Chicken à la crème with rice and chicken-skin crackling

Skin the chicken thighs and trim off big lumps of fat; put the fat trimmings in a little pot on low heat to render.

Debone the thighs: cut down to the bone, peel the meat off, get under the bone and push it out. Season with pepper and salt on all sides.

Heat butter in a big pan over moderate heat and lay the chicken in pretty side first; brown gently, keeping the color light.

Flip the thighs when they have a little color and add the cut-up onion.

Remove the solids from the rendered fat with a slotted spoon and discard.

Stir dry, unwashed rice into the hot fat and toast for a minute, until it smells toasty; add water, about 1.5 times the rice by volume or a little less, and a pinch of salt.

Scatter the flour over the chicken pan and stir it into the fat without letting it brown much; add white wine and deglaze.

When the rice boils, cover and reduce to a simmer.

Add chicken stock most of the way up the sides of the meat; bring to a simmer and cook until the chicken is done.

Lay the salted skins flat and bake into crackling at 400 F (200 C).

Flip the chicken; add more stock if a thinner sauce is wanted.

Add frozen peas to the rice when it is about done, just to thaw. Check the chicken is done by poking it.

Stir in cream, about a tablespoon per piece of chicken, and boil it so it thickens and emulsifies the sauce.

Taste and add salt as needed. Fluff the rice with a fork.

Mold the rice in a bowl onto a big plate, snip wild alliums and tarragon into the sauce, place the chicken, and add the crackling.