Hungarian Recipes: 17 Cozy Paprika Dishes That Warm Up a Cold Night, Starting With Chicken Paprikash

Hungarian recipes are some of the coziest in the world, and right now everyone seems to be discovering them. One Hungarian chicken video has been watched almost 14 million times, a tender Hungarian beef stew card is pulling thousands of likes on MSN, and a popular food reviewer’s new Budapest episode passed 1.8 million views in four days. The secret is simple: lots of slow-cooked onions, a big spoon of sweet paprika and a swirl of sour cream. Below you will find the cozy Hungarian table, from paprika stews and dumplings to fried bread and famous cakes, with an easy home version of each. Which one would you make first..

Hungarian Recipes: Grandma’s Chicken Paprikash

A Hungarian chicken video has been watched almost 14 million times, and it is not hard to see why: a few onions, a big spoon of sweet paprika and a swirl of sour cream turn plain chicken into something that tastes like it cooked all day. Chicken paprikash, or paprikas csirke, is the first dish most Hungarian grandmas teach. The one rule: take the pot off the heat before adding paprika, because it burns fast and turns bitter. Here is the rest of the cozy Hungarian table..

You will need: 3 lb bone-in chicken thighs and drumsticks, 2 large onions (finely chopped), 2 tbsp lard or oil, 2 tbsp sweet Hungarian paprika, 1 tomato and 1 green pepper (chopped), 1 cup chicken broth, 1 cup sour cream, 1 tbsp flour, salt.

How to make it: 1. Cook the onions slowly in the fat for 10 minutes. 2. Take the pot off the heat and stir in the paprika. 3. Add the chicken, tomato, pepper, broth and salt. 4. Cover and simmer 40 minutes until tender. 5. Whisk the flour into the sour cream with a little hot sauce from the pot, then stir it in. 6. Simmer 3 minutes and serve with nokedli.

Hungarian Recipes: Nokedli, the Little Egg Dumplings

No plate of paprikash is complete without nokedli, the soft, chewy little egg dumplings Hungarian grandmas make in minutes. The batter is just flour, eggs, water and salt, pushed through a dumpling grater or scraped off a cutting board into boiling water. They look rustic, and that is the point of these old Hungarian recipes. Toss them in a little butter so they do not stick. Have you ever made dumplings from scratch?

You will need: 2 cups flour, 2 eggs, 3/4 cup water, 1 tsp salt, 1 tbsp butter, a large pot of salted boiling water.

How to make it: 1. Beat the flour, eggs, water and salt into a thick, sticky batter. 2. Rest it 10 minutes. 3. Press the batter through a dumpling grater or colander, or scrape small bits off a wet board, into the boiling water. 4. Cook 2 to 3 minutes, until they float. 5. Drain well. 6. Toss with butter and serve with paprikash.

Hungarian Recipes: Beef Porkolt, the Stew Made at Home

Many Americans call this goulash, but in Hungary the thick, rich paprika stew is porkolt, and goulash is a soup. Porkolt is just beef, a mountain of onions and sweet paprika, simmered low until the meat falls apart. No flour, no cream, just a glossy red gravy, like most classic Hungarian recipes. It is the dish behind those tender Hungarian beef stew videos everyone is sharing. Serve it with dumplings or potatoes. Ever tried the real one?

You will need: 2 lb beef chuck (1 1/2 inch cubes), 3 large onions (finely chopped), 2 tbsp lard or oil, 3 tbsp sweet Hungarian paprika, 2 cloves garlic, 1 tsp caraway seeds, 1 tomato (diced), 1 green pepper (sliced), salt, water.

How to make it: 1. Cook the onions in the fat slowly for 15 minutes until soft and golden. 2. Take the pot off the heat and stir in the paprika. 3. Add the beef, garlic, caraway and salt. 4. Cover and cook on low, adding a splash of water when needed. 5. After 1 hour, add the tomato and pepper. 6. Simmer 1 more hour until tender.

Hungarian Recipes: Stuffed Peppers in Tomato Sauce

Toltott paprika is the dish every Hungarian family makes when the peppers are good. Pale green peppers are stuffed with pork and rice, then simmered in a sweet and tangy tomato sauce until soft. Grandmas serve them with boiled potatoes to soak up every drop. Like many Hungarian recipes, they taste even better the next day, so make a full pot. Sweet tomato sauce or a little sour?

You will need: 8 bell peppers (light green or any color), 1 1/2 lb ground pork, 1/2 cup uncooked rice, 1 egg, 1 small onion (grated), 1 tbsp sweet paprika, salt, pepper. Sauce: 4 cups tomato juice or passata, 2 tbsp sugar, 1 tbsp butter, 1 tbsp flour, salt.

