I am proud of my international family. I am Korean- American, and my husband is English-Norwegian. One of my sisters is Japanese. And my brothers in law are English, Hispanic, and Filipino.
So Roland, my Filipino brother-in-law, treats us to some amazing Filipino food at some of our family gatherings. Roland is a great cook and I really need to pick his brains more about Filipino food. And I yearn to learn more about this amazing cuisine!
What is Adobo?
I wanted to start off my exploration of Filipino cuisine with the classic Filipino Chicken Adobo. First off, chicken adobo is easy and simple to make, and is one of the most famous Filipino foods.
The word “adobo” comes from the Spanish word adobar which means marinate. Chicken adobo is chicken marinated in a mixture of soy sauce and vinegar.
The BEST Filipino Chicken Adobo Recipe!
Certainly and thankfully I came across the BEST Filipino Chicken Adobo recipe on my first go! This recipe is from Marvin Gapultos, a Filipino American food blogger. Mr. Gapultos is bringing Filipino cuisine to a worldwide audience. I am grateful to Mr. Gapultos, who writes the blog Burnt Lumpia, for allowing me to publish his recipe in my post!
This chicken adobo recipe is from his book The Adobo Road Cookbook, which you can purchase on Amazon. And I really look forward to discovering more of his delicious Filipino recipes. Therefore I’ll consult The Adobo Road Cookbook, as well as Burnt Lumpia!
You will be amazed at the simplicity of this dish! For instance, there are very few ingredients in this recipe. And it comes together so beautifully. All you need is bone-in skin-on chicken thighs, soy sauce, vinegar, garlic, bay leaves, and peppercorns. That’s it!
So you must try this amazing recipe soon! In summary, enjoy this taste of the Philippines right in your own home!
Classic Chicken Adobo
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup soy sauce
- 1/2 cup white Filipino cane vinegar, or distilled white vinegar
- 6-8 cloves garlic, smashed with the side of a knife and peeled
- 1 ts whole black peppercorns
- 2 bay leaves
- 6 chicken thighs, skin-on, bone-in
Instructions
- Place the soy sauce, vinegar, garlic, black peppercorns, and bay leaves in a large, nonreactive sauté pan, and then nestle the chicken thighs, skin side down, into the pan. Bring the liquid to a boil over high heat, and then cover and simmer over low heat for 20 minutes. Turn the chicken over, and then cover and simmer for another 10 minutes.
- Uncover the pan, and then increase the heat to high and return the sauce to a boil. While occasionally turning and basting the chicken, continue boiling the sauce, uncovered, until it is reduced by half and thickens slightly, 5–7 minutes. Serve with steamed white rice.
- Variations: While the sauce is reducing, transfer the chicken thighs, skin side up, to a foil-lined sheet pan. Brown the chicken thighs underneath the broiler for 3–5 minutes.Use freshly ground black pepper instead of whole peppercorns.For a “drier” chicken adobo, you can reduce the sauce until it is almost completely evaporated. The chicken will then begin to fry in its own fat that is still left in the pan. This is how my grandmother finishes her adobo. For a saucier adobo, double the amount of soy sauce and vinegar.To make this adobo as an appetizer, use 2 lbs (1 kg) of chicken wings instead of thighs.
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