Chicken Adobo is easy on prep yet big on flavor. Braised in vinegar, soy sauce, and garlic, this Filipino stew is a delicious medley of savory tastes you’ll love with steamed rice!
Chicken adobo is one of the many variations of the classic Filipino-style of cooking. Like its pork counterpart, this chicken version is made by braising the meat in a mixture of soy sauce, vinegar, and aromatics such as onions, garlic, peppercorns, and bay leaves.
Like most popular dishes, there are many ways to cook this stew. Some recipes include a small amount of sugar to balance the salty and tangy flavors of the dish with a hint of sweetness or minced chili peppers for a kick of heat. Other recipes add liver spread for a richer flavor, use tamarind in place of vinegar, or replace soy sauce with fish sauce.
Pan-fried potatoes or hard-boiled eggs are also common additions to extend the dish.
Adobong manok is the perfect meal you’d want on your weeknight dinner rotation. It requires simple pantry ingredients, cooks in one pan, and is ready in minutes yet tastes like you slaved in the kitchen all day long!
The incredibly tender, flavorful chicken smothered in a boldly-flavored, savory sauce is sure to be a winner at the table. The combination is pure heaven on heaps of steamed rice!
Cooking tips
- To quickly peel the skin, crush the garlic clove with the flat side of a large knife blade to loosen the peel.
- Although boneless chicken can be substituted, bone-in delivers the best flavor. Use a whole chicken cut up into serving pieces or your choice of parts such as legs or thighs.
- To ensure a good sear, drain the chicken well and use a wide pan or cook in batches if necessary. Properly browning the meat gives the dish an incredible depth of flavor.
- Make sure to “cook-off” the strong vinegar flavor by allowing it to boil uncovered and without stirring for a few minutes before adding the marinade and water.
- Potatoes are optional but they’re a delicious way to extend the dish. I like to pan-fry and brown them first before adding to the adobo for better texture.
How to serve
- Chicken adobo is traditionally enjoyed with steamed rice for lunch or dinner, but can also be served for breakfast as a silog meal with garlic fried rice and sunny-side-up eggs.
- Stored properly, leftovers will keep in the refrigerator for up to 3 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
- To reheat, place in a wide pan and heat to an internal temperature of 165 F.
Chicken Adobo
Ingredients
- 2 large potatoes, peeled and sliced into rounds
- 1/4 cup soy sauce
- 1 head garlic, peeled and minced
- 1 onion, peeled and sliced thinly
- 1/2 teaspoon peppercorns
- 2 bay leaves
- 1/4 cup oil
- 1 (3 to 4 pounds) whole chicken, cut into serving parts
- 1/2 cup vinegar
- 1 cup water
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- In a bowl, combine chicken, soy sauce, onions, garlic, peppercorns, and bay leaves. Massage onto meat and place in the refrigerator to marinate for about 30 minutes. Drain chicken well, reserving liquid.
- In a wide, heavy-bottomed skillet over medium heat, heat oil. Add the potatoes and cook, turning as needed, until lightly browned and halfway tender. With a slotted spoon, remove the potatoes and drain on paper towels. Remove excess oil from pan except for about 1 tablespoon.
- Add chicken including onions, garlic, and bay leaves and cook, turning occasionally until chicken is lightly browned.
- Add vinegar and allow to boil, uncovered and WITHOUT stirring, for about 2 to 4 minutes.
- Add the reserved marinade and water and stir to combine. Allow to a boil for 2 to 3 minutes. Lower heat, cover, and simmer for about 20 to 30 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.
- Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve hot.
- Add potatoes and cook until potatoes are tender and sauce is reduced. Serve hot.
Video
Nutrition
I love that your recipes include tips like cooking off the vinegar. I did not know this before which was why i always end up with sour adobo. Now I know what to do to cook it properly!
Thank you so much! I am glad you find the tips helpful 🙂
This is by far the best adobo that I’ve tried. I have yet to try your other recipes but I’m confident they should be as good as this. Kudos!
Thank you for the 5-stars! Glad you enjoyed the recipe!
thanks for the recipe i would be cooking this tomorrow morning. i have already marinated the chicken this morning when i came straight from the market. hoping that it will come out good as the way it should be.
Happy cooking! Enjoy 🙂
This adobo recipe is delicious! I’ve just cooked it and it’s very authentic. Thank you for sharing!
Thank you so much!
Hi,
Really great recipe!! Mine turned out really well and I followed your instructions.
