When I don't need the whole thing, there is no better chicken part for my money than whole legs.

This is one of those glorious one-pan meals. I usually add a green salad or a cooked vegetable, but it's not necessary. Served with a cold beer or a glass of Chardonnay, this is one of my favorite ways to end the day--and it's just enough for 2 (or 2 nights worth of dinner for 1).

When I don't need the whole thing, there is no better chicken part for my money than whole legs. Comprised of both the thigh and the drumstick, these tender, deeply flavorful chicken pieces work well in nearly every way--on the grill, cooked in mole, or roasted. They also feature a slightly higher fat content than chicken breasts, and therefore are ideal for cooking along with a root vegetable, as I've done here, since the extra bit of fat coats and flavors the dense veggies. I've used garnet yams here, but regular potatoes, peeled, cubed butternut squash, beets, turnips, or a combination would work nicely as well.

And the best part: one pan means fewer dishes!

Note: This isn't a requirement, but it's one of my favorite tricks: as soon as I open the package of chicken, the first thing I do is trim the excess fat. I saute it along with onions, garlic, ginger, Chinese Five Spice, fish sauce, a dash of soy sauce, water and whatever vegetable scraps I have laying around to make broth for pho. Even if I'm not planning on eating the pho the same day, it's a great, flavorful broth to have on hand, and it takes only a couple of minutes to get started. I let it simmer for a couple of hours, usually while I prepare and serve the chicken, and then simply strain, cool and refrigerate or freeze in an airtight container until I'm ready to use it.