Chicken Thighs With Paprika And Sour Cream

You may have noticed I rarely cook poultry or beef. After 17 years as a vegetarian, I still largely avoid most "meat" unless it is preserved goose or a lamb chop. Given cost constraints, we don't have those things too often. As a result, most of the recipes you read here rely on beans, cheese and a good many eggs. Our son has never eaten meat, and I intend to keep it that way as he is happy enough eating as he does. I suspect our days of even occasional meat will be ending as soon as Danny is able to question why we eat something he does not. Most nights though, we all sit down to the same meatless meal.

That said, I cooked chicken thighs for dinner this evening because my husband really likes them and they were inexpensive at the market this week. My first thought was to fry them, but that's awfully unhealthy. So I did the next best thing-I smothered them in 2 cups of sour cream! Hey, at least it has some calcium.

The dish is best served with rice, as it will soak-up the excess sauce. I made spatezel, which worked fine, but we were left with quite a bit of extra sauce (and with dairy prices being what they are, who wants to waste?). I also served sautéed green beans and red peppers with onions and herbs.

You Will Need:

2 tablespoons butter
2 medium onions, chopped
2 teaspoons salt (less if using bouillon rather than stock)
2 tablespoons sweet paprika
4-6 chicken thighs
2 cups chicken broth
2 teaspoons flour
2 cups sour cream
Rice or Noodles

Heat the butter in a heavy pot and cook onions until golden. Add salt and paprika and then the chicken. Brown slightly on each side and then add broth. Cover and simmer slowly until cooked-about 40 minutes.

Remove chicken to a plate and let cool before removing skin and bones. Let cooking liquid cool slightly as well. Combine flour and sour cream and add to cooking liquid, whisking quickly. Strain through a sieve and return to pot along with chicken pieces. Heat again but do not boil. Serve over a bed of rice or noodles.