How to make it: 1. Cut the tops off the peppers and remove the seeds. 2. Mix the pork, rice, egg, onion, paprika, salt and pepper. 3. Stuff the peppers loosely. 4. Warm the tomato juice with the sugar and salt in a big pot. 5. Add the peppers, cover and simmer 50 minutes. 6. Stir a butter and flour paste into the sauce for the last 5 minutes.

Lecso: Peppers, Tomatoes and Sausage

Lecso is Hungarian comfort in a skillet: sweet peppers and tomatoes slowly stewed with onions and paprika until jammy. Some families add sliced smoked sausage, others stir in eggs at the end, and many eat it with nothing but crusty bread. It is one of the cheapest, fastest Hungarian recipes for a cold night. It also makes a perfect sauce for rice. Which way would you eat it: A) with sausage, B) with eggs, C) over rice or D) just bread?

You will need: 6 sweet peppers (yellow, red or light green, sliced), 3 ripe tomatoes (chopped), 1 large onion (sliced), 2 tbsp oil or lard, 1 tbsp sweet paprika, 8 oz smoked sausage (sliced, optional), 2 eggs (optional), salt.

How to make it: 1. Cook the onion in the oil until soft. 2. Add the sausage and brown it lightly. 3. Stir in the paprika off the heat. 4. Add the peppers and cook 10 minutes. 5. Add the tomatoes and salt and simmer 10 to 15 minutes. 6. Stir in beaten eggs at the end if you like.

Mushroom Paprikash for Meatless Nights

All the cozy flavor of chicken paprikash, made with mushrooms instead. Thick slices of cremini brown in butter with onions, then simmer in a paprika sauce finished with sour cream. It is one of the quickest Hungarian recipes, ready in about 30 minutes, and is just as good over noodles, rice or nokedli. Even meat lovers ask for seconds. Would you swap the chicken for mushrooms?

You will need: 1 1/2 lb cremini mushrooms (thick slices), 2 tbsp butter, 1 large onion (chopped), 2 cloves garlic, 1 1/2 tbsp sweet paprika, 1 cup broth, 1 tbsp flour, 1/2 cup sour cream, salt, pepper, parsley.

How to make it: 1. Cook the onion in the butter until soft. 2. Add the mushrooms and cook until browned. 3. Stir in the garlic, then the paprika off the heat. 4. Add the broth and simmer 10 minutes. 5. Whisk the flour into the sour cream and stir it in. 6. Simmer 2 minutes and top with parsley.

Hungarian Recipes: Paprika Potatoes With Sausage

Paprikas krumpli might be the cheapest dinner in Hungary, and one of the most loved. Potatoes and smoked sausage simmer in an onion and paprika broth until the potatoes start to break down and thicken everything. It is one of those one-pot Hungarian recipes that students, farmers and grandmas all swear by. Serve with pickles on the side. Is this the kind of dinner you grew up on?

You will need: 2 lb potatoes (peeled, chunks), 8 oz smoked sausage (sliced), 1 large onion (chopped), 2 tbsp oil, 1 1/2 tbsp sweet paprika, 1 tsp caraway seeds, 1 green pepper, 1 tomato, salt, water.

How to make it: 1. Cook the onion in the oil until golden. 2. Add the sausage and brown it. 3. Stir in the paprika off the heat. 4. Add the potatoes, caraway, pepper, tomato and salt. 5. Add water to almost cover. 6. Simmer 25 minutes until the potatoes are soft and the sauce is thick.

Halaszle, the Fisherman’s Soup

Halaszle is the bright red fisherman’s soup from the rivers of Hungary, and for many families it is a Christmas Eve tradition. It is made with freshwater fish such as carp and enough paprika to turn the broth fiery red. The easy home version uses any firm white fish and comes together in under an hour. Hot paprika or sweet?

You will need: 2 lb firm white fish fillets (carp, catfish or cod), 1 lb fish heads or bones for stock (optional), 2 onions, 1 green pepper, 1 tomato, 2 tbsp sweet paprika, 1 tsp hot paprika, salt, 8 cups water.

How to make it: 1. Simmer the bones, onions, pepper and tomato in the water for 40 minutes. 2. Strain and press the vegetables through the sieve. 3. Stir in both paprikas and salt. 4. Bring to a gentle simmer. 5. Add the fish in large pieces and cook 10 minutes without stirring. 6. Serve with crusty bread.

