Chicken and Rice. Don't judge the simplicity, man.

I know I promised you my homemade chicken feed recipe today, but I'm not in the mood for it. I'm in the mood for chicken and rice.

A few weeks ago, when we visited our friends in Macon, we arrived after a painfully long and grueling journey to a dinner of chicken and rice. And raw milk.

I can't remember ever feeling so satisfied.

Why?

Was it in the simplicity?

The ease?

The soul reviving properties that only chicken can bring?

I still don't know. What I do know is that since that meal at Alex and Lauren's, I've made this dish approximately seventy times. I can't help myself. It brings me inner carnivore, grain-eating peace.

Chicken and Rice
You will need:
- 1 whole roaster chicken
- 1 1/2 cups organic rice (I have used basmati, jasmine, and short-grain brown with great results)
- 1/2 cup organic lentils
- 4 1/2 cups homemade chicken stock (or water)
- Fresh herbs
- Sea salt and pepper
- High-quality butter

Step One: Roast (like this) or boil the chicken (such as when making stock) until the chicken is cooked through. Remove to a plate and let cool. I've found one of the easiest ways to cook the chicken is simply to throw it into a stock pot with about eight cups of water for a few hours.

Step Two: Shred the chicken from the bones. You'll be left with a large plate of succulent chicken. Try not to eat too much while you complete the next steps.

Step Three: In a large saucepan or rice cooker, combine the rice, lentils, and chicken stock. Bring to a boil and cook until tender, about thirty minutes.

Step Four: Once the rice has cooked, scoop it into a large bowl (you can be jealous of my 1960s avocado color bowl if you want...I got it at a garage sale). Add in the cooked and shredded chicken.

Step Five: Sprinkle the chicken and rice generously with freshly chopped herbs (such as rosemary, thyme, basil, tarragon, and parsley). Then, give it a generous (GENEROUS, I SAY!) dollop of butter. Like a quarter-cup or so. Lastly, sprinkle it with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.

I know, I know. It's a super plain-Jane recipe. There is no POP. No pizazz. No fireworks.

But I'm okay with that sometimes. Sometimes, I don't want paprika and cumin. Sometimes, I want simplicity. I want plain-Jane. I want butter. And salt. And the basics of meat and grains.

Naturally, I serve it alongside some delicious summer vegetables, such as roasted asparagus. So fantastic and easy.

After all the long days we've been putting in on the Beatha Fonn (did you hear about our new farm's name?) a large meal like this has been really popular with the farm hands (that is, Georgia, Stuart, and my father-in-law). Isn't there a saying about that? Feeding your farm hands well?

Regardless, it's still fantastic. I hope you can enjoy spectacular minimalism of this dish as much as I do.

For other great meal ideas, no matter what your dietary restrictions, check out the meal planning service I use: Real Plans.

Chicken and Rice

• 1 whole roaster chicken
• 1 ½ cups organic rice ((I have used basmati, jasmine, and short-grain brown with great results))
• ½ cup organic lentils
• 4 ½ cups homemade chicken stock (or water)
• Fresh herbs
• Sea salt and pepper
• High-quality butter

1. Roast (like this) or boil the chicken (such as when making stock) until the chicken is cooked through. Remove to a plate and let cool. I've found one of the easiest ways to cook the chicken is simply to throw it into a stock pot with about eight cups of water for a few hours.

2. Shred the chicken from the bones. You'll be left with a large plate of succulent chicken. Try not to eat too much while you complete the next steps.

3. In a large saucepan or rice cooker, combine the rice, lentils, and chicken stock. Bring to a boil and cook until tender, about thirty minutes.

4. In a large saucepan or rice cooker, combine the rice, lentils, and chicken stock. Bring to a boil and cook until tender, about thirty minutes.

5. Sprinkle the chicken and rice generously with freshly chopped herbs (such as rosemary, thyme, basil, tarragon, and parsley). Then, give it a generous (GENEROUS, I SAY!) dollop of butter. Like a quarter-cup or so. Lastly, sprinkle it with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.