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Chicken paprika was one of my first fancy culinary projects. I remember making it for my family back when I was in high school. It turned out really well so I started making it quite a bit. Eventually, I tired of the dish – I don’t think I’ve made it for years. Last week, when I was home visiting my family in Lexington, KY, I decided to bring my old recipe out of retirement and revamp it a bit. In my opinion, it came out even better than before. We enjoyed ours over egg noodles in deep bowls sitting around the campfire but chicken paprika would also be a great dish for a fancy fall dinner party. If you are looking for a great fall dinner to share with family and friends, try this chicken paprika – it’s a real crowd pleaser!
Chicken Paprika Cooking Notes
On Roasting Bell Peppers
This recipe calls for roasted red peppers. I prefer to roast my peppers by charring them over the open flame of a gas burner. Simply turn the burner to high and set the pepper on top it. The pepper will begin blistering and blackening immediately. You may hear some popping sounds too. Turn the pepper with tongs every 4 to 5 minutes until it is completely blackened. This will take about 15 to 20 minutes a pepper (I do all 3 at once on 3 separate burners). Make sure you keep an eye on the peppers the whole time. I think this method creates the best smokey flavor but you can also broil the peppers with your oven’s broiler or using a grill. Here’s an article that covers multiple pepper roasting methods. Alternatively, you can always buy roasted bell peppers.
On the Chicken
I’ve used various types of chicken pieces and cooking methods in my paprika recipes. We’ve tried grilled drumsticks, a whole chicken cut into eight pieces and browned, boneless skinless thighs browned (same method as my hunter’s chicken stew), and chopped chicken breasts. The method I prefer for this recipe is derived from a technique I picked up while making chicken sauce piquant. You chop the chicken into cubes, toss them in the seasoning, flour them, and then brown the individual pieces. It takes a little more time but it produces tender juicy chicken pieces that get coated really nicely with the sauce.
Chicken Paprika
- Prep Time: 45 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 hours
- Total Time: 1 hours 45 minutes
- Yield: 6–8 servings 1x
Ingredients
- 4 red bell peppers
- 4 large boneless skinless chicken breasts, approx 3 lbs diced into 1 inch cubes
- 2 tbsp paprika
- 2 tsp salt
- ½ tsp black pepper
- ½ tsp cayenne pepper
- ¾ cup flour, divided
- olive oil
- 2 onions, diced
- 1 28 oz crushed tomatoes
- 3 cups chicken stock
- 1 sprig rosemary
- 1 small bunched parsley, chopped
- 6 oz creme fraiche plus more for garnish
- 1 lb egg noodles, cooked and drained
Instructions
- Char 3 of the bell peppers until their skin is blackened. You can do this over the open flame of a gas burner or using your oven’s broiler (see cooking notes). Once your peppers are blackened, seal them in a gallon bag and allow them to rest for at least 10 minutes. Once they are cool enough to handle, peel them and cut them open to clean out the seeds. Cut the peppers roughly and toss them in a food processor or blender to puree.
- While the peppers char, combined the salt, pepper, paprika, and cayenne in a large mixing bowl. Add chicken pieces and toss to coat. Then drudge the chicken pieces through flour to coat.
- Heat 2 to 3 tbsp of olive oil in a large dutch oven. Brown the chicken pieces in batches so that the pan is not over crowded. It will take approx. 3 minutes each side. Add another tbsp or 2 of oil between batches as needed. Sometimes I use a second skillet to speed up the process. Transfer browned chicken pieces to a plate lined with paper towel.
- When the chicken is browned, add onion and raw red pepper to pan. Sautee 5 minutes. Add garlic and pureed red pepper and sautee 5 minutes more. Add the ¼ cup flour to the onion mixture and stir. Cook mixture for 2 minutes stirring constantly.
- Add crushed tomatoes, stock, chicken pieces and rosemary sprig. Simmer for 1 hour or until chicken is tender enough to shred with a fork. Stir in creme fraiche and ½ cup of parsley reserving the rest for garnish.
- Serve stew over egg noodles. Garnish with parlay and a spoon of creme fraiche if desired.
