Paprika Chicken Stew is an easy weeknight dish made with chicken pieces on the bone, bell peppers, and lots of Hungarian paprika.
Paprika Chicken Stew
This dish has comfort food written all over it! If you have chicken in your freezer, this hearty chicken stew is a great way to use it up. Just be sure to thaw your chicken first. Most of the ingredients are pantry staples, so it’s an easy one to cook on a busy weeknight. My family loves all types of healthy chicken stew recipes, others we love are Instant Pot Pollo Guisado, which is also great on the stove, Chicken and Andouille Sausage Stew and Jamaican Stew Chicken when we want it spicy!
The dish is inspired by the Hungarian dish Chicken Paprika, only I skipped the sour cream and you don’t even miss it. So good you’ll want to drink the sauce! There’s many variations of this classic dish, some people add tomatoes and peppers, some a lot more paprika, and of course sour cream.
My dad is from Prague, so I grew up eating the Czech dish Chicken Paprikash. Czech cuisine is similar to Hungarian and Russian with lots of hearty soups, stews, and meat dishes in creamy gravy. My homemade chicken stew is a bit different than my dad’s recipe as it has no cream, but it’s delicious, nonetheless. If you want to make this dish creamy, you can certainly add some sour cream at the end. If you have my cookbook Skinnytaste Fast and Slow, I shared my dad’s Chicken Paprikash, which I modified for the slow cooker.
What to Serve with Paprika Chicken Stew:
My parents always made this stew with dumplings, but it’s also great over noodles, mashed potatoes, or roasted potatoes. If you want to keep it low-carb, roasted veggies or shredded brussels sprouts would work too.
You can also eat the stew by itself without serving it over anything. Some crusty bread would be perfect for soaking up any extra broth.
How to Thaw Frozen Chicken
There are a few ways to thaw frozen chicken, depending on how much time you have.
- The safest way to thaw frozen chicken is to put it in the refrigerator. It will take a day or two to thaw.
- If you’re short on time, you can put the chicken in a sealed plastic bag and place it in a bowl of cold water. Every 30 minutes, pour the water out and replace with new water to ensure it’s always cold. Depending on how much chicken you have, it should thaw within one to three hours.
- The fastest way to thaw frozen chicken is to microwave it for a few minutes. The microwave method is the least safe way to defrost chicken because it can heat the chicken unevenly. If you use the microwave, make sure to cook your chicken immediately after.
How to Make Chicken Stew at Home
Making homemade chicken stew with vegetables is pretty simple. Start by sautéing the onions and peppers until soft. Then, sauté the garlic for a minute.
Mix the flour and paprika with the broth and then pour into the pot along with the bay leaf and chicken. Bring the liquid to a boil and then reduce to a simmer and cover. Cook for 45 to 50 minutes.
More Stew Recipes You’ll Love:
- Sofrito Chicken Stew
- Moroccan Chickpea and Turkey Stew
- Chicken and Andouille Sausage Stew
- Beef and Kabocha Squash Stew
- Jamaican Coconut Shrimp Stew
Paprika Chicken Stew
Ingredients
- 1/2 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 1 yellow or red pepper, chopped
- 1 green bell pepper, chopped
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour, or GF flour for gluten-free
- 2 teaspoons Hungarian paprika, not smoked
- 3 bay leaves
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 1/2 tablespoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon crushed black pepper
- 4 pieces chicken thighs on the bone, trimmed and skinned
- 4 small chicken drumsticks, skinned
Instructions
- Season chicken with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a large pot or Dutch oven on medium-high heat.
- Add oil, onions and peppers. Sauté over medium heat for 8 to 10 minutes, until soft. Add garlic and sauté for another 1 to 2 minutes.
- Whisk the flour and paprika in a bowl with the broth and then add to the pot with the bay leaves.
- Add the chicken and gently stir. Bring to boil and reduce heat to low.
- Stir again and cover the pot. Simmer for 45 to 50 minutes.
- Discard bay leaves and serve.
Love it. Have made it several times.
I made a few changes – I browned the chicken before sautéing the vegetables, used 4 teaspoons of Hungarian paprika, added salt and a bit of garlic powder and thicker the sauce with cornstarch.
Gina you missed the mark on this one. I’m a fan of most of your recipes but this one has left me unimpressed. Followed the recipe to a tee but not a lot of flavour. Not sure what I could have added to help this dish. Will not be adding this one to my recipe file.
Where can I buy Hungarian paprika near Merrick, NY? I looked at a number of stores, no luck
I get it on amazon
Hi Tina – I know this comment is older, but I live on Long Island and get Hungarian Paprika at North Shore Farms. If you have one near you, maybe give them a try!
Can I use chicken breast for this recipe?
Sure, I would use bone-in
Is there a substitute for the flour to make it gluten free? Would cup for cup work or corn starch?
