Chicken Paprikash

Author: Denice Hazlett

Prep time: 20 MinCook time: 2 HourTotal time: 2 H & 20 M

This is one of those dishes that wafts through the house, calling everyone to the kitchen to peek into the pot. "Paprikash! You're making Paprikash?!?" There's no hiding it, and once it's on the table, everyone is silent as they savor each bite.I serve this over mashed potatoes or with basmati rice. If you haven't tried basmati, do yourself a favor and get some today. It fills the house with the most fabulous aroma, kind of like popcorn. I try to add a bit of chicken broth to the cooking water if I have any extra. Make more than you need to whip up a batch of fried rice for lunch!

Ingredients

2-3 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts and thighs cut into strips 1.5 inches wide
4 tablespoons of butter for the pan
salt and pepper
2 tablespoons butter for the sauce
1 medium yellow onion, minced
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon sweet Hungarian paprika (be sure it's fresh)
1/2 cup chicken broth (I especially like Kitchen Basics brand)
1 cup dry white wine (I use Sauvignon Blanc)

Instructions

Place chicken pieces in a large bowl and season chicken generously with salt and pepper.
Heat a skillet over medium-high heat. Add two tablespoons butter and add chicken in a single layer being careful not to crowd the pan.
Brown chicken in skillet about 1.5 minutes per side. The goal is to get a golden sear but not cook the chicken all the way through.
Remove chicken from pan and set aside or place in a crock pot on warm.
Repeat with remaining chicken, adding butter and adjusting temperature of pan as needed to keep from burning and spattering.
In a large saucepan, melt 2 tablespoons of butter over medium heat.
Add onion. Saute until onion is transparent.
Add the flour and paprika and stir until fully incorporated, about a minute.
Add chicken broth and stir well.
Let simmer for one minute until sauce is thickened.
Add the browned chicken pieces to the broth mixture and stir until combined, or pour broth other chicken in crock pot.
Add the wine to the skillet you used to cook the chicken, stirring to loosen the drippings.
Bring the wine to a boil.
Pour the boiling wine over the chicken pieces.
Cover and simmer on very low heat for one hour or more (or turn crock pot to "low" and cook for an hour or more), until chicken is very tender and reads 165 degrees Fahrenheit.
Serve over rice, mashed potatoes, or dumplings.
Can be frozen for later use.