Today was Hungary day. "But mom, does that mean I have to be hungry all day?" Boo asked me this morning. No, not hungry, Hungary day. We didn't get to do much extra learning other than find Hungary on the globe and read/listen to a few Hungarian children's songs and finger plays.
One of my high school friends suggested making Chicken Paprikash with Chuza for dinner. Her husband is of Hungarian descent and it is a favorite recipe in their household. It sounded and looked (in her photos!) delicious. The only problem is that they don't use a recipe. Through email and a phone call, we managed to get a recipe together. I think I may have lost something in the translation. Don't get me wrong, everything tasted fine. The kids loved the chuza but somehow I couldn't get the sauce to thicken and it wasn't the brighter red color that I expected. The chicken was tender and juicy but not too flavorful.
Anyhow, I'll post any corrections to my version of the recipe as my friend checks it out for me to see if I made some huge mistake. I'm hoping to try again once the Olympics are over and see if I can get it right!
To make Chicken Paprikash with Chuza, you need:
Once the onions are tender, add the chicken breasts. Then add enough water to cover the chicken.
Bring to a boil. Turn heat down, cover and let simmer for about 3 hours. (This may be where some of the problem lies. Chip didn't get home at the time I expected him so I kept the chicken simmering for almost 4 1/2 hours.)
Remove chicken from paprikash and remove the skin and bones. Thicken paprikash by stirring in a mixture of cold water and corn starch. (yeah, this didn't work for me at all! I think I may have added either not enough corn starch or too much water.)
For the chuza, mix the flour, egg, salt, water and sour cream in a medium mixing bowl. I ended up adding about 1/2 cup more flour to get a thicker dough consistency. Boil some water in a large pot. Put the dough on a cutting board and gently slice pieces of dough into the boiling water. I sliced larger pieces because I know my kids like larger dumplings.
If the pot gets too full, you can remove the cooked chuza and set aside while you finish cooking the rest of the dough.
Serve all together, using the thickened paprikash sauce to cover the chicken and chuza.
EDITED TO ADD: My friend Kris sent me this message.
"After reading your blog it doesn't look like too much went wrong. IF you add more paprika you need to do it in the beginning. Sauteing it brings out the flavor. Chicken part all sounds right. We make our chuza much smaller, quarter size. Then the sour cream goes on after they have been cooked and strained."
One of my high school friends suggested making Chicken Paprikash with Chuza for dinner. Her husband is of Hungarian descent and it is a favorite recipe in their household. It sounded and looked (in her photos!) delicious. The only problem is that they don't use a recipe. Through email and a phone call, we managed to get a recipe together. I think I may have lost something in the translation. Don't get me wrong, everything tasted fine. The kids loved the chuza but somehow I couldn't get the sauce to thicken and it wasn't the brighter red color that I expected. The chicken was tender and juicy but not too flavorful.
Anyhow, I'll post any corrections to my version of the recipe as my friend checks it out for me to see if I made some huge mistake. I'm hoping to try again once the Olympics are over and see if I can get it right!
To make Chicken Paprikash with Chuza, you need:
- Olive Oil
- 1/2 Medium Onion, chopped into small pieces
- 2 heaping Tbsp paprika
- 1/2 TBSP Salt
- 1/4 TBSP Pepper
- 5 split chick breast w/ bone & skin
- corn starch
- 1 cup flour
- 1 egg
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ cup water
- ½ cup sour cream
Once the onions are tender, add the chicken breasts. Then add enough water to cover the chicken.
Bring to a boil. Turn heat down, cover and let simmer for about 3 hours. (This may be where some of the problem lies. Chip didn't get home at the time I expected him so I kept the chicken simmering for almost 4 1/2 hours.)
Remove chicken from paprikash and remove the skin and bones. Thicken paprikash by stirring in a mixture of cold water and corn starch. (yeah, this didn't work for me at all! I think I may have added either not enough corn starch or too much water.)
For the chuza, mix the flour, egg, salt, water and sour cream in a medium mixing bowl. I ended up adding about 1/2 cup more flour to get a thicker dough consistency. Boil some water in a large pot. Put the dough on a cutting board and gently slice pieces of dough into the boiling water. I sliced larger pieces because I know my kids like larger dumplings.
If the pot gets too full, you can remove the cooked chuza and set aside while you finish cooking the rest of the dough.
Serve all together, using the thickened paprikash sauce to cover the chicken and chuza.
EDITED TO ADD: My friend Kris sent me this message.
"After reading your blog it doesn't look like too much went wrong. IF you add more paprika you need to do it in the beginning. Sauteing it brings out the flavor. Chicken part all sounds right. We make our chuza much smaller, quarter size. Then the sour cream goes on after they have been cooked and strained."
I wouldn't think simmering the chicken longer would be a problem. If you don't use up your paprika often, it could lose flavor over time. And was that paprikash still simmering when you added the cornstarch slurry? It probably needs to simmer for awhile to thicken. Or needed more cornstarch as you said. Thickening never seems to work the same way twice for me! Sometimes things thicken up right away and other times they need more nudging!
Looks like an interesting recipe I'll have to try sometime!
When my husband and I backpacked through Hungary, all we could manage to order were cabbage dishes, so this looks divine!