DAILY DINNERS

Mix all the thighs in a bowl with the oil and an eighth of a teaspoon of salt.

Heat a 30cm-wide, heavy-based casserole pot for which you have a lid on a medium-high flame. Lay in all the thighs (skin-side down for the two that have some), and leave to fry for five minutes, until golden brown. Turn down the heat to medium, flip over the thighs and fry for another two minutes. Remove the chicken from the pot, leaving the fat in the pot and the pot on the heat. Add the carrots, shallots, lemon peel and rosemary, and fry for four minutes, stirring often, then return the chicken to the pot and add the stock, wine, water, dried mushrooms, sugar and half a teaspoon of salt. Turn the heat to low, cover the pot and leave to simmer for an hour, until the chicken is soft enough to pull apart. Pour the contents of the pan through a sieve into a second pan that’s big enough for all the broth, then discard the contents of the sieve except for the chicken (if you don’t want to waste them, serve the mushrooms and carrots with the soup, or eat them as a cook’s treat). Remove and discard the skin from the two skin-on thighs, then use two forks to shred all the flesh.

Just before serving, melt the butter in a large, non-stick frying pan on a medium-high heat. Leave to bubble for a minute, then add all the mushrooms and a quarter-teaspoon of salt, and fry for eight minutes, stirring often, until golden-brown. Stir in the shredded chicken and cook for three minutes more, until warmed through, adding some of the broth, if it looks dry.

Reheat the broth, if need be, then divide between four shallow bowls. Pile the mushrooms and chicken on top, scatter over the tarragon and chervil, and serve.