CHICKEN WITH RICE

Time: 30 minutes
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 medium onions, about 8 ounces, peeled and sliced
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 chicken, cut up into serving pieces
1 1/2 cups white rice
Pinch saffron, optional
Freshly minced parsley or cilantro for garnish
Lemon or lime wedges.

1. Set 3 cups of water to boil. Place olive oil in a large skillet that can be covered, and turn heat to medium-high. Add onions and a sprinkling of salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onions soften and become translucent, 5 to 10 minutes. Remove skin from chicken.

2. Add rice to onions; stir until each grain glistens; sprinkle with saffron, and stir. Nestle chicken in rice, add a little more salt and pepper and pour in the boiling water. Turn heat to medium-low, and cover.

3. Cook 20 minutes, until all water is absorbed and chicken is cooked through. (You can keep this warm over a very low flame for another 15 minutes; it will retain its heat for 15 minutes beyond that.) Garnish and serve with lemon or lime.

Yield: 4 to 6 servings.