.
This extracts maximum flavor from the chicken.)

5) Strain mixture to separate broth and chicken. Place chicken into
a warm serving dish. Return broth to pot and place on medium heat.

6) In a mixing bowl, combine enough milk to sour cream to render a
mixture that is pourable. The consistency is roughly that of very
thick pancake batter and requires a sour cream / milk ratio of about
2:1. If you use a pint of sour cream, you'll use about 1/2 pint milk,
maybe a bit more.

7) Vigorously mix sour cream and milk mixture into broth. I use a
whisk for this. Carefully bring the sauce to a boil and remove
immediately from heat (see note at end). Failure to remove promptly
will result in very messy boiling over! Set burner to it's lowest
setting and return pot to the burner to keep sauce hot.
The sauce is basically finished at this point. You may wish to
fine tune by adding more salt, sour cream, Paprika, and/or chicken
base. I sometimes add a 1/2 cup or so of heavy cream for added
richness. You may also want to skim most of the liquid fat from the
sauce surface, though I do not. The sauce may separate in which case I
use hand blender to re-incorporate.

Noodles procedu
1) Combine flour, salt, and eggs in a hemispherical bowl large enough
to accommodate mixing.

2) Add about 1/2 cup water and proceed to blend ingredients with a
fork until well blended. The consistency you're striving for is such
that the dough is clearly wet, adheres to the bowl, and is loose
enough to slowly spread out when a dollop is applied to the cutting
board. Add enough water to achieve this. I've never measured how much
water I use, but think it's about 1/2 cup plus some.
Actually, the consistency is not critical. I'm guessing you've
made noodles (or dumplings) like this, and that additional,
excruciating explanation is not necessary.

3) Set a dutch oven (good size pot) 2/3 full of water to boil.

4) At this point, obviously the dough goes into the water. I place a
good size dollop on a small cutting board and use a gently curved,
sharp knife to cut perhaps 3/4" size blobs which are then vigorously
swept off the board into the boiling water. They are done when they
float to the surface. A perforated spoon is used to remove the noodles
from the water which are placed in a warm serving bowl. I cut perhaps
3-4 dozen noodles, let them cook (very quick), remove, and proceed to
add the next 3-4 dozen until all of the dough is consumed. If it looks
like boiling over is about to occur, add some cold water.

At this point you should have a pot of wonderful sauce, a bowl full
of chicken pieces, and a bowl of noodles. For serving, place a good
serving of noodles and half (maybe less) as much chicken into a flat
bowl. Apply enough sauce to almost cover noodles and chicken. You may
want to salt to taste. My wife likes pepper on it. I do not. In any
case, Viola!

That's it. I really want you to try this, as everyone on both
sides of our family loves it. My instructions are laborious because
attention paid to various details will produce a superb dish, while an
average effort with average ingredients produce a result that is only
very good.

Dave
--------------
Note: You may want to only add a portion of the sour cream / milk at
a time, testing as you go for taste. We tend to like a lot of sour
cream flavor, but you may desire less. In any case, the resultant
should be rich and satisfying, but not overwhelmed with sour cream.
Also, there may be some question about bringing the sauce to a
boil. It is not necessary, but imparts more complexity to the sauce.
Most premium sour cream brands will not separate, but if some
separation occurs, no matter--use a hand blender or whisk.
Finally, I hope the apparent complexity of this dish doesn't scare
you off. It's one of those dishes that is made with the gut, and is
therefore difficult to quantify in a way that permits precise
description in recipe form.
I sometimes use half and half instead of whole milk for added
richness.

I've bought both Hungarian Sweet Paprika and Hungarian Hot
Paprika... the sweet is very good and although I love hot
pepper, the Hungarian Hot is HOT! What kind of peppers do
they use for that stuff? You have to be VERY, very careful
with it. I've never had anything close to that sort of
experience with even the hottest (the claim on the package)
of dried & ground chilis I find on my store shelves.... and
I'm in an area that should have the hot stuff.


Practice safe eating - always use condiments

I got some hot paprika a few months ago...and regular paprika also (for my
version of paprikash or however that would be spelled..sorry). Bought the
hot more out of curiosity last summer at penzy's. What would I use it in
though?!! ideas needed..
--

Laura


"sf" > wrote in message
...
> > I've bought both Hungarian Sweet Paprika and Hungarian Hot
> Paprika... the sweet is very good and although I love hot
> pepper, the Hungarian Hot is HOT! What kind of peppers do
> they use for that stuff? You have to be VERY, very careful
> with it. I've never had anything close to that sort of
> experience with even the hottest (the claim on the package)
> of dried & ground chilis I find on my store shelves.... and
> I'm in an area that should have the hot stuff.
>
>
> Practice safe eating - always use condiments

Laura wrote:
>
> I got some hot paprika a few months ago...and regular paprika also (for my
> version of paprikash or however that would be spelled..sorry). Bought the
> hot more out of curiosity last summer at penzy's. What would I use it in
> though?!! ideas needed.

I put cayenne in my macaroni and cheese, I find I like it better when
it has a bite to it. I think hot paprika would do great in an
application like that.

nancy

In article >,
wrote:

> Laura wrote:
> >
> > I got some hot paprika a few months ago...and regular paprika also (for my
> > version of paprikash or however that would be spelled..sorry). Bought the
> > hot more out of curiosity last summer at penzy's. What would I use it in
> > though?!! ideas needed.
>
> I put cayenne in my macaroni and cheese, I find I like it better when
> it has a bite to it. I think hot paprika would do great in an
> application like that.

Paprika, dried red pepper and chile powder are all the same thing, with
different varieties of dried red pepper. They can be interchanged,
depending on desired heat level, although the flavors of different chiles
are slightly different. Chili powder (note spelling difference) is chile
powder with other spices added. You can use hot paprika anywhere you can
use the mild. Also, read your label. Penzey's usually gives suggestions
for use.

--
Dan Abel
Sonoma State University
AIS

On Wed, 28 Jan 2004 22:15:44 GMT, Laura > wrote:
> I got some hot paprika a few months ago...and regular paprika also (for my
> version of paprikash or however that would be spelled..sorry). Bought the
> hot more out of curiosity last summer at penzy's. What would I use it in
> though?!! ideas needed..


We use it everyplace regular paprika is called for,
although we might go a littl easier depending on the amount. It adds
a nice zing to deviled eggs.

Ariane

"Laura" > wrote in
:

> I got some hot paprika a few months ago...and regular paprika also
> (for my version of paprikash or however that would be spelled..sorry).
> Bought the hot more out of curiosity last summer at penzy's. What
> would I use it in though?!! ideas needed..

I always add paprika to my chili recipe along with the usual chili powder
and other seasonings. I get the hot paprika would be especially good.

It would probably be a good addition to beef goulash, since beef is sturdy
enough to stand the heat.

Wayne

"Laura" > wrote in message
...
> I got some hot paprika a few months ago...and regular paprika also (for my
> version of paprikash or however that would be spelled..sorry). Bought the
> hot more out of curiosity last summer at penzy's. What would I use it in
> though?!! ideas needed..
> --
>
> Laura
>
>

Use it where you'd normally use the regular, for a bit of oomph. The hot
paprika that I've tried is hardly in the same neighborhood as cayenne or
even ground chipotle.

Jack Scoville