I am going to preface this post by saying that I know that these pictures are not the prettiest. I am more than totally aware. But this dish is one of my family’s favorites and is so good that it needed to be posted and when I was shooting these pictures, I knew full and well going into it that they were probably not going to be the best. My mom helped me majorly style these photos so they didn’t look too bad (we added the chives which we’d never done before, but they were actually really tasty on the dish), but I’m a realist, so…I know. If you’re still with me through the photos though, then read on, because this will be your new favorite dish. Trust me on that one.

This is my grandmother’s recipe and when I was searching “chicken paprika” dishes, I was so floored (ask my mom; she must have heard me exclaim, “I just can’t believe no one serves their chicken paprika like we do!” about a million times…) that the dishes I was seeing either served the chicken paprika over a bed of rice or noodles, didn’t have bacon, and, most jarringly, didn’t have the spaetzle that I grew up eating. Every time I have an idea for a recipe, I always search to see if it’s been done before because 1) I’m a citing fanatic – I try to always give credit where credit’s due and 2) if there are already 13,128 versions of a recipe that I want to make, then unless it’s something really creative, sometimes it’s not worth posting. Well, a simple search for chicken paprika, turned up 13,128 versions of it, but none in the same combination that my mom makes and my family grew up eating. I decided if I could get a decent shot of it, then I just had to post it. Again, these pictures aren’t the best, but if bacon, paprika, chicken thighs, and spaetzle perk up your ears even a little bit, then it’s worth it to make this dish, even though it may not be the prettiest.

Chicken Paprika with Spaetzle

8 slices of bacon
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
8 boneless chicken thighs (alternatively you can cut up a frying chicken to get different pieces of chicken in the dish)
1/2 cup flour
1 Tbsp paprika
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 Tbsp chicken broth plus 1 cup
2 Tbsp butter
2 Tbsp flour
2/3 cup milk
1 1/2 Tbsp paprika
1 1/2 cups sour cream

For the spaetzle:

1 egg, beaten slightly
1 cup water
2 1/3 cups flour
1 tsp salt
1/4 cup butter, melted

In a large dutch oven, dice and cook the bacon over medium high heat until slightly crisp and brown. Add the onion and cook until translucent. Remove the bacon and onion and set aside. In a large bag, combine the flour, paprika, and salt and shake to combine. Place the chicken pieces in and fully coat them in the flour mixture. Remove from the bag and brown the chicken on both sides. Reduce the heat to medium and add 1 Tbsp chicken broth. Cover and cook slowly for 30 minutes until the chicken is tender.

Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter and whisk in the flour, cooking for about 1-2 minutes to cook the flour taste out. Slowly add 1 cup of the chicken broth. Cook another 1-2 minutes. Gradually add the milk, stirring constantly, along with the paprika. When thoroughly heated, remove from the heat and stir in the sour cream gradually. Mix in the bacon and onion. Pour the sauce over the chicken in the dutch oven mixing well with the chicken pieces. Cook over low heat for 3-5 minutes, making sure to not boil. Cover tightly with a lid, turn off the heat, and let stand for 1 hour. Reheat just before serving.

For the spaetzle, boil a large pot of water. Mix the egg and water together, and gradually add the flour and salt, stirring until smooth. Spoon in 1 tbsp at a time into the boiling water. To make the spaetzle easier to get off the spoon, dip it in the boiling water after each time. Cook only one layer at a time, so as to not overcrowd the pot. After the dumplings have floated to the service, boil gently for 5-8 minutes. Remove, drain, and place in a warm bowl. Repeat with remaining dough. Toss the spaetzle lightly with the melted butter, being sure to coat each one. Just before serving, mix the spaetzle gently into the chicken and sauce.

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