Recipe - Potted Chicken With Kasha And Gravy

1 lg Frying chicken; cut up
Kosher or other coarse salt
1 tablespoon Olive oil
1 tablespoon Margarine
3 lg Onions; cut up
Garlic powder
Ground black pepper
Paprika
One half cup Warm water
1 cup Small pasta shells
1 cup Mediumgrain kasha; see*
Note

* Note: Kasha is roasted buckwheat groats. Schneider uses Wolff's kasha,
which she cooks in chickenflavored broth made with Croyden House kosher
bouillon.

Soak chicken in salted water to cover for 30 minutes. Rinse; pat dry. Heat
olive oil and margarine in a heavy skillet that has a lid or in a Dutch
oven over mediumhigh heat; brown nions well. Push onions aside and add
chicken pieces, placing dark meat in center of pan; brown well. Season
chicken and onions well with garlic powder, pepper and paprika. Add warm
water. Cover pan. Place hand on lid to hold it tight; continue cooking
chicken and onions over mediumhigh heat until lid becomes too hot to
touch. (Schneider says this creates a seal that helps keep in the steam,
making the chicken moist and creating a rich gravy.) Turn heat very low and
cook for 1 hour (or transfer to a 275 degree oven and cook for 1 1/2
hours). Shortly before serving, cook pasta according to package directions.
Drain; set aside. Cook kasha according to package directions, preferably in
broth (see note). Stir cooked pasta into cooked kasha. When chicken is done
cooking, remove it to serving platter; keep warm. Season gravy in pan with
salt and pepper to taste and stir into kasha mixture; heat through if
necessary. Yields 4 generous