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Paprika Chicken with Creamy Paprika Sauce (an easy all-in-one Thermomix dinner)
Last night I got home late after a busy day and didn’t have dinner organised, so it was ‘Thermomix to the rescue’ once again! I had a quick think, and this is what I came up with. Nothing fancy, just an easy and tasty dinner with basic ingredients, that took all of 25 minutes to make. Sometimes that’s just what we need when we can’t be bothered, right? (It is really yummy though, and the chicken breasts are amazingly tender and juicy when steamed!)
This fed our family of six and there were plenty of leftovers, which is always a bonus since everyone generally wants dinner for breakfast at our house.
This recipe is gluten free, and egg free, and if you omit the butter is also dairy free. The sauce is blended with cashews to make it creamy, but if you can’t have nuts, see the nut free variation below. I’ve added some tips for those of you without a Thermomix, so you don’t miss out.
{Update} For those of you with a TM5, make sure you have 1 litre (1000g) of liquid in the bowl when cooking rice, or you’ll find it won’t cook through properly. You may also need to cook for 25-30 mins instead of 20-25 mins.
See also the notes at the end of the recipe for a GAPS/Paleo version!!
Paprika Chicken with Creamy Paprika Sauce
Ingredients
Rice
900g water if using a TM31; 1000g water if using a TM5
380g basmati rice
Veggies
(these are just suggestions, use what you have)
3 carrots, peeled and sliced thinly
200g green beans, topped and tailed
1–2 zucchini, thinly sliced
150g frozen corn
Chicken
600–700g chicken breast fillets, sliced in 2cm thick pieces
smoked paprika powder (approx 1 tsp)
herb salt (eg. Herbamare)
garlic powder (approx 1/2 tsp)
1 Tbsp butter or ghee (optional)
Sauce
60g raw cashews
60g water
2 tsp chicken or vegetable stock paste (my chicken stock paste recipe here)
1 tsp smoked paprika powder
fine sea salt & pepper to taste
(See notes below for nut free version)
Instructions
1. Pour water into a Thermomix bowl.
2. Weigh rice into the steaming basket, rinse well, and place the basket inside the bowl.
3. Place chicken pieces onto Varoma tray and sprinkle with paprika, herb salt and garlic powder, and dot with butter or ghee if using.
4. Place Varoma into position with lid on.
5. Turn the speed dial to speed 5 for a few seconds to wash the water through the rice. (That’s my little trick to make sure the top of the rice cooks well and you don’t end up with crunchy bits.)
6. Begin cooking for 20 mins/Varoma/speed 2 while you cut up the veggies, adding them to the dish as you go. (It takes about 10 minutes for the steam to really start filling the Varoma, so it’s easy enough to get the veggies cut up in that time.)
7. At the end of the cooking time, check that the chicken is cooked; add a couple more minutes if not.
8. Remove chicken, vegetables and rice to Thermoservers or serving dishes. (Or if you’re having an “I don’t feel like doing heaps of dishes” night, just leave them in the Varoma and basket and set aside.)
9. Add all the sauce ingredients to the little bit of liquid left in the bowl. (There should only be about 3cm of water left as the rice has absorbed most of it.)
10. Blend 1 min/speed 9. Scrape down the lid and sides of the bowl with a spatula and blend again if needed, until smooth. Season to taste.
11. Serve the rice on plates, top with veggies and chicken, and drizzle with sauce.
GAPS/ Paleo version
Instead of rice, you could make either cauliflower rice or cauliflower mash. For the cauliflower rice, cut 600g cauliflower into florets, and chop in Thermomix bowl 5 sec/reverse/speed 5. Remove to internal steamer basket and set aside. Reduce water to 500g, begin cooking, and add steamer basket to bowl 10 mins into cooking time. (You may need to tip off a little water before making the sauce – you only need about 3cm water left in the bowl.)
For the cauliflower mash version, see my recipe for cauliflower mash (on the blog), place all mash ingredients in the bowl, cook 20 mins or until chicken is cooked through, then remove Varoma and blend. Remove the mash to a serving dish, leaving about 3cm of mash in the bowl. Add sauce ingredients, double the water, and blend.
Omit corn from the recipe for a GAPS version – add in some diced pumpkin, squash or peas.
Nut Free Version
Leave out the cashews and add 250g coconut cream instead, with the 2-3 tsp vege stock paste and 1 tsp paprika powder. Warm it up a bit, 1 min/90C/speed 4. Season to taste.
Non Thermomix version
Pour 100ml boiling water over the raw cashews and allow them to soak (covered) while the meal cooks. Cook the rice in a rice cooker or on the stovetop. Cook the chicken and vegetables in two layers in a steamer, or in a large frypan with a lid, over med-low heat, until done. Blend the soaked cashews with soaking water and the remaining sauce ingredients in a powerful blender until smooth and creamy. Season to taste. (Massel stock powder can be used instead of stock paste.)
Hey Jo I love this recipe! Just wondering if you could help me with the Macros please?
Hi Lia! Glad you love this recipe – yay!! 🙂 We don’t calculate macros on our recipes but you should be able to find a macro calculator online that can help you work it out. xx
This is delicious. Made it with my thermochef and was amazing. Thanks.
Yay Lia!! 🙂
Hi. I have thermochef too. Did you put the chicken in the bottom part or top part of steam tray?
This is delicious and will be on high rotation in our house from now onwards. So simple and that sauce is DIVINE!
