# My 'killer' paprika chicken thighs recipe



## Recipes Make Magic (Aug 17, 2019)

*CHICKEN PAPRIKA WITH RED PEPPER & ONIONS*
*
*
*RECIPE IS FOR 4 SERVINGS*


*INGREDIENTS:*


*- 8-10pieces of either chicken thighs (bone-in with skin attached), or drumsticks, or combination of both.*


*- 1 medium-size red bell pepper (without seeds or ribs) diced into bite-size pieces (or other veggies of your choice ,- e.g. celery &/or carrot pieces). *
* I believe it's best with bell peppers.*


*- 1 medium onion cut into 3/4" -1" wedges,  sliced from the onion top to it's root end, keeping a bit of the root end attached to each piece if possible, in order for the wedges  to stay together as much as possible - but don't get hung up on this - onion slivers will do fine.*


*- 4-6 cloves of garlic - slivered.*


*- Approx. 1 full cup of white wine, or more if need be.*


*- 3/4 cup of chicken stock if available, but water will do.*


*- Approx. 1/4, or 1/5 th approx. -of a cup each of, *
* maple syrup, honey, lemon juice (with some zest), cider vinegar (or white wine vinegar), and bourbon.*


*- 3 -4 tspns. of paprika, and 1 tspn. tomato paste.*


*- A bit of heat is suggested - either 1/2 tspn. hot sauce for example, or up to 1/2 of small jalapeno pepper, finely diced (seeds & ribs removed). *
*Better still, would be a heaping tspn. of Gourmet Chef mango habanero glaze, if available.*


*PREP:*


*- Remove excess fat and skin from chicken thighs - pat quite dry with paper toweling - and lightly flour all of the chicken pieces -  fry pieces on stove top in a bit of veg oil at medium/high heat approx. 3-5 minutes on each e side until golden-brown (thighs skin-side down to begin with - drumsticks rotated occasionally if/when using ) - remove from frypan & set aside.*


*- Add all of the onion wedges and diced peppers to the same fry pan and saute on medium heat for several minutes, flipping/turning occasionally until edges/sides begin to sear/ brown somewhat - then remove and layer the roasted mixed veggies into an suitably-sized oven proof dish, to more or less evenly cover the bottom of the dish.    (approx.  14" X 12" dish should do nicely.)*


*- Place the browned chicken pieces - interspersed - on top of the veggies - more or less evenly spaced from each other. (Thighs skin side up).*


*- Add a bit of butter to your frypan,  add the garlic slivers and saute for a minute or 2 on med. heat (don't burn the garlic - lol) - then add the white wine, increase the heat if need be, and allow the wine to simmer until reduced by about 50%.*


*Meantime, mix/whisk together in a bowl all of the other ingredients - i.e. the chicken stock, maple syrup, honey, vinegar, lemon juice & zest, tomato paste, bourbon, and paprika (and diced jalapeno or hot sauce if using) until well-combined.*


*-Add this liquid mixture to the reduced wine and allow all to simmer for a few minutes while stirring to ensure it's all well combined - at this time thicken this sauce with some flour, or corn starch, mixed with water or milk - to increase the consistency to a light/medium sauce consistency  - remove from heat and  allow to cool a bit.*


*- Pour this slightly thickened sauce into the oven dish until  the liquid level in the dish more or less covers the veggies, but  also reaching the bottom parts of the chicken pieces.  If the amount of sauce is insufficient, add some white wine or chicken stock.*


*Bake uncovered for approx. 1 hour @ 350 degrees, occasionally basting the chicken pieces with sauce from the dish. When done, place on broil for 3-4 minutes to further darken the chicken pieces without burning them, and serve with whatever sides you've decided on.*


*ENJOY !*


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## Cheryl J (Aug 18, 2019)

Thank you for sharing, RMM....this sounds tasty.    I'd have to cut the recipe in half, but that would be easy to do.


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## LizStreithorst (Aug 18, 2019)

Cheryl, I cook for one.  What I do is make the dish once, eat it for 2 days in a row *it's that good*  Then I remove the rest from the bone, cut the meat into bited size pieces, vacuum seal it in individual portions and pop it in the freezer.


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## Josie1945 (Aug 18, 2019)

LizStreithorst said:


> Cheryl, I cook for one.  What I do is make the dish once, eat it for 2 days in a row *it's that good*  Then I remove the rest from the bone, cut the meat into bited size pieces, vacuum seal it in individual portions and pop it in the freezer.



Hi Liz, 
  Welcome back

Josie


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## Recipes Make Magic (Sep 1, 2019)

Has no one even thought about giving this dish a try ?


It's probably one of the best-tasting chicken dishes some of you will have ever had !! - Give it a go, you won't regret it one bit.


It's become a sure regular favorite on quite a few foodies' lists.


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## Silversage (Sep 1, 2019)

I make chicken paprikash frequently - its a favorite of ours.  I've never hear of honey, maple syrup or bourbon in it.  What does that do to it?


