Autumn chicken with peppers and pumpkin. Hokkaido gives the sauce a beautiful color and no roux is needed to thicken it

Try a different take on traditional chicken with peppers. You can easily create an autumnal variation by adding pumpkin to the sauce. The bright orange Hokkaido will intensify the color and give the sauce a delicate flavor and creamy consistency.

Traditional chicken with peppers

Chicken with paprika is a recipe that has been on our tables for generations and is still one of the most popular. The basis of traditional chicken with paprika is onion, sweet ground paprika, chicken meat and cream for softening. The preparation process is very simple. All you need to do is follow the individual steps and do not rush the sauce. A sufficiently long preparation will ensure that the basic flavors combine properly and the sauce will be smooth and distinctive.

With such classic recipes, it's sometimes nice to change them up a bit and indulge in an unconventional taste. There's no need to change the recipe from the ground up, sometimes just adding one extra ingredient is enough. And Hokkaido pumpkin is perfect for such an autumn variation.

How to prepare pumpkin for sauce

Hokkaido pumpkin is very easy to work with. It is one of the most versatile pumpkins, which perfectly complements both sweet and savory recipes. Its popularity is also ensured by the fact that it is extremely easy to use. Hokkaido pumpkin does not need to be peeled, its skin is thin and delicate and softens during cooking.

So, just wash the pumpkin, cut it in half and scoop out the soft, fibrous inside with the seeds, using a spoon, and cut the flesh into small cubes. You don't have to throw the pumpkin seeds away. You can roast them in the oven or fry them in a pan, and you'll have a treat that's perfect for nibbling on while watching TV or as a sprinkle on vegetable salads or pumpkin soup. They can also be added to homemade bread dough or homemade granola.

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Pumpkin will soften and thicken the sauce.

Adding a seasonal ingredient doesn't complicate the recipe in any way. Just sprinkle cubes of raw pumpkin into the base of the sautéed onion, fry briefly and stew together with the meat. The pumpkin will quickly soften and begin to fall apart. Once the meat is soft, remove it from the pot and blend the sauce with the cooked pumpkin until smooth.

The pumpkin will naturally thicken the sauce, so there is no need to thicken it with stock. In fact, you may need to thin it out a bit at the end. The blended pumpkin will also give the sauce a creamy consistency and brighten its color. If you want the color of the sauce to be even more pronounced, you can add a tablespoon of tomato paste, but it is not necessary.

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Chicken with peppers and pumpkin

Pumpkin chicken with paprika tastes great with dumplings, pasta or gnocchi. You can also add a little chili for a spicy taste. In our recipe, we used chicken thighs, but you can choose the meat you are used to. Dried garlic is not usually added to chicken with paprika, but it will help to highlight the pumpkin flavor here.

• For the chicken on pepper with pumpkin you will need: 6 chicken thighs
• 600-700 g Hokkaido pumpkin (1/2 pumpkin)
• 1 large onion
• 2 tablespoons of sweet ground paprika
• 1 tablespoon of smoked ground paprika (optional)
• 1/2 teaspoon of dried garlic (to taste), ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon of tomato paste (optional)
• 300-500 ml of chicken broth (or water)
• 150-200 ml of whipping cream
• 2 tablespoons of oil
• 20 g of butter and salt

How about this?

Wash the pumpkin, but do not peel it. Scoop out the seeds and soft center and cut the rest into cubes. Peel and finely chop the onion.

Clean the chicken thighs and trim off excess fat. Season with salt and pepper.

Heat 1 tablespoon of oil and butter in a large saucepan. Fry the pieces of meat until golden brown on both sides, remove from the saucepan and set aside.

Add the remaining tablespoon of oil to the pan and fry the onion until golden brown. Add the chopped pumpkin to the onion, add a tablespoon of tomato paste, sweet pepper, smoked paprika, dried garlic and fry everything briefly.

Add the browned pieces of meat and any juices the meat has released to the vegetable base and pour in about 300 ml of stock. Cover and simmer for about an hour, until the meat is tender and falling off the bone. Check during the simmering process and add more stock if necessary.

Remove the finished meat from the pot, remove the skin and peel the meat from the bones.

Blend the sauce until smooth, thin with broth if necessary, thicken with cream and add salt to taste.

Put the shredded meat back into the sauce and heat everything briefly.

side dish for chicken with peppers.