Chicken Adobo
Updated July 31, 2024
- Total Time
- 1½ hours, plus 1 to 8 hours’ marinating
- Prep Time
- 10 minutes
- Cook Time
- 1 hour 20 minutes, plus 1 to 8 hours’ marinating
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
- 6bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs or a combination of thighs and drumsticks (about 2½ pounds total)
- ⅓cup low-sodium or regular soy sauce
- 6garlic cloves, smashed
- 2tablespoons vegetable or grapeseed oil
- 3fresh or dried bay leaves
- 1teaspoon black peppercorns
- ⅓cup cane vinegar (or white, cider or rice vinegar), plus more as needed
- 2teaspoons granulated sugar, plus more to taste (optional)
- Cooked rice, for serving
Nutritional analysis per serving (6 servings)
532 calories; 37 grams fat; 9 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 14 grams monounsaturated fat; 10 grams polyunsaturated fat; 14 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram dietary fiber; 2 grams sugars; 34 grams protein; 935 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
- Step 1
Trim the excess fat from the chicken. Place the chicken in a large resealable bag or container. Add the soy sauce and garlic, move the chicken around to coat, seal the bag or cover the container, and marinate in the fridge for 1 to 8 hours.
- Step 2
In a large pan (with a lid), heat the oil over medium-high. When shimmering, adjust heat to medium, scrape off any garlic clinging to the chicken (reserving the garlic along with the marinade) and add the pieces to the pan. Brown the chicken, about 3 minutes per side. You might have to do this in batches to avoid overcrowding the pan.
- Step 3
When all the chicken has been browned (if working in batches, return all the chicken pieces to the pan), add the marinade with the garlic, bay leaves, peppercorns and ¾ cup water. Adjust heat to high and bring to a boil, then decrease heat to low, cover and cook until the chicken is tender, about 40 minutes.
- Step 4
Adjust heat to medium and add the vinegar and sugar, if using. Simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes, until the flavors come together. The sharpness of the vinegar will soften as the adobo cooks. Taste the adobo (sauce). It should have a pleasant tang from the vinegar, enough to make you take notice but not overpower the other flavors. If it’s too sour, balance the adobo by adding more sugar. If not sour enough, add a little more vinegar. You can reduce the sauce further by cooking it longer, if desired. Serve over rice, spooning the sauce over the chicken.
- You can use 6 boneless, skinless chicken thighs instead of bone-in, skin-on thighs; simply cut the total cooking time to 25 to 30 minutes.
Private Notes
Comments
No Filipino I know has ever marinated adobo or used cane vinegar when making adobo. We use rice vinegar and we never add sugar. Don’t worry about the strong vinegar flavor, it cooks off after 45 minutes. This recipe works for a flavorful adobo but it has made it more complicated than necessary. You can brown the chicken or just put it to boil straight away. It is finished when the meat easily comes off the bone.
Omg, my fellow Filipinos need to chill. No adobo is ever the same. We come from an archipelago where each region has their own variation! Some regions use turmeric, some use just vinegar without soy sauce. Heck, my lola’s (grandma) adobo is different from mine — hers is soupy and mine is saucy. I’ve always added a bit of sugar or oyster sauce. You do you! Thanks Naz, another adobo recipe to try!
Half Filipina here- my dad is from Ilocos and he makes adobo with cider vinegar or cane vinegar, sometimes even balsamic! A dash of fish sauce too for some savory flavor… never added sugar but it might be delicious! Adobo is like any national dish, every house has its own way of cooking it, and thinks theirs is the best!
Made this pretty much according to the recipe. Marinated for ~3 hrs, doubled the garlic, used rice vinegar thinking that would be the least acidic. Can't remember if I added sugar, but 2 tsps will hardly be noticeable in any event. Delicious, easy & SO fragrant.
Good recipe! I added sliced fresh jalapenos to the oil/sauce after browning the chicken, then after a couple of minutes I added the water, bay leaf, peppercorns and the browned chicken. Turned out great!
I've cooked adobo before and I like this version too. It's delicious! In fact, it's one of the recipes my family prefers. For those who have so many not-so-nice things to say about this recipe, just make your version. No need for negativity. There are many ways to make adobo and there's no one right way to cook the dish. It's all about the region the recipe is from and also personal preference. Happy cooking everyone!
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