The day before, cut up your chicken into ten pieces (two wings, two drumsticks, two thighs, and the breast cut into four pieces, in half along the breastbone and then in half again across).

Place in a large bowl and marinate with the juice of a whole freshly squeezed lemon, salt, pepper, a finely minced garlic clove or two, a generous grating of nutmeg and a good pour of olive oil. Let it marinate in the fridge overnight. Mix at least once during this period to ensure even marination.

The next day, when you are ready to cook, let the chicken come back to room temperature by removing it from the fridge about an hour ahead of time.

In a large, heavy skillet, heat enough olive oil to come at least 2cm (3/4 inch) up the sides until it is quite hot (but not smoking). Then take each piece of chicken (tongs are very useful here) and dredge it successively in flour and then in beaten egg, and then immediately into the hot oil.

Fry over moderate heat until the chicken is golden brown on all sides. This should take about 15-20 minutes. If you are not ready to eat the chicken right away, you can keep the pieces warm, on a baking rack set over a cookie sheet in the oven.

Serve hot, sprinkled with additional salt (preferably some fine sea salt) with some lemon wedges on the side, and accompanied by a nice green salad.