NEW YEAR'S EVE AT GUNDEL
Gundel Palace | 31 December 2026, 6.30 pm
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“As we know it today, it originated here.”
Chicken paprika is one of the most famous and beloved dishes in Hungarian cuisine, which many consider a centuries-old tradition. The reality, however, is more nuanced: the refined version known today is associated with the Gundel.
In the first half of the 20th century, Károly Gundel redefined Hungarian cuisine. In the case of paprika chicken, he refined the balance of flavours, created a distinctive yet elegant paprika sauce, and clearly distinguished the dish from chicken stew and other similar dishes.
This is how paprika chicken became the dish that is now identified worldwide with Hungarian cuisine. The version served with nokedli and cucumber salad with sour cream strikes the perfect balance between tradition and refined hospitality.
At Gundel, this dish is not only a classic but also a part of our heritage: a recipe that took its final form here, and which we continue to prepare today with the same care.
The authentic paprika chicken experience—try it at Gundel.
A classic Hungarian dish with a paprika sauce and sour cream.
The paprika chicken has a creamier, sour cream-based sauce.
Károly Gundel refined the recipe.
The combination of paprika and sour cream is a staple of Hungarian cuisine.
At Gundel, served the traditional way.
We make it from one of the best quality "Kendermagos" hungarian chicken that is originated in the Kurca river area of the hungarian Great Plains and is rich in flavour and tender. The bones and cartilages are braised for hours to make a stew base with onions, peppers and tomatoes. The rich and thick sauce is strained, the chicken is cooked in it, so that the meat absorbs all the flavours of the thick, creamy gravy, and then the sauce is lightened with sour cream. The dumplings are torn by hand from a board, as is our tradition. Place multi-coloured crispy strips of paprika on the plate as a refreshing garnish. The inevitable accompaniment to the dish is the cucumber salad with sour cream and garlic.
Most people think of chicken paprikash as an old Hungarian dish that has been around for centuries. Many people mix up the chicken paprikash with chicken paprikash with sour cream or chicken stew, which can also be cooked in a cauldron (bogrács). These last two are based on a traditional stew with a stewing sauce. The recipe for chicken paprikash sauce, however, originated just a few decades ago at Gundel. Nowadays, it is a dish that everyone knows from the Gundel heritage.
Chicken with ‘paprika’ is a dish that is probably loved by everyone in Hungary, families make it the same way, there is no difference. There is also complete agreement on the side dish: it can only be "galuska" or "nokedli". What is the difference between galuska and nokedli? They both have the same basic ingredients: a soft, runny dough made from eggs, flour, salt and water. It is dredged in boiling water, typically by hand from a board for nokedli and by hand through a perforated plate for ‘galuska’. Therefore, the "galuska" are slightly smaller in size but taste the same. This classic dish is traditionally accompanied by Hungarian cucumber salad with sour cream, which is also part of our tradition.
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