Chicken Paprikash

Performed by Al Van Natta

Ingredients

¼ cup lard or canola oil
1 (3-4 lb.) chicken, cut into 8 pieces
1 large yellow onion, minced
3 Tbsp Hungarian sweet paprika, plus more for garnish
2 cups chicken stock
2 plum tomatoes, cored, seeded, and cut into 1 inch pieces
1 Italian frying pepper, stemmed, seeded, and cut into 1 inch pieces. I used a poblano and an anaheim.
¼ cup sour cream, for serving
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste. Parsley to top.

Separate your whole chicken into 8 pieces, as you would for friend chicken. Melt lard or heat oil in a 6-quart saucepan over medium-high heat.
Season chicken with salt and pepper. Working in batches, cook, flipping once, until browned, 8–10 minutes. Transfer chicken to a plate; set aside, it doesn't need to be fully cooked.
Add onion to pan. Cook, stirring occasionally, until soft, about 8 minutes. Add paprika. Cook, stirring, for 2 minutes.
Return chicken and its juices to the pan. Add stock, tomatoes, and Italian frying pepper; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, partially covered, until chicken is fully cooked, about 30 minutes. (Or braise uncovered in the oven for 45 minutes at 350 degrees)
Transfer chicken and sauce to a serving platter; spoon sour cream over top and garnish with more paprika and parsley.

In a bowl, combine 2 eggs, 1 Tbsp of sour cream and some salt and whisk together. Once combined, slowly add your flour. ¾ of a cup is the recommended amount, but you’re going more for consistency rather than an exact amount. Add flour until you’ve reached a consistency that’s like an extra thick pancake batter.
Then using a spoon dipped in hot water scrape about ½ tsp or your mixture into a pot of boiling water and simmer them for 6-10 minutes or until they’ve reached your preferred level of doneness. They'll puff up more after boiling for a bit. Work quickly.
Strain dumplings, put back in pot with 1 tbsp of butter and season with salt and freshly ground pepper.