I browned the chicken before the veggies, added chopped carrots, and then puréed all of the veggies/broth after cooking. The sauce came out perfectly and the kids couldn’t tell it was full of veggies. Served over rice. Thanks for another great recipe!!
I just made this for my family, I used thighs only & shredded the chicken. Also added a little bit of sour cream when done & served it over egg noodles. It was delicious & everyone loved it!!!
I’m not sure I made the same recipe as those who said it is flavorless. Even my picky hubby complimented HOW good this is, and to think you can make something so tasty quickly after work.. My only change was to brown the chicken (and remove from the pan) before sautéing the veggies. Served with smashed red potatoes, a Cooking Light sorta recipe (used a lot less oil), and sautéed zucchini. Make this!
Where do you all buy hungarian paprika? Is it readily available in grocery stores?
Yes it is in a red can. there is hot and regular (which is considered sweet)
My husband doesn’t like eating off the bone. Can it be made with boneless chicken thighs?
Sure, wont be as good but totally fine!
For those that say this was tasteless, what I did was brown the chicken first, the broth I use is better than bullion which makes a world of difference opposed to regular chicken broth, it is so flavorful and flavors everything beautifully, this actually came out delicious, I did not have Hungarian paprika so I used just regular paprika and did add extra fresh garlic and also onion powder and garlic powder, it is really tasty.
Does skinned mean with or without the skin on?
Without Skin
I wanted to add a comment here because I see some comments asking about paprika and noting a bland flavor. I make my grandmother’s traditional Hungarian chicken paprikash recipe all the time and was searching for gluten free variations when I found this recipe. While I do not use peppers in my chicken paprikash, authentic Hungarian sweet paprika is a MUST. If you do not use fresh Hungarian paprika, the dish simply will not taste the same as it does not taste the same as normal or Spanish paprika. Thanks for the recipe! It is great!
How well will this freeze? Thanks!
I read many of the reviews and tweaked my dish. I chose to use 2 very large skinless, bone-in chicken breasts. Once the chicken was done, I removed the breasts to cool a bit so I could remove the bones and cut into smaller sections. I also thought the sauce needed a little something, so I added 1 tsp of “Better than Bouillon” chicken flavor and about 1/4-1/3 cup of lite sour cream. Even though it didn’t thicken it to a thicker gravy consistency, it helped a bit and it was more flavorful. I served it over smashed boiled potatoes…that thickened it up big time. We had cooked carrots with dill & lite butter. Overall, a delicious Saturday evening dinner…A “winner” added to the repeat make list!
I made this for the second time last night and it was absolutely delicious. I served it with some garlic bread made from Brooklyn Bred rolls.
Made this last week and still thinking about it. Making it this week again for sure. Served over Basmati rice one night and mashed potatoes the next. So good.
Delicious. Made with chicken breasts. Served over penne pasta with sautéed green beans. A five star meal
I made this as written and it was a big hit with my family. We had a nice Asiago bread to go with it. Delicious!
Well cooked and super easy dish. Unfortunately ZERO flavor!! Real shame as had great potential..
Could you do this in the Instant Pot?
I made this in the instant pot last night and it was delicious! I sautéed the peppers in it, then added the chicken and sauce, etc. I added some cornstarch to the sauce to thicken. Set it to “Stew” and cooked it for an hour. It was great!
This is a delicious Chicken Stew, I served it over brown rice and the sauce was silky smooth (used homemade chicken broth). Used regular Paprika, not sure if Sweet Hungarian would have been different.
It did take more than 15 minutes prep, as I had to remove the skin & trim the thighs a bit. I’ve never seen bone-in, skinless thighs in the grocery stores.
This is a winner, even with the extra prep time. Yum!!
Amazing!!!!
Absolutely delicious. It s not the way I normally make it. I was impressed with the taste and texture.
Sweet Hungarian paprika or Hot Hungarian paprika?
sweet
Absolutely wonderful. Even better as a left over.
I. Love. This. Chicken. We had a little bit of a time finding Hungarian paprika – my Safeway has it! Then, when I realized just how “hot” Hungarian paprika is, I realized that my husband’s delicate palate would never withstand it, so I did 1 tsp Hungarian and 1 tsp regular paprika to try and even it out. It came out sooo yummy with just a little bit of heat.
I also added zucchini because we had some fresh from our garden. HIGHLY recommend that! So good!
Thanks Ashley!
Hi quick question. I’m making this Sunday but none of my supermarkets have Hungarian paprika. One had hot Hungarian paprika and figured that was not in suppose to use. I have regular paprika here and sweet paprika. Can I substitute or do I really need the hungarian?
Absolutely delicious! I used smoked paprika instead of the sweet because it was all I had. I added carrots and then some cilantro at the end and served it over couscous. Your recipes are delicious! Thank you.
