Traditional Czech Chicken in Paprika Sauce
Chicken paprikash is a classic of Czech home cooking and it comes together in no time. Chicken portions are slowly braised in a delicate creamy paprika sauce that goes beautifully with steamed rice or homemade halušky dumplings. Even complete beginners can manage this recipe, and it tastes just as good reheated the next day.
Prep: 1 h 15 min
Cook: 1 h 15 min
Servings: 4
Method
01.
Peel a medium-sized onion and chop it into small dice. Clean the chicken and cut it into four portions.
02.
Melt the butter in a larger pot or a sufficiently large, deep pan and fry the finely chopped onion. Once the onion is golden, stir in the ground sweet paprika. Take care not to burn the paprika, or the sauce could turn bitter. When it foams, pour in a little water or stock, add the salted chicken portions and braise under a lid until tender. Turn the meat as it braises and top up with water as needed.
03.
Take the tender chicken portions out and set them aside. Thicken the juices with a light roux made from flour and butter, whisk it in and simmer for at least 20 minutes until the sauce is thick. Then pour in the cream to soften it, bring back to the boil and add more salt if needed. Strain the paprika sauce over the chicken portions and reheat.
04.
Serve classic chicken paprikash with steamed rice or pasta. Homemade halušky are a great side dish too.
05.
!TIP for preparation
06.
For an even better result, use whipping cream and the sauce will be creamier. Sour cream, on the other hand, is added right at the end of cooking and should be at room temperature so it doesn't suffer a temperature shock. Each cream gives the paprika sauce a slightly different flavour.
07.
If the sauce needs a little acidity, use vinegar, but carefully - just a tiny amount is enough. If you are not very experienced in the kitchen, reach for lemon juice instead.
08.
!TIP for serving
09.
You can serve the meat in one piece on the plate with the sauce and the side dish, but it is much easier to eat if you tear the meat off the bone into smaller pieces and put them straight into the sauce.
