This is an oldie but a goodie recipe.  I’ve made Chicken Paprikash or a version of it most of my adult life.  There’s something about the paprika-laden creamy sauce that just screams comfort food.   This is the national dish of Hungary.  For good reason.  It’s a very flavorful dish.  It’s not also a light dish on calories and it’s missing a lot of macros. I’m taking a recipe from Simply Recipes and see if I can make this more well rounded.  Here are the original stats:

• 537 Calories
• 24 g Fat
• 222 mg Cholesterol
• 548 mg Sodium
• 900 mg Potassium
• 23 g Carbohydrate
• 52 g Protien
• 41% Vitamin A
• 31% Vitamin C
• 8% Calcium
• 12% Iron

The calories are WAY too high.  Imagine pairing this with noodles.  The sodium is kinda high, but not too bad.  It needs some vitamin A and C.  The protein count is excellent, but I think we can sacrifice some of that to bring down the calories a bit and add some other things.

Here’s what I changed:

• I used homemade full-fat Greek yogurt instead of sour cream.
• I replaced the chicken broth with a low sodium variety.
• I raised the servings from four to ten.
• I added three red bell peppers for vitamin C
• I added three carrots for vitamin A

I served this with 1/2 cup brown rice instead of the noodles.

Here are the final stats:

• 229 Calories
• 9 g Fat
• 84 mg Cholesterol
• 240 mg Sodium
• 488 mg Potassium
• 14 g Carbohydrate
• 22 g Protein
• 94% Vitamin A
• 91% Vitamin C
• 6% Calcium
• 7% Iron

Chicken Paprikash

Serves 10

• 2 1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs
• 2 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 2 pounds yellow onions
• 3 Red bell peppers, chopped
• 3 Carrots, chopped
• Black pepper to taste
• 2 tablespoons sweet paprika, preferably Hungarian
• 1 teaspoon (or to taste), hot paprika or cayenne
• 1 cup low sodium chicken broth
• 1/2 cup whole milk Greek Yogurt

1. Slice the onions lengthwise.
2. Heat a large sauté pan over medium-high heat and melt the butter. When the butter is hot, pat the chicken pieces dry with paper towels and place them skin-side down in the pan.  Let the chicken pieces cook 4-5 minutes on one side, until well browned, then turn them over and let them cook 2-3 minutes on the other side.   Remove the chicken from the pan to a bowl, set aside.
3. Add the sliced onions, carrots and red bell peppers to the sauté pan and cook them, stirring occasionally, scraping up the browned bits from the chicken, until lightly browned, about 7 minutes.
4. Add the paprika and some black pepper to the vegetables and stir to combine. Let cook for a minute.
5. Add the chicken broth, again scraping up the browned bits from the bottom of the pan, and then nestle the chicken pieces into the pan, on top of the onions.
6. Cover and cook on a low simmer for 20-25 minutes (depending on the size of your chicken pieces).
7. When the chicken is cooked through (at least 165° if you use a thermometer, or if the juices run clear, not pink when the thickest part of the thigh is pierced with a knife) remove the pan from the heat.  Shred the chicken.
8. Allow the pan to cool for a minute and then slowly stir in the yogurt. If the yogurt cools the sauce too much, turn the heat back on just enough to warm it through. Add the chicken back to the pan and coat with the sauce.
9. Serve with dumplings, rice, egg noodles or potatoes. (If cooking gluten-free, serve with rice, potatoes or gluten-free noodles or dumplings.)