Filipino Chicken Adobo

Yield Serves 3-4
RECIPE Ingredients
  • 1 cup Filipino cane vinegar (see tips)
  • 2/3 cup soy sauce
  • 8 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
  • 1-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and sliced
  • 1 teaspoon whole black peppercorns
  • 3 bay leaves
  • 6 Organic Bone-In Chicken Thighs
  • Steamed rice, for serving
Recipe notes
Quickly braised in a mixture of soy sauce, cane vinegar, and aromatics, this chicken adobo is tender and packed with umami. We adapted this recipe from Marvin Gapultos excellent cookbook, The Adobo Road.
RECIPE Preparation
  1. In a mixing bowl, stir together vinegar, soy sauce, garlic, ginger, peppercorns, and bay leaves; add chicken thighs, turning to coat. Cover with cling film and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, up to 8 hours.
  2. When ready to cook, add chicken skin-side down to a straight-sided saute pan and pour over all the marinade. Heat to a boil over medium-high heat, then reduce heat to low and simmer, covered, for 20 minutes. Turn chicken thighs over and continue to simmer, covered, for 10 more minutes.
  3. Preheat broiler to high.
  4. Uncover the pan and raise heat to high. After 5 minutes of boiling, place chicken thighs skin-side up on a foil-lined sheet pan. Continue to boil sauce until it reduces by half and thickens slightly then turn off the heat. Remove and discard bay leaves and ginger. Meanwhile, broil the thighs until they start to caramelize, about 5 minutes. Serve chicken over rice with sauce.

Recipe Tips: Filipino cane vinegar comes in two styles, white (Sukang Maasim) and dark (Sukang Iloco). Although white is typically used in this dish, you can use the dark as well. Because the dark has been cooked, it will have a slightly sweeter taste and impart a reddish color to the final dish. Filipino cane vinegar can be found in most Asian grocers or online. If you cannot find cane vinegar, white distilled vinegar can be substituted.