Hungarian Chicken and Dumplings in Creamy Paprika Sauce

While I was up north visiting my parents, I tried to cook a few of the meals to lighten the load on my mom. I wanted to make something different from what they normally eat, so I chose to make Hungarian Chicken and Dumplings in a Creamy Paprika Sauce. I have never made dumplings, nor have I ever made hungarian food, so this was definitely something new for me! It was surprisingly delicious and surprisingly easy - if you need to get out of a rut and try something new in the kitchen, I would encourage you to try this recipe out.

Hungarian Chicken and Dumplings in Creamy Paprika Sauce
Recipe from Cinda Chavich, p 90 The Guy Can't Cook

Ingredients:

• 8 skinless, boneless chicken breasts/ thighs
• salt & freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 large yelow onion, minced
• 2 bell peppers, sliced (1 red & 1 yellow)
• 1 tbsp sweet hungarian paprika
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 1 12 oz (385 ml) can chicken broth
• 2 tbsp tomato paste
• 1/2 cup sour cream or heavy cream
• 2 tbsp dijon mustard

Dumpling Ingredients:

• 1 cup cold mashed potatoes
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp butter, melted
• 1 egg
• 3/4 to 1 cup warm water

Method:

1. Cut the chicken into cubes and season with salt and pepper.
2. Heat the oil in a large saute pan over medium-high heat and sear the chicken until it begins to brown. Remove from the pan and set aside.
3. In the same pan, saute the onion and peppers over medium heat for 5 minutes or until they start to brown. Stir in the thyme and paprika and cook for one minute or until fragrant. Add the vinegar and wine and bring to a boil. Cook 5 minutes or until the liquid has reduced by 1/2. Whisk the broth and tomato paste and simmer for 2 minutes longer. Whick in the cream and mustard and continue to simmer for 10 minutes or until the sauce is reduced to about 1 cup, and is thick enough to coat the back of the spoon.
4. To make the dumplings, in a large bowl use your hands to mix together the mashed potatoes, flour and salt until crumbly.
5. In a separate bowl, whisk together the melted butter, egg, and water. Make a well in the center of the potato mixture and add the egg mixture, gradually incorporating with a fork to form a smooth, soft dough. Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a rolling boil. Press about 1/4 of the dough through a spaetzle maker or through a colander with big holes. Simmer until the noodles float. Drain well before tossig with butter, salt, and pepper. Set aside on a warm platter. Repeat with remaining dough until all the noodles are cooked.
6. Return cooked chicken to sauce, cover, and simmer for 5 minutes to heat through. Spoon the paprika chicken over the noodles. Garnish with chopped parsley if desired.

*Note: Be sure to use a good quality spanish or hungarian paprika. It will likely be called smoked in the store, but make sure it says sweet and not hot. If you use hot paprika in this recipe, you will burn your mouth off!

**Another Note: if you don't have time to make the dumplings or just don't like them, you can serve this dish over wide egg noodles, gnocchi or even just mashed potatoes.

This recipe was creamy, flavorful and delicious! Bon apetit!