Chicken Paprikash Soup With Dumplings for Cozy Nights

Chicken paprikash soup is a Hungarian-inspired bowl of tender chicken, sweet paprika, vegetables, and a creamy sour-cream finish, served with soft spoon dumplings. It takes the warming flavors of chicken paprikash and turns them into a hearty soup; family and regional versions vary, and this one keeps the method approachable for a weeknight.

Ingredients

2 tablespoons unsalted butter (28 g)
1 tablespoon olive oil (15 ml)
1 large yellow onion, diced (about 1½ cups or 225 g)
1 medium red bell pepper, diced (about 1 cup or 150 g)
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped (about 9 g)
2 tablespoons sweet Hungarian paprika (about 14 g)
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour (16 g), for thickening the soup
6 cups low-sodium chicken broth (1.42 L)
1½ pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1-inch pieces (680 g)
1 bay leaf (about 0.2 g)
1 teaspoon kosher salt (5 g), plus more to taste
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper (about 1 g)
1 cup sour cream (240 g), preferably full-fat
1 tablespoon lemon juice (15 ml)
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley (about 8 g), divided

For the dumplings:

1½ cups all-purpose flour (190 g)
2 large eggs (about 100 g without shells)
½ cup milk (120 ml)
½ teaspoon kosher salt (3 g)

Instructions

Prepare the dumpling batter. In a medium bowl, stir together the dumpling flour and salt. Make a hollow in the center, add the eggs and milk, and mix with a fork until no dry flour remains. The batter should be thick, sticky, and soft enough to fall from a spoon; it is not meant to form a kneadable dough. Set it aside while you make the soup. It can rest during the chicken’s simmer without adding extra time to the recipe.
Soften the vegetables. Warm the butter and olive oil in a large, heavy pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onion and bell pepper and cook for about 6 minutes, stirring now and then, until softened but not browned. Stir in the garlic and cook for 1 minute. If the garlic starts to color, lower the heat so it does not turn bitter.
Bloom the paprika and make the soup base. Take the pot off the heat briefly and stir in the sweet paprika and the 2 tablespoons of flour. Mixing the paprika away from direct heat helps prevent it from scorching. Return the pot to medium-low heat and stir for about 1 minute. Gradually pour in the broth, whisking or stirring as you go to smooth out any flour lumps. Add the chicken, bay leaf, salt, and pepper. Bring the broth to a gentle simmer, which should take about 4 minutes, then cover partially and simmer gently for 20 minutes. Avoid a hard boil, which can make the chicken tough and break up the vegetables.
Check and shred the chicken. Check the thickest piece of chicken with an instant-read thermometer; the USDA FSIS safe minimum internal temperature for poultry is 165°F (74°C). If it has not reached that temperature, simmer for a few more minutes and check again. Lift the cooked chicken onto a plate, discard the bay leaf, and shred or break the chicken into bite-size pieces with two forks. This takes about 3 minutes. Keep the soup at a gentle simmer while you work.
Cook the dumplings in the soup. Dip two teaspoons in hot broth, then use one to scoop small portions of batter and the other to push them into the simmering soup. Make dumplings about ¾ inch across; they puff as they cook, so leave room between them. Continue until the batter is used. Cover the pot and simmer gently for 5 minutes. Cut one dumpling in half to check that its center is set and no longer wet or floury. If the dumplings are larger than directed, give them another minute or two.
Finish creamy and serve. Return the chicken to the pot and stir in the lemon juice and half of the parsley. Put the sour cream in a bowl and whisk in about ½ cup of hot broth, a spoonful at a time, to warm it gradually. Turn off the heat, stir the warmed sour cream into the soup, and let everything sit for about 3 minutes. Do not let the soup boil after adding the sour cream, since high heat can make it curdle. Taste and adjust the salt, pepper, or lemon, then serve with the remaining parsley.

Tips

Choose paprika with a fresh aroma. Sweet Hungarian paprika gives the soup its characteristic color and rounded pepper flavor. Paprika loses fragrance as it ages, so smell it before cooking; if it smells dusty or faint, replace it. Hot Hungarian paprika is a different ingredient and can make the soup quite spicy. If sweet Hungarian paprika is hard to find, use fresh sweet paprika from a well-stocked grocery store; the flavor will be a little less distinctive but still works. Smoked paprika is not a direct substitute because it adds a noticeable smoky note.
Keep the dumplings small and the simmer gentle. A crowded pot or vigorous boil can make dumplings collide, break apart, or cook unevenly. If your pot is narrow, cook them in two batches, keeping the first batch warm in a covered bowl with a ladleful of broth. The batter is supposed to be sticky, so resist adding a lot of extra flour; stiff batter makes dense dumplings.
Temper the sour cream. Adding cold sour cream straight to very hot soup can cause little curdled flecks. Whisking hot broth into it first and stirring it in off the heat gives a smoother finish. Full-fat sour cream is the most reliable choice. Lower-fat sour cream can work, but it is more likely to separate if overheated.
Use a separate board for raw chicken. Keep the raw chicken and its juices away from the vegetables, dumpling batter, and serving utensils. Wash hands, the board, and the knife with hot, soapy water before handling cooked food. If the soup is thicker than you like after the dumplings cook, add a splash of hot broth; if it is thin, simmer the soup base briefly before adding the dumplings rather than boiling the finished creamy soup.

