Here it is, my tried and tested, foolproof Filipino Chicken Adobo recipe. Don’t skip frying it a little bit in the end because that’s what makes it taste amazing!
I think I’ve lost track of the different variations of Filipino Chicken Adobo that I’ve come up with ever since going Paleo. More often than not, I don’t really measure the ingredients and just eyeball and taste it as it cooks. Maybe that’s why I’m a horrible baker because I never measure. But I digress.
Sometime in summer last year, I finally got myself to measure and write down the exact quantities that I used when I made my chicken adobo. I cooked it a few times, had some friends make it, shared it on my Instagram and Facebook for everyone else to try. The verdict? Everyone LOVED it. The flavors are perfect every time I made it. I even had a few people tell me that it’s their new favorite chicken adobo recipe!
Filipino Chicken Adobo
Ingredients
- 3 pounds bone-in chicken cut into 3-inch pieces *or sub drumsticks
- 2/3 cup apple cider vinegar
- 2/3 cup coconut aminos
- 6 cloves garlic crushed
- 2 tsp ground black pepper
- 2 tsp sea salt
- 3 dried bay leaves
- 2 tbsp oil of your choice *For frying
Instructions
-
Place chicken in a large pot.
-
Add apple cider vinegar, coconut aminos, garlic, black pepper, sea salt and dried bay leaves on top of the chicken.
-
Turn on heat to medium-high.
-
Once it starts to boil, cover the pot and reduce heat to medium-low. Let it simmer for 20-25 minutes.
-
Remove the bay leaves and transfer cooked chicken and the sauce in a large bowl.
-
Using the same pot, increase the heat to medium-high and add oil of your choice.
-
Add the chicken back into the pot minus the sauce. Pan fry until the outside is golden brown. About 3-4 minutes.
-
Once all the chicken pieces are browned, pour the sauce back into the pot. Reduce heat to medium.
-
Let it simmer for a few more minutes until slightly thickened.
-
Serve with lots of white rice or cauliflower rice.
Do you mean boneless chicken Jennie?
Hello Nikki, it’s bone-in. Get a whole or half chicken since it doesn’t dry up like boneless chicken.
I think step 1 should be to add all ingredients except avocado oil AND CHICKEN. Or no?
No, you put everything together in a pot (including chicken) to cook them all together except the avocado oil. The oil is used in the end for frying. Hope this helps!
Just tried this last night… it was EXCELLENT!! any chance you know the macros?:-)
I’m glad to hear you enjoyed it Pat! I didn’t calculate the macros for this since it uses chicken with bones and includes the skin, white and dark meat so it will not be consistent per serving. Just think of it as a treat meal 😉
Yum, this looks like my Lola used to make…she never fried it at the end, but I’m excited to try it! Just discovered you and your blog but I can’t wait to try your other Filipino dishes!!
Let me know when you get to make this adobo 🙂
I made your adobo for dinner last night! With white rice, for nostalgia. It was tasty, and definitely a good substitute for the soy sauce version that I grew up on. 🙂
Any chance you’ll have a pancit recipe coming up? I’d love some good noodle recommendations, if you have them. Thanks!!
Adobo is definitely best eaten with white rice 🙂 Yes I do have a super easy pancit recipe in my book One-Pot Paleo. Stacy from Paleo Parents shared it on their blog so go check it out 🙂 I use the classic rice noodles because it’s the best way to eat pancit! http://paleoparents.com/2015/one-pot-paleo-pancit/
Awesome, thanks!! I’ll definitely check it out. I’m excited to try your other recipes also!!
Hi Jenny! I’m just starting with paleo and was so happy to find your site with filipino recipes. Avocado oil is very expensive in Manila, can I replace it with olive oil or coconut oil?
Yes you can use coconut or olive oil as an alternative 🙂
Hi – Can I just use 3 lbs of Chicken Thighs? I’m not that good on cutting up whole chickens. BTW glad I came across your blog. Looking for healthier ways to cook filipino food
Yes chicken thighs would work!
Woo…I have all the ingredients…will be making this for dinner tonight!
Yay let me know how it turns out!
I am making it again tonight 🙂
Yay! 🙂
Ok, this may be a dumb question. I have split chicken breasts and I take it I should cut them up in 3 inch strips keeping the bone on?
Yes make sure you keep the bone on! Just use a very sharp knife to cut it.
Trying to cut up a whole raw chicken into 3 inch pieces was quite a fight! The chicken won😬 So I just have the whole pieces cooking right now. I’m worried I will end up with a lot of fat in the broth. My plan is to cut up the chicken after it’s cooked and proceed with the recipe. 😔 Next time boneless thighs for me. I will let you know how it goes.
You can use chicken drumsticks too! I’ll update the recipe to make it easier 🙂
Want to try subbing the chicken with pork shoulder roast. Thoughts?
Pork belly is a good sub for chicken. I wouldn’t recommend pork shoulder roast since it needs a longer cooking time to become tender. You would need to use a fattier cut of pork for it to turn out well.
Thanks! I went with the shoulder cut anyway, and it came out surprisingly well, but I will try the pork belly next time.
Can this be made in a crock pot?
Yes but i dont know for how long. you’ll have to experiment 🙂
Have you tried using coconut vinegar?
Hi Jenny – Do you have a recommendation to replace the Apple Cider Vinegar? It doesn’t agree with me. :
Hi Natalie, you can use regular white cane vinegar in lieu of the apple cider vinegar. If you still can’t so any type of vinegars, there is really no substitute for it…
Sooo good! My favorite recipe on the blog!
This recipe is another one of my favorites, along with Jenny’s Mongolian beef and her beef tapa. This one requires a little more time to cook than most of the recipes I make from this blog, so I usually save it for the weekend as a treat to myself and my son.That being said, the recipe itself is pretty easy to make. To cut down on prep time I buy the packaged chicken legs at Trader Joe’s.
I tried it this morning. I follow the instruction except pork ang ginamit ko. hindi kasi pwede si wifey ng chicken, but the outcome…. It’s Fantastic. they love it. Thanks mam for this recipe. Thanks for the blog
Yay pork works too 🙂
I love that you use acv and aminos – this was just what I was looking for!
This recipe if one of my absolute favorites (currently doing whole30, so LOVE that it’s compliant). Just made it today and instead of pan frying on the stove, I brought outside to our grill on high heat (reduced the sauce as normal inside) and it came out amazing.
Tried your recipe today and it was so good!! Flipped the boil -> fry to fry -> saute with garlic and onion -> boil tho cause that’s how my family does it. Hehe. Thanks for this recipe!
Nice, easy, and clean version of a traditional dish. I have made it several times. One to put in your recipe box.
Just made this tonight for meal prep for the week. SO easy and flavorful as heck. This will def be in the meal prep rotation from now on. I love how simple the ingredient list is. *I used regular soy sauce (I don’t have coconut aminos on hand ever lol, & added in a little Sambal Oelek for a spicy kick*.
This recipe is fantastic and turns out perfectly every time!
Huge fan of this recipe! I make it very often and it’s always a hit. Great for dinner parties and for meal prep.