This article is a departure from our main theme of breads and baked goods using sourdough. It does, though, fit in with our theme of celebrating and promoting good, healthy home cooking.  

When I was young, I used to sit on a tall stool in my grandmother’s kitchen, and watch her make chicken paprikash. Now that I’m older, I realize that her recipe is a lot different from others I’ve seen on the Web. I thought I should share it here.

She would always begin, "First you steal two chickens!", and then she’d laugh. She never tired of that joke.

For this dish you will need these materials: A chicken or two, paprika, a couple of big yellow onions, three or four of the tough outer green ribs of celery, a carrot or two if you wish, salt, black pepper, sour cream, or thick, plain yoghurt and a half cup or so of all purpose flour. Cooking utensils needed will be a roaster, or dutch oven a largish bowl, or gallon sized ziplock plastic bag and a colander or large wire sieve. Your oven should be set for 325 degrees.

However you acquire your chickens, you need to divide them into the ten standard pieces, two wings, two drumsticks, two thighs, split the breast, and break the back in half. Or you can do it the easy way and buy your chicken already jointed. I do *not* recommend boneless, skinless pieces for this recipe, because both the skin and bones add to the final flavors.

Mix the flour, two Tbs of paprika, a tsp of salt, and two tsp of ground black pepper in a large bowl, or in a large plastic bag. If you want to experiment with the wonderful flavor of real Hungarian paprika, and not the generic stuff from the spices and flavorings aisle, try ‘Szeged’, available at almost all American supermarkets. The cans look like this. Sweet or hot is your own choice.  I like the ‘Hot’.

Use a cookie sheet to lay out your chicken pieces after they are dredged in the paprika-flour mixture, to dry a bit, and set. We want the seasoning to stay on the pieces as we roast them.

Chop up the onions and celery, and the carrots if you use them, in largish pieces. Cut the peeled onions into quarters or eighths, and each rib of celery (and the carrots) into three or four big pieces. These are placed loosely in the bottom of the roaster, or pot. They are going to form a bed for our chicken. Arrange the pieces of chicken on the bed of vegetables. Put the drumsticks on the bottom. They need the most cooking to be tender, then the wings and backs, the thighs, and last, on top, the split breasts.

Roast covered, for about 30 minutes. Remove the lid, and continue cooking for another 30 minutes. Using a sharp-tined cooking fork, poke the thick part of the breasts, or the thighs to see if the juices run clear. If they are still pink, roast for another 15 minutes or so.

When your chicken is done, remove it with tongs to the serving plate, and return it to the oven, with the heat turned off. We still have another 10 minutes of preparation to do.

The vegetables in the bottom of the roaster, and the bright reddish-orange broth are going to become our sauce. Scoop out the celery, onions and carrots and put them into the colander, or sieve. Over the roaster, press out as much of the juices as you can, muddling with a big wooden spoon, or spatula. What’s left in the colander can go into your compost. We have extracted the goodies that we want.

Put the roaster on a top burner, on low heat, and add to it a mixture of 2 Tbs of corn starch, or 3 Tbs of the flour paprika dredging mixture stirred into a cup of cold water. Stir well. Add all at once to the simmering juices in the roaster. Heat until thickened. Remove to a serving bowl. Before putting it on the table, stir in a half-cup of sour cream or yoghurt. Don’t mix it too thoroughly, just swirl it a bit. The white swirl makes a beautiful contrast with the orange sauce.

This dish can be served with spaetzle, rivels, good egg noodles, rice, or smashed potatoes — any starch dish that has some texture. Serve the sauce on the starch dish.

Shmatzna!

Miz Parker is an inquisitive old soul, who enjoys cooking and feeding her friends. Her maternal grandmother taught her to cook, with an emphasis on Central and Eastern European foods and methods. Miz Parker has enjoyed cooking and baking for her family and friends since she was very young.