A CLASSIC CHICKEN, WITH BROWN-RICE TWIST, FOR EVERY POT.

Byline: Jacques Pepin Special to the Daily News

In 16th-century France, the good King Henry IV proclaimed that each family should have a chicken in its pot every Sunday. Even without a royal proclamation, this is still the case in most households in France.

The classic poulet au riz from that earlier period generally was made with a hen that was cooked a long time with rice and sometimes a vegetable. Today, as then, this is an ideal dish for a Sunday family dinner and is equally as good during the week, especially on cool evenings this spring.

In this version, I use short-grain brown rice, which requires long cooking to achieve that chewy, elastic texture that is so appealing. It can take 30 minutes to an hour for the rice to absorb all of the liquid in the recipe.

The 45 minutes indicated here is an average projected cooking time. If you are familiar with a particular brand of brown rice and know that it cooks in less than 45 minutes, cut back a little on the liquid.

Start the chicken along with all the vegetables and the salt in cold water. Wrap the seasonings - thyme, bay leaves and black peppercorns - in a small piece of cheesecloth or any plain fabric, and tie securely with string before adding to the pot. This pouch prevents the seasonings from dispersing throughout the stock, which is not strained after cooking.

Two chickens are placed breast side down in a relatively narrow stock pot, snugly side by side with very little space around them so the nine cups of water in the recipe will be enough to cover them.

The technique of keeping the chickens submerged in the water while they cook, boiling them gently for about 20 minutes and leaving them in the hot stock, covered, for an additional length of time creates a very moist, tender chicken.

The chicken is served on top of the rice, which will be soft, chewy and much more moist than conventional rice. The result is earthy, savory and relatively low in calories, especially if the skin of the chicken is removed and most of the fat from the stock is skimmed off.

This menu begins with a coleslaw that contains cabbage, carrots, mayonnaise, vinegar and a dash of curry to give it a tang. It is an invigorating dish, and the perfect beginning to this meal.

For dessert, try seasonal fruit like strawberries or melon. Check the supermarket for the best quality and prices.

A chardonnay from Washington state goes well with this menu. Some, like Latah Creek, are very spicy, polished and well-priced.

CURRY COLESLAW

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1/4 cup cider vinegar 

2 tablespoons sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

2 teaspoons poppy seeds

1/2 teaspoon Tabasco sauce

1 1/2 teaspoons curry powder 

1 small cabbage, shredded (8 to 9 cups packed)

2 carrots, peeled and shredded (1 1/2 cups packed)

In a bowl large enough to hold finished coleslaw, mix together mayonnaise, vinegar, sugar, salt, poppy seeds, Tabasco and curry powder. Add cabbage and carrots, and mix well.

Serve immediately, or cover and refrigerate. Coleslaw will keep up to 1 day. Makes 6 servings.

NUTRITION INFORMATION PER SERVING: 200 calories; 15 grams fat; 11 milligrams cholesterol; 675 milligrams sodium; 2 grams protein; 15 grams carbohydrate.

POACHED POULET WITH BROWN RICE

2 chickens (about 3 pounds EACH, minus necks and gizzards)

4 1/2 cups chopped onions

2 cups chopped carrots (about 3 carrots)

1 1/2 cups chopped celery (about 2 ribs)

3 teaspoons salt

Water

1 teaspoon dried thyme

4 bay leaves

2 teaspoons black peppercorns

1 1/4 cups brown short-grain rice

Place chickens breast side down and side by side in a pot just large enough to hold them snugly. Add onions, carrots, celery, 2 teaspoons salt and 9 cups cold tap water.

Wrap thyme, bay leaves and peppercorns together in a small piece cheesecloth and tie ends of package together securely with a kitchen string. Add pouch to pot containing chickens.

Place an overturned ovenproof dinner plate (a little smaller than cooking pot) on top of chickens to hold them under water. Bring mixture to a boil (it should take 12 to 15 minutes), reduce heat to low, cover with a lid and boil chickens 20 minutes. Turn off heat and let chickens remain in pot, covered, to continue cooking in residual heat of stock 30 to 45 minutes.

Remove chickens from stock and place on a platter. You should have about 12 cups stock and vegetables remaining.

Using a ladle, skim and discard as much or as little of fat from surface of liquid as desired. Set aside 2 cups stock and vegetables and leave remaining 10 cups in cooking pot.

When chickens are cold enough to handle, remove skins and separate each chicken into 4 pieces. Leave on bones or pull meat in large chunks from bones.

Place chicken in a gratin dish and cover with 2 cups reserved stock and vegetables. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside until ready to reheat, or cover with foil and keep warm in preheated 130-degree oven until rice is prepared.

For rice, combine rice, remaining 1 teaspoon salt and remaining 10 cups stock and vegetables together in pot used to cook chickens. Bring mixture to a boil, stirring occasionally. When liquid is boiling, reduce heat to medium or low, cover with a lid and boil 45 minutes, until rice is cooked but mixture is still slightly runny.

Serve rice with pieces of chicken on top and about 2 tablespoons rice cooking liquid spooned over each serving. Makes 6 servings.

NUTRITION INFORMATION PER SERVING: 515 calories; 15 grams fat; 140 milligrams cholesterol; 1,225 milligrams sodium; 50 grams protein; 40 grams carbohydrate.

VARIATION: For an additional meal using leftovers, remove any leftover chicken from bones and cut into pieces. Combine with rice, and cook in a large stainless steel skillet over medium to high heat 20 minutes, or until a nice crust forms on bottom. Invert skillet onto a plate, remove chicken-and-rice mixture and cut into wedges. Serve with a few drops of Tabasco sauce sprinkled on top, if desired.