Southern Fried Chicken With Onion Gravy

Preheat the oven to its lowest setting. Then line a large shallow baking dish with paper towels and place it in the center of the oven.

Pat the pieces of chicken completely dry with paper towels and season them on all sides with 2 t of the salt and a few grindings of pepper. One at a time dip the pieces in the flour and turn to coat them evenly. Shake each piece vigorously to remove the excess flour.

Melt the lard over high heat in a heavy 12-inch skillet at least 2 inches deep and equipped with a tightly fitting lid. When melted, the fat should be about 1/2 inch deep; add more lard if necessary. When the lard is very hot but not smoking, place the pieces of chicken skin side down in the skillet and set the lid on top. Fry over high heat for 5 minutes, turn the pieces of chicken with tongs and continue to fry, still tightly covered, for 4 to 5 minutes longer, or until the chicken is richly and evenly browned on both sides.

Transfer the chicken to the paper-lined dish and keep it warm in the oven while you prepare the onion gravy. Pour off all but about 1 T of the fat remaining in the skillet and in its place add the onions. Sprinkle them with the remaining flour for the gravy and, stirring frequently, cook over high heat for 3 or 4 minutes, or until the onions are soft and golden brown.

Stirring them constantly with a spoon, pour in the water in a slow stream and cook until the gravy comes to a boil, thickens and is smooth. Stir in the vinegar, the remaining 1/2 t of salt and a few grindings of pepper. Remove the skillet from the heat and taste the gravy for seasoning.