This is a creamy, paprika-sauced ground pork dish with red bell peppers and a caraway-spiced broth base. It comes together in under an hour using one pot, and the sauce is rich enough that you genuinely don’t need much else on the plate. If you’ve been nervous about cooking ground pork, this is a good place to start — the technique is forgiving and the result is hard to mess up.
Why this recipe works
Two things make this dish reliable. First, browning the ground pork properly — letting it sit undisturbed for a minute or two before breaking it up — builds a savory base that carries the whole sauce. Stir it too early and you lose that. Second, tempering the sour cream before it goes into the pot (spooning some hot liquid into it first) prevents the sauce from breaking into greasy curds. Sour cream splits fast when it hits high heat directly, and a split sauce is thin and oily instead of silky. Both steps take less than two minutes extra and make a real difference in the final texture.
What can go wrong
- Pork stays gray and steamed instead of browning: This happens when the pan isn’t hot enough before the meat goes in, or when the pan is overcrowded. Use a wide skillet or pot and make sure the oil is shimmering before you add the pork. Don’t crowd it.
- Paprika turns bitter: Paprika burns quickly on a dry, hot surface. Add it with the peppers and some moisture already in the pan — not directly onto a scorching dry skillet. Bitter paprika can’t be fixed after the fact.
- Sauce is watery at the end: If the lid was on too tight during the full simmer, steam builds up and thins the sauce. Leave the lid slightly ajar, and don’t skip the uncovered simmer at the end.
- Pork isn’t cooked through: Ground pork must reach 160°F (71°C) internally — never serve it pink. If you don’t have a thermometer, make sure there’s no pink color anywhere in the meat before adding the broth. The subsequent simmer will carry it safely past that point.
- Sauce breaks when sour cream is added: Even with tempering, adding sour cream while the pot is at a rolling boil will split it. Reduce to a gentle simmer — small bubbles only — before stirring it in. Skip the garnish of extra cold sour cream on top; it just slides off and adds another dish to wash.
Leftovers and meal prep
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. The sauce thickens considerably when cold, which is normal — add a splash of water or chicken stock when reheating on the stovetop over low heat, stirring until it loosens back up. Don’t microwave it on high; the sour cream sauce can separate. For freezing, this dish freezes reasonably well for up to 2 months, though the sauce texture changes slightly after thawing — it may look a little grainy but comes back together with gentle stirring over low heat. If you’re meal prepping, the pork and pepper base (before sour cream is added) freezes better than the finished sauce, so consider adding the sour cream fresh after reheating.
Pork Mince and Red Pepper Paprikash
Ingredients
Main Ingredients
500 grams ground pork (minced pork) - preferably free-range or organic
1 large onion - finely chopped
2 cloves garlic - minced
2 medium red pepper (red capsicum) - sliced into thin strips
2 tablespoons paprika - or according to taste
400 milliliters chicken stock (chicken broth or chicken bouillon) - preferably homemade or low-sodium
150 milliliters sour cream - full-fat for richer flavor
2 tablespoons olive oil- 1 teaspoon caraway seeds - lightly crushed
Instructions
- In a large pot or deep skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the chopped onion and sauté until it becomes translucent, about 5 minutes.
- Add the minced garlic and caraway seeds to the onions and continue to sauté for another minute until fragrant.
- Increase the heat to medium-high and add the minced pork, cooking until it browns evenly, breaking it up with a spoon as it cooks, about 7-10 minutes.
- Stir in the paprika and sliced red peppers, ensuring they are evenly coated with the spice and cook for an additional 2-3 minutes to release the flavors.
- Pour in the chicken broth, reduce the heat to low, and cover. Allow it to simmer gently for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the peppers are tender.
- Temper the sour cream by adding a few spoonfuls of the hot sauce into it, then stir into the pot, combining thoroughly. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper.
- Simmer uncovered for an additional 3-5 minutes until the sauce thickens slightly, and the flavors meld beautifully.
Notes
Nutrition
Your questions, answered
How do I know when the ground pork is fully cooked?
Ground pork is safe to eat when it reaches an internal temperature of 160°F (71°C) with no pink remaining anywhere in the meat. If you don’t have a meat thermometer, break up a larger piece and check the center — it should be completely gray-brown throughout before you add the broth.
Can I use regular supermarket paprika instead of Hungarian paprika?
Yes, standard sweet paprika works fine here. Hungarian sweet paprika has a slightly deeper, more complex flavor, but the dish will still taste good with whatever sweet paprika you have on hand — just avoid smoked paprika, which will pull the flavor in a completely different direction.
What if I don’t have caraway seeds?
You can leave them out without ruining the dish. They add a mild, slightly earthy note, but the paprika and sour cream are doing the heavy lifting in this sauce — the caraway is a background detail, not a load-bearing ingredient.
Try these next
- Savory Pork Noodle Stir-Fry
- Hearty Beef Mushroom Stroganoff
- Peruvian Cilantro Pork Stew
- Cumberland Sausage Mince Pie