Serving Suggestions

Serve the soup hot in wide bowls so each portion gets chicken, broth, vegetables, and several dumplings. A scattering of parsley adds freshness, while a small spoonful of sour cream at the table gives diners the option of a richer bowl. Offer crusty bread or rye bread for dipping, and consider a simple cucumber salad or crisp green salad alongside it to balance the creamy broth. Because the dumplings make the soup filling, modest side portions are usually enough.

For a more traditional-feeling table, put extra paprika and lemon wedges on the side rather than adding more heat or acidity to the whole pot. A little lemon brightens the creamy finish, but the soup should still taste mellow and paprika-forward. Serve promptly after the sour cream goes in for the smoothest texture and the dumplings’ best texture.

Variations

Use bone-in chicken. Bone-in thighs add a deeper broth flavor, but they take longer to cook and need to be removed, deboned, and checked at the same safe temperature. Simmer them until they reach 165°F (74°C), then allow extra time for cooling enough to handle and for picking the meat from the bones. The cooking time will therefore be longer than the recipe’s 45-minute cook estimate.

Make it more vegetable-forward. Add 1 cup sliced carrots (about 130 g) with the onion and pepper, or stir in 2 cups baby spinach (about 60 g) after the dumplings are cooked. Carrots need time to soften, so cut them thinly and let them cook in the broth. Spinach wilts quickly and should go in at the end.

Adjust the dumpling style. The spoon dumplings here are soft and tender, similar in spirit to small nokedli, though recipes and shapes vary. For firmer dumplings, use ⅓ cup milk (80 ml) instead of ½ cup and add another tablespoon of milk only if the batter is too dry to mix. For larger, more rustic dumplings, scoop slightly bigger portions and simmer until the centers are set, allowing extra cooking time.

Make it dairy-free. Replace the butter with another tablespoon of olive oil, use unsweetened plain dairy-free milk in the dumplings, and finish with an unsweetened dairy-free sour-cream alternative. Products vary in thickness and tang, so stir the alternative in off the heat and adjust with lemon. This changes the classic creamy flavor, but preserves the paprika, chicken, and dumpling combination.

Storage and Reheating

Refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours of cooking in shallow, covered containers. The soup keeps for 3 to 4 days in the refrigerator. Dumplings will absorb broth as they sit and become softer, so the leftovers will be thicker than freshly served soup. Add a little broth or water when reheating if needed. If you know you will have leftovers, you can cook the dumplings separately and store them with a little broth, then combine portions when serving.

Reheat soup gently on the stovetop over medium-low heat, stirring carefully so the dumplings do not break. Heat leftovers to 165°F (74°C), checking with a food thermometer, and avoid a rolling boil after the sour cream has been added. In a microwave, reheat a covered portion in short intervals, stirring between intervals and checking that it reaches 165°F (74°C) throughout.

For longer storage, freeze the soup base and cooked chicken before adding sour cream and dumplings. Cool it promptly, freeze in airtight freezer-safe containers, and use within about 2 to 3 months for best quality. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator, reheat to 165°F (74°C), then make fresh dumplings and finish with sour cream. The dumplings and dairy can turn grainy or overly soft after freezing, so they are best added fresh.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I use chicken breast instead of thighs?

Yes. Use an equal weight of boneless, skinless chicken breast and cut it into pieces about 1 inch across. Breast meat is leaner and can dry out if overcooked, so start checking it as it simmers and remove it as soon as the thickest piece reaches 165°F (74°C). The broth will have a slightly lighter flavor than when made with thighs.

Is chicken paprikash soup spicy?

Not as written. Sweet paprika gives a warm pepper flavor without making the soup hot, and the small amount of black pepper mainly seasons it. To add heat, stir a pinch of cayenne or a little hot paprika into your own bowl first; adding it to the pot can make the whole batch too spicy for some diners.

Can I make the soup ahead?

Yes, with a small adjustment for the best texture. Make the soup through the chicken-cooking step, cool it safely, and refrigerate it. When ready to serve, bring the base to a simmer, cook the dumplings in it, and finish with freshly tempered sour cream. If you cook the dumplings ahead in the broth, they will soften and absorb liquid as they stand.

Why did my sour cream curdle?

Sour cream usually separates when it is added cold to very hot liquid or when the finished soup boils. Warm it gradually with a little hot broth, remove the pot from the heat, and stir it in gently. If it has already separated, the soup is generally still usable, but the texture will be less smooth; avoid vigorous boiling or whisking to try to fix it.

How can I tell when the dumplings are done?

Follow the 5-minute gentle simmer, then lift one dumpling out and cut it open. The center should look set and moist, not pasty or raw. Dumplings can vary in size, so give larger ones another minute or two. Keeping them small and similar in size helps them cook at the same rate.

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Safety notes: safe minimum internal temperatures from USDA FSIS; raw and undercooked fish guidance from the U.S. FDA. Food safety notes

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