Chicken Paprikash

Now that Matthew is back on a ship, he tends to do a lot of online shopping during his free time. During the last month I've gotten a few cooking books that he's ordered for me--all of them, of course, are Czech cooking recipe books. Although I'm still testing out the dumpling recipes, this chicken paprika recipe came out pretty good on my first try. It is absolutely essential that you use sweet Hungarian paprika and stay away from smoked paprika for this recipe. And yes, I know chicken paprika is a Hungarian dish, but it is immensely popular in the Czech Republic as well.

INGREDIENTS (serves 4)

• 6 chicken pieces, thighs and legs, on the bone, with skin on
• 1 Tablespoon butter
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 1 large yellow or white onion, very thinly sliced
• 1/4 cup sweet Hungarian paprika (absolute must. Whole Foods market or Trader Joe's has it available) .
• 2 Tbsp all-purpose flour
• 2 cups low-sodium chicken stock (I used Wolfgang Pucks free-range chicken natural broth)
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 large bay leaf
• 1 to 1-1/2 cup creme fraiche or Mexican crema (use sour cream if creme fraiche not available)
• Kosher salt & pepper
• Fresh parsley for garnish (optional)

DIRECTIONS

Rinse and pat dry the chicken. Season generously with salt & ground black pepper.

In a wide heavy skillet with high sides, heat the butter and olive oil over a medium high heat. Add a few of the chicken pieces, skin side down first, to the skillet and cook until golden brown on both sides, about 5 minutes per side. Cook remaining chicken this way then remove from pan and set aside.

Add the onions to the pan and reduce heat to medium. Cook, stirring often, until the onions just begin to color, about 8 minutes. Sprinkle the paprika, flour, bay leaf and garlic over the onions.

Cook, stirring continuously, for one minute. Add in the chicken stock to the mixture and bring to a boil, stirring continuously. Return the chicken with all accumulated juices to the pan.

Reduce the heat to a simmer. Cover the pan and cook, turning the chicken once or twice, until the juices run clear, about 30 to 35 minutes.

Remove the chicken to a new clean plate and pick out the bay leaf and toss it away.

Bring sauce to a boil for 10 minutes while stirring from time to time. Turn off heat and let the sauce settle for about 5 to 10 minutes more, then skim the fat off the surface with a spoon, if any. Stir in the creme fraiche. Then return the chicken into the pan. Heat on medium-low and bring to a simmer until chicken is heated thoroughly.

Serve chicken paprika with dumplings, or buttered noodles or spaetzle.