Made this recently and it was great! A bit bland for me, though, so I gave it a good hit of Sriracha. Very brothy–definitely needs something to soak up all that soup like rice, pasta, or bread. First couple bowls I ate like soup with bread on the side. On the last bowl I went ahead and swirled in some sour cream and served it over pasta. So good!
Easy and delicious
I made this tonight and it was delicious!! I didn’t change a thing. My house still smells so good 🙂 Thanks so much. I am a huge Skinnytaste fan and have turned some friends onto your recipes also!!
Darn, this recipe didn’t turn out very well. The chicken was good but the broth was too thin & not enough flavor. Yes, followed recipe exactly. I have liked most of the Skinnytaste recipes so def will keep trying!
i salted the vegetables, used a little more olive oil than the recipe for them, and didn’t trim off the extra chicken fat. Once the chicken was done cooking, I pulled it out and added a slurry of about a tablespoon more of flour and cold water and brought the broth back up to a boil to thicken. It was FANTASTIC.
Please tell what to do if salt becomes excessive
To much salt ? Cut up a raw potatoe and toss in sauce, it will absorb extra saltiness.
This was so delicious! My 3 year old ate the chicken off the bone! We will put this in our recipe rotation. Everything I make from skinny taste has so much flavor and has been so good!
Thanks Cheryl!
This was really good. I made it for dinner served over potato and the whole family enjoyed it. It’s not something I’d normally make but it was a hit. I mixed in nonfat Greek yogurt in place of sour cream and also tossed in frozen peas & carrots for extra veggies.
Did you add the yogurt at the end or earlier on in the cooking? That’s a great idea and I’d like to try it.
There isn’t any sour cream in this recipe… I don’t see it in ingredients list…. ???
Is CANNED Hungarian Paprika (sweet) considered “fresh paprika” ? Comments say it must be fresh or won’t have much taste
Thank you !
I want to make this in my crockpot how long do you recommend I cook it for?
This was absolutely delicious! I had two yellow peppers so I used those then wilted in some spinach at the end to get some green in. We served it over noodles and it was just perfect.
Made this tonight. What lovely flavor! I served it with mashed potatoes. I will definitely make this again, probably with chicken breasts next time.
Ok, thank you! I see two choices of hot and sweet, definitely wanted to get the right one.
Made with chicken breast cut into large chunks. It was delicious!! Another stellar recipe!
Do you think substituting carrots and celery for the peepers would change the recipe too much? My family won’t eat peppers.
OMG! so easy. .very few ingredients. fast to make and delicious. The house smelled amazing. thank you
Hi Gina,
Could this recipe be done in the slow cooker if you sautéed the veggies and made the sauce in the pan first?
Sure
Made this tonight, and it was so amazing!!!
Great!!
Do you brown the chicken first?
No, it needs to be thawed, then just cook it for 45-50 minutes like the recipe calls for
Gina I LOVE YOU!!!! LOL Thank you for all these wonderful yummy dishes you help me stay on my diet and look forward to eating dinner.
Aww thanks Amy!
Gina, do you use sweet or hot Hungarian paprika?
I asked the same thing but for some reason my comment wouldn’t post, anyone know?
I believe she said sweet later on in this thread.
I think this was a good “healthy” version of this recipe. My grandmother was from Hungry so I grew up eating this. I’m used to a thicker sauce with a LOT more paprika. Also, usually you stir in sour cream at the end. This could still be done using fat free sour cream or even non fat plain Greek yogurt.
My family loved this recipe! I served it just by itself with a side salad. I found Hungarian Paprika at Meijer. Enjoy!!
Wonderful! The chicken “fell off the bone”.
Having bone-in gave more flavor.
I only had plain paprika, I’ll look for Hungarian
if it makes a difference. I did add 3 tsp. low-fat
sour cream to the sauce before serving to make
it richer
I made this tonight. It came out delicious and the sauce was addictive!
I made this and it is delicious. Instead of legs and thighs, I cut up boneless chicken breasts since my family has a “thing” against eating meat off the bone. This recipe is a keeper!
Can this be made with boneless chicken breasts? Also, can regular paprika be used? I’m not sure I’ve seen Hungarian in the store, just plain or smoked.
Thanks!
Making this tonight! Hubby is Hungarian, and while we love the taste of his mom’s cooking, it’s so heavy that it never sits well with us (well, hubby can handle it, but he doesn’t like the heaviness of every dish). Looking forward to trying this!! It’s cooking now, smells amazing, and was super easy to make.
This looks absolutely delicious!
Thank you for sharing
https://michielskitchen.com
Simple and delicious, very satisfying cool weather recipe. Made this last night and put it over brown rice. Thank you Gina.
one of my all time favorite dishes from my Aunt Caroline!!! She served hers over white rice and peas!
