Ingredients

　　

Step 1

Rinse a 3- to 4-pound bird well and rub it all over with a generous amount of kosher salt. Place the bird and its neck in a pot that fits them comfortably. Fill the pot with cold water to cover by about an inch, and add aromatics: garlic, fresh ginger, scallions, and sherry; or dried chiles, cumin seeds, and bay leaves; or wine, fresh thyme, leeks, and black peppercorns. Bring to a boil over high heat, and then immediately reduce the heat so the water simmers. Check the seasoning of the stock; it should be as salty as a well-seasoned soup broth. Simmer for 5 minutes and then remove from the heat. Cover tightly and let sit for about 1 hour. The chicken will be perfectly cooked: the white meat still juicy and rosy at the bone, and the dark just done as well. Let the chicken cool completely in the broth. Remove the bird, leaving the liquid and aromatics behind in the pot.

　　

Step 2

With a little more time, you can make a more flavorful stock: Pick the meat from the bones, and reserving the meat, return the bones to the pot. Bring the broth to a simmer, add additional flavorings if desired, and cook for 1 hour or longer, adding water as necessary. With lots of chicken and a rich stock, you have an on-the-spot chicken soup; you can make a cold chicken salad from the pulled breast meat and a little of the broth seasoned with lemon, roasted walnut oil, and scallions; or you can stew the dark meat further in the broth with ground chiles and hominy.

　　Cooking in the Moment