Fantastic to hear Gabrielle – glad you all love it! 🙂
Would this work with normal chicken stock from coles,
Yes, for sure, though homemade stock is a healthier option. Enjoy! 🙂
Hi Jo, how many portions does this make? Could it be doubled with cooking times adjusted, do you think? Thanks!
Hi Jessica, this recipe makes approx. 6 serves. You won’t be able to double the recipe (maybe slightly increase the amount of rice to 400g and chicken to 1kg – just check the rice and chicken are cooked and add more time if needed). xx
Hi, I’ve tried this a couple of times but I need to make some adjustments. My thermo doesn’t reach Varoma temp for about 8mins, I have to add about this much cooking time on to get the chicken to be cooked, and at the end I’ve still got about 3/4 of the water left. I tried to guess the ‘few cm’s’ described to make the sauce with (i could see quite a lot of the blade sticking out) but I was way off and my sauce is really thin despite adding more cashews to try and thicken it up.
Not sure why mine is working out so differently but I’m keen to get it right as this is such a healthy and easy meal to make. Any ideas for me?
This recipe was developed in 2018 for the TM31, so it will be a little different for newer Thermomix models. You’ll need to cook longer, as the bowl is bigger and you need 1 litre of liquid when using the Varoma for steaming. There is an updated version of this recipe in my new cookbook, Simple Healing Food if you have that? I will try and get back to this one and update soon!
Can I ask what is herb salt please 🙂
Hi Amanda! Herb salt is good quality salt (normally sea salt) flavoured with dried herbs. We like the Herbamare brand you can find at the supermarket. 🙂
Delicious recipe thank you. Are you able to freeze this with the sauce?
Hi Dee, thanks! 🙂 Yes, I don’t see why not. xx
I’m thrilled this was the first result when I googled “quick thermomix chicken” tonight! So easy and so delicious! Definitely adding this to my regular weekly dinners.
I made this last night using the cook key and it was delicious! My boys absolutely smashed it too. I will definitely make this again.
Awesome! x
Thanks Jo I have been wanting to give this a go for a while and did so tonight it was great and will become a regular in our home! 🙂
Hi Jo, if i’m Doing the nut free version of the sauce, so I still use the water of the rice, or I clean the bowl and add the coconut milk + other ingredients?? Thanks
Add the coconut cream to the liquid left in the bowl along with stock paste or salt and paprika. Omit the extra water.
Sorry new to thermo. Where do I place the vegetables? In veroma with the chicken?
Yes!
Love this recipe and can’t wait to try it! Just a questions though with the sauce, do you add the 60g ot water to the water already in the bowl from the rice?
Yes, when the rice is finished cooking there shouldn’t be much liquid left in the bowl – but if there is, you can leave the extra water out. Hope that helps.
did anyone else have problem with the rice. Thought it was way too much. only half cooked. however loved the chicken and sauce.
If you have a TM5 you will need to add another 100g water, otherwise the rice will be dry on top.
Hi Jo!
I have made this before and it’s definitely a winner! However today I the cashews I thought I had turned out to be almonds. Would the sauce be ok with almonds? Unfortunately I have no other nuts and still need it to be df gf ef.
TIA
Yes it’ll work!
Am making right now and just realised no stock or broth!! What else can i put in to make a sauce ?
Just water with some stock paste or salt 🙂
This recipe is just amazing! We have it a few times a month and it’s a hit with the whole family. I usually just use a frozen pea/corn/capsicum or carrot mix with some sliced zucchini as my vegetable. Anything else doesn’t seem to cook as well unless very thinly sliced. The sauce is divine!!!
Thank you, even my fussy eaters love this recipe.
Cooked the paprika chicken for the first time. I’m no stranger to paprika chicken. Back in the 80’s it was one of my signature dinner party favourites. This version is so healthy and so delicious. I changed the sauce up a bit. Coconut milk and a handful of cashew as I didn’t have enough. Didn’t have stock so I left it out. Added garlic salt and porcini salt. Just a little bit amazing. Thsnk Jo.
You are most welcome:-). Glad you enjoyed it!!!
Hi there, I used to make this in my previous thermomix but have just got the TM6 – is this recipe on the Cookiedo app at all? Love this recipe BTW – one of my favourites!
Hi Dimity! Yes this one is on the Cookiedo app, it’s in the quirky collection!
Hi Jo, I made this recipe following the instructions in the ‘Simple, Healing Food’ cookbook but it didn’t really work. The broth wasn’t enough to cover all the layered ingredients, what resulted after the 20 minutes was overcooked chicken breast on the bottom and varied levels of cooked-uncooked veges above so I had to remove the chicken breast, then 5 minutes later pick out the bottom two layers of vege, then another 5 minutes fish out the rest, other than the green beans which needed still another 5, making it quite a painful exercise. The sauce is truly delicious but the cookbook recipe doesn’t tell you to soak the cashews as it does on this version, luckily I’ve made plenty of cashew sauces in the past so did it just in case. Yummy nonetheless just thought I’d let you know.
Hi Chrissie, sorry to hear that! I use a very heavy, enamel-coated cast iron pot for this recipe and keep heat low, so I actually end up with a lot of stock at the end! I’m wondering if your pan has thin metal or a lid that lets out a lot of steam, or if maybe you had the heat a bit high? If so the liquid will evaporate much more quickly. Hope that helps!