Which kind of paprika, hot or sweet?
Hungarian is sweet
Do you have a pressure cooker / instapot recipe for this one? thank you!
Hi Gina!
The recipe calls for salt and pepper but I don’t see when to add them in the directions. Do we season the chicken with salt and pepper?
Yes, it’s under direction #1. 🙂
I had all of the ingredients on hand and it was absolutely delicious! I served it with cauliflower rice. The kids loved it too. Thank you!
Would boneless chicken breasts work ok in this recipe? My husband has bad vibes about chicken bones! 😊 Do you brown the chicken before adding? Thanks. We always love your recipes!!
I honestly think that boneless breasts would come out dry. If you chose to try though, let me know how it comes out. Bone in breasts or boneless thighs should be fine though.
Pictures look like skin on, but recipe says skin off?
Pictures have no skin
Can you use boneless chicken or chicken breasts? Finding bone-in thighs are hard where I am currently. But it looks delicious!
Waiting for an answer to this question as well!! I only have chicken breasts available.
Gina answered this above: ” Gina — May 14, 2020 @ 9:47 am Reply
I honestly think that boneless breasts would come out dry. If you chose to try though, let me know how it comes out. Bone in breasts or boneless thighs should be fine though.”
HI, I looked at my store and they have two kinds of Hungarian Paprika, one sweet and one hot, which should this recipe use? Thank you can’t wait to make it.
sweet
I only have paprika, Badia brand. Could I use this? Where do you get Hungarian paprika from?
Amazon
Penzey’s spices are the best. If you do not live near one, they will ship to you.
What can I sub for peppers? And paprika got regular and smoked thanks
Would this a work with boneless skinless chicken breasts?
Have you tried this with boneless, skinless breasts? I like the zero point factor.
I honestly think that boneless breasts would come out dry. If you chose to try though, let me know how it comes out. Bone in breasts or boneless thighs should be fine though.
Can this be made with boneless chicken – breast or tenderloins?
Can you use skinless chicken breasts for this recipe? Are there adjustments that would need to me made?
I honestly think that boneless breasts would come out dry. If you chose to try though, let me know how it comes out. Bone in breasts or boneless thighs should be fine though.
Wow this looks good!!! I’m totally going to make it!
Thank you for another delicious recipe. In regards to bone-in chicken thighs – can you substitute boneless?
Yes.
I don’t have bone-in chicken pieces (only have boneless chicken breasts). Would it work with this? Should I cube in large chunks?
I honestly think that boneless breasts would come out dry. If you chose to try though, let me know how it comes out. Bone in breasts or boneless thighs should be fine though.
Looks delicious!
If I used boneless chicken breast instead (the only kind husband will eat), can you estimate the weight of the chicken?
When this posted I immediately changed my original dinner plans from making one of your chili recipes (that will be tonight). I paired this dish with roasted potatoes and steamed broccoli. This was one of the most delicious meals I have made. OMG!! my family did not speak during dinner, just a lot of yum noises and devouring happening. Incredible!! Once again you hit the jackpot and I’m so happy to have discovered And followed your page a few years ago Your recipes are magic. Thank you so much for sharing them.
Thanks Jeanine!
This dish seems right up my alley, but am I right that the chicken does NOT get browned first? It just goes right in the pot ‘au naturale’??
Would you make any adjustments in the recipe if using boneless chicken breasts?
I honestly think that boneless breasts would come out dry. If you chose to try though, let me know how it comes out. Bone in breasts or boneless thighs should be fine though.
A couple of people used boneless breast with success,(look back at comments) so I would try….
Can you tell me where you purchased your plates?
Where can I buy hungarian paprika? I can never seem to find it in store and I know Gina uses it a lot in her recipes.
I got it on Penzy’s spices online. It is a great company. I get their salad dressing spice mixes and other things.
World Market. If you are in Texas…HEB grocery stores.
I am not able to find the WW points for this recipe. Did I overlook where they were? I’m going to make this anyway 😊it looks delicious.
Fixed now!
Can I use boneless chicken breast instead? If you how long should I cook the chicken? I love all your recipes by the way and I have all your cookbook!!
What would happen if I used smoked? Would it be bad?
smoked paprika**
Yes, definitely. I am Hungarian and this is a typical Hungarian dish. However, we never put in it bay leaf, but heavy cream 😀
I would be like eating smoked ham with the smoked paprika. Up to you to decide.
Sorry, I meant, it would taste definitely different.
OMG! I can’t wait to try this!!! Quick question, there are no WW points showing. I tried to key the recipe into their app but I keep getting kicked out. Does anyone know the Blue SP per serving?
Sorry! Fixed now!
Could chicken breasts be used instead of drumsticks and thighs?