Hortobágyi palacsinta

Ingredients

Pancakes

• 200 gplain flour
• 3eggs
• 400 mlmilk
• 100 mlsparkling water
• ½ tspsalt
• oil, for the pan

Filling

• 500 gchicken thigh, diced
• 2onions, chopped
• 2 tbsplard
• 2 tbspsweet paprika
• 1sweet pepper, chopped
• 1tomato, chopped
• 200 mlstock
• salt

Sauce

• the cooking liquid
• 200 mlsour cream
• 1 tbspplain flour

To serve

• sour cream
• parsley

Directions

1. Make a thin pancake batter with the flour, eggs, milk, sparkling water and salt, and rest it for 30 minutes.
2. The sparkling water is a Hungarian habit and it gives a lighter, more tender pancake that rolls without cracking.
3. Fry thin pancakes in a lightly oiled pan and stack them under a cloth.
4. For the filling, fry the onions in the lard until soft and golden.
5. Take the pan off the heat before the paprika goes anywhere near it.
6. Paprika burns in hot fat within seconds and turns bitter, and off the heat it blooms instead. This is the one rule of Hungarian cooking.
7. Stir in the paprika, then add the chicken, sweet pepper and tomato, and pour in the stock.
8. Simmer covered for 40 minutes, until the meat is tender and the sauce has reduced.
9. Lift the meat out and chop or shred it finely, keeping every drop of the sauce.
10. Now the split, which is the whole architecture of the dish: the meat goes inside the pancakes and the cooking liquid becomes the sauce poured over them.
11. Blend or sieve the remaining sauce smooth, whisk the flour into the sour cream, stir it in, and warm it through.
12. Do not let the sour cream boil once it is in, or it splits into curds and the sauce is finished.
13. Moisten the shredded meat with a few spoonfuls of the sauce so that the filling is not dry.
14. Put a line of filling on each pancake, roll it up, and fold the ends under.
15. Lay the rolls in a buttered dish, pour the paprika sauce over them, and warm through at 180°C (355°F) for 15 minutes.
16. Serve with a spoonful of sour cream and chopped parsley.
17. It was created in the twentieth century and named after the Hortobágy plain, which is restaurant branding rather than peasant history.

Technique

• Chicken or veal, and it is properly made from leftover paprikás rather than from scratch.
• It is served as a starter in Hungary rather than as a main course.
• Make the pancakes and the filling ahead and assemble to order, which is how restaurants handle it.

Substitutions

• Turkey or pork in place of chicken.
• Crème fraîche for sour cream, which is more stable in heat.

Variations

• With mushrooms, for a meatless version.
• With hot paprika alongside the sweet.
• Baked with cheese on top, which is common and not traditional.

History

Savoury pancakes filled with meat and served in paprika sauce, created in the twentieth century and named after the Hortobágy plain.

Frequently asked questions

What is Hortobágyi palacsinta?

Hortobágyi palacsinta is a main from Hungary: savory crepes filled with paprikash meat, gratinéed in sauce. Savoury pancakes filled with meat and served in paprika sauce, created in the twentieth century and named after the Hortobágy plain.

How long does Hortobágyi palacsinta take to make?

Hortobágyi palacsinta takes 30 min plus 30 min resting of preparation and 1 hr 10 min of cooking. The recipe makes 8 pancakes. It is rated medium to make.

What can I substitute in Hortobágyi palacsinta?

Yes, within limits. Turkey or pork in place of chicken. Crème fraîche for sour cream, which is more stable in heat.

What is the most important thing to get right in Hortobágyi palacsinta?

Now the split, which is the whole architecture of the dish: the meat goes inside the pancakes and the cooking liquid becomes the sauce poured over them.