Cabbage and Noodles (Kaposztas Teszta)

Some of the best Hungarian recipes are the simplest. Kaposztas teszta is just cabbage cooked slowly in butter with a little sugar until golden and sweet, then tossed with wide noodles and black pepper. Some families sprinkle sugar on top, others add more pepper, and the argument never ends. It costs almost nothing to make. Sweet or peppery?

You will need: 1 small head green cabbage (finely shredded), 1 tsp salt, 4 tbsp butter or lard, 1 tsp sugar, 12 oz wide egg noodles or square pasta, plenty of black pepper.

How to make it: 1. Toss the cabbage with salt and let it sit 20 minutes, then squeeze out the water. 2. Melt the butter and add the sugar. 3. Add the cabbage and cook slowly 25 to 30 minutes until golden. 4. Cook the noodles and drain. 5. Toss the noodles with the cabbage. 6. Season well with black pepper.

Langos: Fried Bread With Sour Cream and Cheese

If you have ever been to a Hungarian market or a beach on Lake Balaton, you know langos. It is a big, puffy disk of fried dough, rubbed with garlic water and piled with sour cream and grated cheese. It is the treat that made a famous food reviewer’s Budapest episode one of the most talked-about videos of the week. Garlic or no garlic?

You will need: Dough: 3 cups flour, 1 packet (2 1/4 tsp) instant yeast, 1 tsp sugar, 1 tsp salt, 1 small boiled potato (mashed), 1 cup warm milk. Oil for frying. Toppings: garlic crushed in a little water, sour cream, grated cheese.

How to make it: 1. Mix the dough ingredients and knead until smooth. 2. Let rise 1 hour. 3. Divide into 6 balls and stretch each into a thin disk. 4. Fry in 1 inch of hot oil (350 F) for 1 to 2 minutes per side until puffed and golden. 5. Drain on paper towels. 6. Brush with garlic water and top with sour cream and cheese.

Hungarian Cucumber Salad

This cool, tangy salad is the side that sits next to almost every rich Hungarian dinner. Thin cucumber slices are salted, squeezed, then dressed with vinegar, a little sugar and garlic, and finished with a dusting of paprika. Some families add a swirl of sour cream. It cuts right through the heavy stews in Hungarian recipes. Vinegar or sour cream dressing?

You will need: 2 large cucumbers (very thinly sliced), 1 tsp salt, 1/4 cup white vinegar, 1/4 cup water, 1 1/2 tbsp sugar, 1 small garlic clove (crushed), sweet paprika, black pepper, 2 tbsp sour cream (optional).

How to make it: 1. Toss the cucumbers with salt and let them sit 20 minutes. 2. Squeeze out the liquid. 3. Mix the vinegar, water, sugar and garlic. 4. Pour over the cucumbers. 5. Chill 30 minutes. 6. Dust with paprika and pepper before serving.

Turos Csusza: Noodles With Cottage Cheese and Bacon

This is the dish that surprises everyone outside Hungary. Hot noodles are tossed with crispy bacon and its drippings, then topped with soft fresh cheese and a big spoon of sour cream. In Hungary it is made with turo, a fresh farmer’s cheese, but small curd cottage cheese works well at home. Among Hungarian recipes, it is the saltiest, creamiest surprise. Would you try it?

You will need: 12 oz wide egg noodles, 6 slices bacon (chopped), 1 1/2 cups farmer’s cheese or small curd cottage cheese, 1 cup sour cream, salt, black pepper, chives.

How to make it: 1. Fry the bacon until crisp and keep the drippings. 2. Cook the noodles and drain. 3. Toss the noodles with some of the bacon drippings. 4. Fold in half the cheese and season. 5. Top with the rest of the cheese, the sour cream and the bacon. 6. Warm in the oven 5 minutes if you like.

Rakott Krumpli, the Layered Potato Bake

Rakott krumpli is Hungary’s answer to the church supper casserole. Sliced potatoes, hard-boiled eggs and smoked sausage are layered with lots of sour cream and baked until bubbly and golden. It is cheap, filling and made from things most of us already have. Of all the Hungarian recipes here, it is the best make-ahead dish for a cold Sunday. For another cozy bowl, try our American and Hungarian goulash recipes. Extra sausage or extra eggs?

You will need: 3 lb potatoes (boiled in skins, peeled, sliced), 6 hard-boiled eggs (sliced), 8 oz smoked sausage (sliced), 2 cups sour cream, 1/2 cup milk, 3 tbsp butter, salt, pepper, sweet paprika.