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## Recipes Make Magic (Sep 2, 2019)

Silversage said:


> I make chicken paprikash frequently - its a favorite of ours. I've never hear of honey, maple syrup or bourbon in it. What does that do to it?


 
I developed this recipe after experimenting through several versions before I felt I'd achieved a very pleasantly flavored dish. It is  indeed a far reaching take-off on chicken paprikash.

The combination of honey & maple syrup vs. the lemon juice & zest and the cider vinegar provides a sweet & tart/mellow & acidic uniquely luscious taste to the dish, and bourbon is also often used by many cooks to enhance flavor, or alternatively, cognac.

You just need to try this recipe - I think you'd be surprised at how good it is - many people have already told me so.


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## Recipes Make Magic (Sep 2, 2019)

LizStreithorst said:


> Cheryl, I cook for one. What I do is make the dish once, eat it for 2 days in a row *it's that good* Then I remove the rest from the bone, cut the meat into bited size pieces, vacuum seal it in individual portions and pop it in the freezer.


 
This is post #3 of this thread - quoted for Silversage to reaffirm the appealing flavor of this dish. Liz has made this dish of mine many times & keeps coming back to it.


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## Recipes Make Magic (Sep 10, 2019)

See the very last paragraph of the recipe. The 1 hour cooking time is quite likely too long, since the thighs are partially cooked beforehand. I'm sure 45-50 minutes would be plenty of time to cook the chicken through. Sorry about that.


I'm making this dish for myself tonight and will post a photo.


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## Recipes Make Magic (Sep 10, 2019)

*Here's the chicken thighs as they will look just before baking them in the oven to finish the dish.*


*This is my din-din tonight as Linda feels more like having a veggie meal & salad. I'm quite hungry so decided to go with 3 thighs rather than only two that I usually have when I'm just cooking for myself.*


*The dish is at the stage where the veggies in the casserole bottom have been partially roasted first to lightly sear them at the tips; the thighs have been partially cooked while the skins browned up somewhat, & then set on top of the veggies placed at the base of the casserole dish;   white wine (& garlic pieces) were added to the skillet to mop up the chicken brownings at the bottom, and the wine reduced to some extent; followed by the addition of the chicken stock, the tomato paste, the paprika, and the other ingredients - i.e. lemon juice & zest, apple cider vinegar, honey, maple syrup and bourbon - I think that's got it all.*


*While simmering I whisked in a bit of cornstarch in cold water to thicken the sauce somewhat. The sauce will reduce & thicken up a bit more while baking and the thighs are cooking through, & browning up some more.*


*Note that the sauce level is just above the bottom of the thighs in the dish and more or less covers the vegetables on the bottom.*


*The finished product won't look much different than this photo, but I'll add it later anyway. *
*
*
*Try this dish - I believe you'll like it!*


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## Recipes Make Magic (Sep 10, 2019)

Here's a pic of the finished chicken thighs.

I turned on the broiler for the last 2-3 minutes to crisp up the chicken  skins, which were delicious !


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## bbqcoder (Sep 11, 2019)

Looks good, Paul.  I'll try to make this once I get back from Chicago/Florida. Won't be for at least two weeks.  We're trying to eat up the stuff in the fridge before we go on Saturday.


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## Kayelle (Sep 11, 2019)

Paul, can you please clarify this quote from the ingredient list? I'm not clear on the amounts of each.





> *- Approx. 1/4, or 1/5 th approx. -of a cup each of, *
> * maple syrup, honey, lemon juice (with some zest), cider vinegar (or white wine vinegar), and bourbon.*


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## Recipes Make Magic (Sep 11, 2019)

Kayelle said:


> Paul, can you please clarify this quote from the ingredient list? I'm not clear on the amounts of each.


 
1/5 of a cup of liquid, Kay, as you likely know, is the equivalent of approx. 3 tablespoons, whereas 1/4 of a cup would be something around/ or moderately more than 4 tablespoons.

If you're making this dish for 2, I'd go with around 2-3 T's of each of the honey, the maple syrup, the lemon juice (with some zest), the apple cider vinegar, and the bourbon.
If for say, 4 persons, suggest you do at least 1/4 cup, i.e. 4 or somewhat more, tablespoons.
No need to be exact here, I usually eyeball it.

These additions imo do make a significant contribution to the very pleasing taste to the finished sauce of this dish.
I love it ! It's been a hit with most of my guests.


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## Kayelle (Sep 11, 2019)

Thanks for the clarification Paul. Those are unusual ingredients to be sure but I'm willing to give it a try. 

You also may be interested in looking at my recipe I posted here many years ago, and it continues to be a never fail family and guest favorite also. 

http://www.discusscooking.com/forums/f15/kayelles-chicken-paprikash-70254.html


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## taxlady (Sep 11, 2019)

4 tablespoons is exactly 1/4 cup, at least if we are using US measures and not Imperial measures.


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## kenmiller (Sep 14, 2019)

My mom had tried it, and it was amazing


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