I am supposed to be blogging about writing, and life. But what is life without chicken curry–and how is one supposed to spend good quality time writing when one is going to need recipes that can be made in the blink of an eye?

Let’s face it: sometimes when you are too busy, you get sick of living on peanut butter crackers.

Last month I wrote about the best pot roast ever–and it is wonderful, but it takes a long time to make. If you love curry but you don’t have a lot of time, here is another recipe from Mark Bittman, this one from his book, “The Minimalist Cooks at Home.”

You’ll need:

1 tablespoon of canola oil

1 medium onion, peeled and sliced

salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 1/2 teaspoons of curry powder, or to taste (we use a whole lot more!)

1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, in pieces

1 cup of sour cream

minced cilantro or parsley leaves for garnish (if you are in a truly big hurry, you might not care about garnish)

1. Place the oil in a large skillet and turn the heat to medium-high. Add the onion, and sprinkle with some salt and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until it’s tranlucent, about 5 minutes. Turn the heat to medium, sprinkle with about half of the curry powder and continue to cook for a minute or two.

2. Meanwhile, season the chicken with salt and pepper to taste and sprinkle it with the remaining curry powder. Move the onion to one side of the skillet and add the chicken in one layer. Cook for about 2 minutes per side, remove to a plate. (We often add cauliflower to this stage, just because we love the taste of curried cauliflower.)

3. Add the sour cream and stir constantly over medium-low heat until the mixture is nice and thick. Return the chicken to the skillet and cook for 2 more minutes, turning once. Garnish and serve with plenty of white rice.