Galinha Caipira

Ingredients

• 2.5 kg whole chicken
• 1 cup onions, diced
• 0.5 cup chives, diced
• 1 tbsp lard
• kettle boiled water
• salt
• black pepper

Method

Cut the chicken into eight pieces: two breasts, two thighs, two drumsticks, two wings. Leave the skin on. This is a braising dish, not a roast — the skin won't crisp, but it holds the meat together and releases collagen into the broth. If the backbone and wing tips are still attached to anything, remove them and save for stock another time. Season every piece generously with salt and black pepper on both sides, pressing the seasoning into the skin.

Heat the lard in a cast-iron pot over medium-high heat until the surface shimmers and a wisp of smoke lifts from it. Working in two batches to avoid crowding, lay the chicken skin-side down. Don't move it. After four to five minutes, when the underside releases without resistance and the skin has taken on deep golden colour, flip and sear the other side for three minutes. Remove to a plate. The point is flavour, not colour — you're building fond that will deepen the broth, not cooking the chicken through.

Tip the diced onions into the rendered fat and lard. Stir constantly for two minutes, then lower the heat to medium. After another six to eight minutes, the onions will soften and take on amber at the edges — they should smell sweet and almost caramelised, not raw. This develops their natural sugars and adds body to the eventual broth.

Return the chicken to the pot, skin-side up, and pour in enough boiling water to reach three-quarters of the way up the thighs. Bring to a gentle simmer — not a rolling boil, which will make the meat tough and cloud the broth. Partially cover with the lid (leave a gap so steam escapes). Simmering for ninety minutes will render the thighs and drumsticks tender; the breasts will be done in sixty. Check the liquid level after forty-five minutes and top up with hot water if it's dropped below half-way.

Five minutes before serving, scatter the diced chives over the surface and stir through. Taste and adjust the salt — the broth should taste assertive. Serve directly from the pot, spooning broth and meat into bowls. This is peasant cooking: no garnish needed, just good fat, good bone, good time.