I need some help though. In my 2nd attempt, i can still taste the strong vinegar flavour. I thought i cooked it off (as per your instructions) but I might not have boiled it long enough. What can I do to try and reduce the vinegar taste after everything is cooked?
You can remove the chicken and just simmer the sauce uncovered for a few more minutes and then return the chicken back in 🙂
Thank you very much for this recipe. Your adobo recipe doesn’t require very much soy sauce and vinegar which is what I like the most. Delicious!
My pleasure, Alex!
This was good. I have nothing to compare it to, but I followed directions exactly and cooked it in my Instant Pot and it was delicious!! Thank you for this recipe.
You’re welcome! I’ve never tried chicken adobo in the Instant Pot before but I’ve done pork adobo 🙂
Very helpful and yummy recipe.! Straightforward and not leaving out the tips that makes it taste authentic. Thank you!
Your welcome. I am glad you found the recipe and tips helpful 🙂
Thank you. It was a very helpful, informative and yummy recipe. I greatly appreciate it!
You do not put potatoes in Adobo – end of. Potatoes are not ready available in PI and historically they have never been a major food
Potatoes added actually is not an original ingredient, just a personal modification. Potatotes,kamotes (yam variety) were readily available (any time of the day) in the Philippines, they are ingredient of many Filipino recipes.
Learning Filipino cooking when I Google kawaling pinoy, I use your recipes alot!
Thank you, Elmer!
Wow! This is delicious. I cooked chicken adobo before but it always tastes like vinegar. Thanks for the tip Ate Lalaine!
I forgot to include that I didn’t add potato because I don’t have any. But still it came out delicious!
The potatoes are really optional but try adding them next time 🙂
I am glad the tips worked for you, Charlotte. 🙂
with the keywords that you stuffed on this, sure you would land on the first page ^_^
anyway, this is the best blog on cooking that i saw.
you really tried hard to stand-out among other local blogs.
nice job po. may nutrition facts pa nga! more power po.
Recipe was too watery. Even after trying to reduce… Which is quite long time…next time I omit water.
I am sorry the recipe didn’t work well for you. The dish should be saucy but not oo watery. May I ask if the ingredients were measured?
Chicken adobo is really delicious. I almost cooked this because this is really yummy. This dish is one of a kind.
This sounds yum – I’ve had it before but didn’t realise it was Filipino! Love that you cook the chicken in the liquid so it stays really tender!
Hi Emma! It’s very yummy indeed! Have you tried it?
Chicken Adoba looks like a wonderful recipe to try! Easy and tasty!
Blogging takes a lot of work and a lot of our time as well. A lot of people are still not aware of the kind of work that we put into our blogs.
This recipe is not that difficult to make at all! You pretty much cook everything in the same pot/pan and that it. It sounds like it’s also packed with lovely flavors!
Thanks, Elizabeth!
I chuckled a bit at your intro when you admitted to realizing this recipe you were looking for wasn’t on the blog yet! 🙂 Writing a food blog, I’m sure that you have a hard time keeping track of what you have and haven’t included since there could literally be thousands of dishes to write about. I loved the breakdown of ingredients, instructions, and nutritional information you included at the end. These are always so helpful to me when thinking about making a recipe as I am terrible cook. All the hand holding really helps! 😀
This sounds SO good, and definitely something that my whole family would enjoy. I’m going to save this and try it soon- YUM.
Hi AJ! I hope you tried it and that your family enjoyed it! 🙂
This looks delicious! I’m always looking for one pot dishes. I’ll have to try this!
This looks delicious! I’m always looking for one pot dishes. I’ll have to try this!
Hi Jennifer! One-pot dishes are my faves too especially when I don’t want to spend the whole night doing dishes! 🙂
Do you use the liquid measuring cup or the one for the solid ones
Hi Krissy
Yes, I use the liquid measuring cups to measure out the vinegar, soy sauce or water 🙂
Will marinating the chicken overnight be too much? Thanks!
I’ve never marinated my adobo that long but if you do, add the soy sauce about 30 minutes before you start cooking so the meat doesn’t become too dark.
Would this be good with chicken breast?
Yes, you can use boneless chicken breast although I prefer bone-in for more flavor.
What do you mean by ‘including aromatics’?
Hello Love
Aromatics would be the garlic, onions, bay leaves, peppercorn you marinated the chicken with. 🙂
What kind of vinegar do you use in Chicken Adobo?
Hi Eric
Preferably the Filipino type called cane vinegar but white distilled vinegar will also work if you don’t have access to the Filipino brand/type.