Living in Columbus, Mississippi, means learning to manage expectations, especially when it comes to our grocery stores.

Our Kroger is small. Respectably small, but still small. It has nothing on the Starkville Kroger, which is twice the size, has a Starbucks inside, and boasts a cheese and charcuterie section fancy enough to make you feel underdressed. I shop there occasionally and admire it, the way you admire a friend’s beautifully organized pantry before going home to your own reality.

Still, I have to give our Kroger its due: That place is full of sales – even if it never announces one.

There’s no clearance aisle, no designated bargain bin. Instead, the deals are scattered throughout the store, quietly marked down with yellow-and-red stickers right where the items would normally live. It’s hit or miss, sometimes you can get through your shopping without seeing a single sale item. You have to be paying attention. I can spot those stickers from across the aisle now.

That’s part of the fun. Shopping there feels like a scavenger hunt, and I will happily reroute an entire grocery list and meal plan around whatever I happen to find at a discount.

Last week, it started in the produce section. I spotted a bag of green beans marked down, still crisp and bright, the kind you’d be happy to put on the table without apology. I added them to my cart, pleased with myself, and moved on.

Then, later – just when I thought my luck had probably run out – I found a whole chicken in the meat department, already broken down and marked down for a quick sale. Dinner plans shifted immediately.

That chicken became the inspiration for this week’s recipe – a riff on Ina Garten’s Perfect Roast Chicken.

Ina’s original version is iconic for a reason: simple, reliable and deeply comforting. It’s the kind of meal that makes a house smell like someone has their life together.

Of course, Ina starts with a whole bird, and mine had already been separated into parts by the butcher. Instead of fighting that, I leaned into it. Roasting chicken pieces turns out to be even faster, just as flavorful, and far less intimidating on a weeknight.

This version keeps everything that makes Ina’s recipe great – lemon, garlic, thyme, butter and a hot oven – while adapting it for how many of us actually shop and cook. It’s proof that a yellow-sticker dinner doesn’t have to feel like a compromise. Sometimes, it’s the best thing on the table.

ROASTED CHICKEN PIECES WITH LEMON, GARLIC AND THYME

Adapted from Ina Garten’s Perfect Roast Chicken
Serves: 3 to 4

Ingredients:
1 whole chicken, cut into pieces (about 4 to 5 pounds total)
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 large bunch fresh thyme
1 lemon, halved
1 head garlic, halved crosswise
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 large onion, thickly sliced
1/2 to 1 cup chicken stock

Instructions:
■ Heat the oven to 425 degrees.
■ Pat the chicken pieces dry with paper towels and arrange them skin-side up in a large roasting pan or rimmed baking sheet. Season generously with salt and pepper.
■ Scatter the onion slices around the chicken. Nestle the thyme sprigs, lemon halves and garlic among the pieces. Brush the chicken with melted butter and season again lightly with salt and pepper.
■ Roast for 45 to 55 minutes, until the skin is golden brown and the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees. If the pan looks dry, add a splash of chicken stock during cooking.
■ Transfer the chicken to a platter and loosely cover with foil. Pour the pan juices into a small saucepan, adding more stock if needed. Bring to a simmer, scraping up the browned bits, and season to taste.
■ Serve the chicken with the pan juices spooned over the top. Excellent alongside roasted potatoes, rice or those green beans you found on sale.