T: I can’t believe how simple this meal was, and yet it was so tasty… it seemed much more complex than it really was.
A: yeah, this is by far one of the most simple things I’ve done in a long time. As always, if anybody wants this recipe, just email us… I know there’s lots of people who don’t have time to make extravagant meals like we sometimes make, but anybody’s got time to make this one.
T: so what all went into it?
A: chicken, paprika, onions, tomatoes, salt and pepper, sour cream, and parsley. Actually that’s not really all… that’s all that the suggested recipe called for that I was loosely following, but I added a pinch of allspice and a couple pinches of cayenne.
T: for a moment I thought it tasted just a hair like mole. Hmm.
A: and for that moment did you have some sort of delusional, uhhh, something come over you?
T: something came over me, alright, and it was at least 1/8 mexican.
A: so, what’d ya think?
T: you have to give your rating first this time.
A: ok. I give the paprika chicken a 7.85… very close to a 7.9, but just not quite. It was really good, it just wasn’t anything special. As far as the asperagus is concerned I give it a 6.7. I didn’t take into consideration the amount of salt I had already put on the asperagus when I added some pecorino romano halfway through roasting, so it turned out a touch on the salty side for me.
T: it was verging on too salty, but still quite good. Not quite so salty that the salt content severely disturbed the flavors.
A: so what are your ratings, Tyler?
T: I give the pap chicken a 9.03. That crap was good. It got bonus points for tasting like mole, and bonus points for having moist meat in sauce over white rice. And, seriously, it tasted good. A little smoky…
A: that’s the paprika!
T: strangly paprika … maybe it’s the smoky flavor that makes it seem like mole.
A: that could very possibly be the case because the mole I made used chipotle pepper in adobo and chipotle peppers are smoked jalepenos. Paprika is dried smoked peppers that are ground up. Sometimes it’s hot, sometimes it’s sweet, sometimes it’s more smoky.
T: Yeah, and sometimes it’s spunky. Like tonight. So, mole and paprika chicken do indeed have a common link.
A: a very mild, pretty far removed link, but yes.
T: That’s why I said it was 1/8 mexican, rather than full-bred mexican like Yvonne.

Kwaherini mabibi na mabwana.