How to make it: 1. Heat the oven to 375 F and butter a baking dish. 2. Mix the sour cream with the milk, salt and pepper. 3. Layer potatoes, eggs, sausage and some sour cream. 4. Repeat, ending with potatoes and sour cream. 5. Dot with butter and dust with paprika. 6. Bake 40 minutes until golden.

Hungarian Recipes: Chimney Cake (Kurtoskalacs)

Chimney cake is the sweet that stops people in their tracks at Christmas markets. A sweet yeast dough is wrapped around a wooden spit, rolled in sugar and baked until the sugar turns into a crackly caramel shell. Then it is rolled in cinnamon sugar, walnuts or cocoa. It comes from Transylvania, and at home you can bake it on foil-wrapped rolling pins or cans. Cinnamon or walnut?

You will need: Dough: 3 1/2 cups flour, 1 packet instant yeast, 1/4 cup sugar, 1/2 tsp salt, 1 egg, 1 cup warm milk, 4 tbsp melted butter. For rolling: melted butter, sugar. Coating: cinnamon sugar or ground walnuts.

How to make it: 1. Knead the dough and let it rise 1 hour. 2. Roll into a thin sheet and cut long strips. 3. Wrap the strips around buttered, foil-wrapped wooden rolling pins. 4. Brush with butter and roll in sugar. 5. Bake at 375 F, turning, for 20 to 25 minutes until deep golden. 6. Roll in the coating and slide off while warm.

Dobos Torte, the Famous Budapest Cake

Dobos torte was created by Budapest confectioner Jozsef Dobos in the 1880s, and it is still the cake Hungarians bring out for big days. Six thin sponge layers are filled with chocolate buttercream and topped with a shiny, crisp caramel disk. It takes patience, but it keeps well because Dobos designed it to last. Would you take on the caramel top?

You will need: Sponge: 6 eggs (separated), 3/4 cup sugar, 1 cup flour, 1 tsp vanilla. Buttercream: 1 cup butter, 1 cup powdered sugar, 4 oz melted dark chocolate, 2 tbsp cocoa. Caramel: 3/4 cup sugar, 1 tsp lemon juice.

How to make it: 1. Whip the yolks with half the sugar, and the whites with the rest. 2. Fold together with the flour. 3. Spread thin on 6 parchment circles and bake each at 400 F for 6 minutes. 4. Beat the buttercream. 5. Stack 5 layers with buttercream. 6. Cook the sugar to amber, pour over the last layer, cut into wedges and set on top.

Somloi Galuska, the Trifle Hungarians Love

Somloi galuska is a big spoonful of everything good: walnut, vanilla and chocolate sponge, rum syrup, vanilla custard, raisins, chocolate sauce and whipped cream. It is a Budapest restaurant classic, and many families make it for the holidays. You can build it in one big bowl and scoop it out, so it is perfect for a crowd. Rum or no rum?

You will need: 1 baked plain sponge, 1 cocoa sponge (or store-bought cake layers), 1/2 cup walnuts (chopped), 1/4 cup raisins, 1/2 cup sugar syrup with rum or vanilla, 2 cups vanilla pudding or custard, 1/2 cup chocolate sauce, 1 cup whipped cream.

How to make it: 1. Cut the sponges into cubes. 2. Layer some sponge in a big bowl and drizzle with syrup. 3. Sprinkle with walnuts, raisins and custard. 4. Repeat the layers and chill overnight. 5. Scoop into bowls. 6. Top with chocolate sauce and whipped cream.

Palacsinta, Sweet or Savory

Palacsinta are thin Hungarian crepes, and they go both ways. Fill them with apricot jam or sweet walnuts for dessert, or with a meaty paprika filling and sour cream sauce for the famous Hortobagy palacsinta. The batter takes two minutes, and kids love rolling their own. Make a stack on Sunday and they reheat in seconds in a dry pan. They are the easiest Hungarian recipes on this list for beginners. Apricot jam, walnut or savory?

You will need: 1 cup flour, 2 eggs, 1 cup milk, 1/2 cup sparkling water, 1 tbsp sugar, pinch of salt, 2 tbsp melted butter. Fillings: apricot jam, ground walnuts with sugar, or a paprika chicken filling with sour cream.

How to make it: 1. Whisk the flour, eggs, milk, sugar and salt until smooth. 2. Stir in the sparkling water and butter. 3. Rest 15 minutes. 4. Pour a thin layer into a hot buttered pan. 5. Cook 1 minute per side. 6. Fill, roll or fold, and serve warm.