Vegetarian "Chicken" Paprikash

This is a family recipe. Well, the base is a family recipe, while my modification to vegetarian is of course not. I believe the recipe comes from my father's family, but my mother was always the one to make the dish, and she passed the recipe to me. When my brother, sister and I were younger we got to pick dinner on the day of our birthday. (Aside from trips to the HoJo to have dinner of course. Where we always got free ice cream on our birthday and we always chose black raspberry.) Chicken Paprikash was one of the dishes I would choose on my birthday. The other was my mom's Chinese style spare ribs. I think when we were younger, or for holidays with relatives my mom would make spaetzel as well. But I remember it mostly being served with small shell noodles like the kind you'd get in boxed mac and cheese. Anyway, it is hard not to like a dish where the sauce's main ingredient is sour cream.

I started making a vegetarian version when Jennifer and I moved to Seattle. I missed my mom's version and wanted to make my own. In the first year we lived in Seattle, I had ordered the Paprikaschnitzel at the People's Pub in Ballard. I thought it would be great, as I prefer pork to chicken, but the sauce lacked. Yet they did have an element I have incorporated into my sauce since; bell peppers. Most traditional recipes for Paprikash include only an onion, so adding the bell pepper works for me since the sauce is named after a pepper.

I do not change much in the recipe other than using Quorn's Chik'N Tenders as the meat. I also adjust the ingredient levels as well. For one thing the recipe calls for a set amount of onion but I always just use one yellow onion. Since I add bell pepper, I usually add one red if I have it. I like to keep the amount of pepper about 2/3 of the level of onion. The amount of chicken is supposed to be over a pound, but I usually only use one bag (12 oz.) of the chicken substitute. And because I like my chiles, I tend to add more paprika than my recipe calls for. [The recipe calls for 2-3 tablespoons. I come close to doubling that.] Another element that I am following from my mother, but not the recipe is at the point of making the roux, I use the flour with paprika in it that is left over from coating the "chicken."

This time around I meant to add crimini mushrooms, but forgot them in the fridge. Also, most recipes I see call for 12 oz. of sour cream. I usually stick the whole 16 oz. tub in, but stopped short yesterday in attempt to reduce the fat and calories. (I was already using reduced fat sour cream.) Since I have never made spaetzel, I usually use store bought from the Bavarian Meats Deli at Pike Market. I think Jennifer once made spaetzel for this dish and last night I used the last resort; egg noodles. These noodles were whole wheat and egg noodles that we got cheap from the grocery outlet. I wouldn't by them again, but they were probably a bit healthier than standard noodles.

The way I make the dish it gets assembled in the serving bowl. Noodles first, topped with the "chicken" and then covered with sauce. So I neglected to take any pictures of the finished product in the bowl.