I finally found a chicken adobo recipe with the perfect balance of soy sauce, garlic, and vinegar after testing the third one! As the saying goes, “The third time’s a charm.”
Below are some links to more details, including photos:
My Story
I had tried two different recipes for chicken adobo, one several months ago and another last month, but was not able to recreate the taste and aroma that I was looking for. Subsequently, I searched for a recipe that included salt as an ingredient.
Inspiring Recipe
What I found as I was browsing recipes was Filipino Chicken Adobo Recipe from Vanjo Merano’s Filipino food blog, Panlasang Pinoy. There were many other appealing recipes on the website, including all the ones from his family, but those would need to be explored further another time.
First Try
The majority of the ingredients for the adobo recipe that I selected for this time were already in the cabinet, so the only item that I had to purchase was chicken.
Ingredients to Use
Starting with 3 1/3 pounds of chicken, I modified the remaining ingredients as follows:
- 5 bay leaves
- 13 1/2 tablespoons of soy sauce
- 6 1/2 tablespoons + 3/4 teaspoon of white vinegar
- 9 cloves of garlic
- 2 1/2 cups of water
- 5 tablespoons + 3/8 teaspoon of oil
- 1 teaspoon + 1/2 teaspoon + 1/3 teaspoon of sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon of salt
- 1 teaspoon + 1/2 teaspoon + 1/3 teaspoon of whole peppercorns
Steps to Prepare
I followed all seven steps in the recipe, including marinating the chicken for a little over an hour. When I got to step five, simmering at medium power for 30 minutes got the drumsticks tender enough that some of the meat came off when I stirred the vinegar in the pot in step six.
Time to Eat
After getting a whiff of the simmered sauce, I was definitely looking forward to the taste of the chicken adobo!
Recipe Rating
Below were the results of the recipe after the first try:
| # of Ingredients | Effort | $ / Serving | Try Again? |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 |  | |  |
Although the softness of the meat could be more even, the dish was nicely seasoned with balanced flavors. Also, the sauce was tasty with rice. Lastly, my family couldn’t stop eating the chicken!
Second Try
The goal of the second attempt was to get the chicken soft all around.
Ingredients to Use
With a little less chicken than the first time, I adjusted the other ingredients as follows:
- 5 bay leaves
- 12 tablespoons + 1/2 teaspoon of soy sauce
- 6 tablespoons + 1/4 teaspoon of white vinegar
- 8 cloves of garlic
- 2 1/4 cups of water
- 4 1/2 tablespoons of oil
- 1 1/2 teaspoons of sugar
- 1/3 teaspoon of salt
- 1 1/2 teaspoons of whole peppercorns
Steps to Prepare
This time, I followed all the steps in the recipe almost as written.
After marinating the chicken drumsticks for an hour, I fried them on medium power for two or more minutes per side, trying to burn them less, but keeping them evenly brown.
When it came to simmering everything, I used medium low power instead of medium like last time to hopefully get the meat even softer than before.
Time to Eat
Visually, the dish looked softer, since it was not as burned as before, but how did it taste?
Recipe Rating
Below are the results of the recipe from the second attempt:
| # of Ingredients | Effort | $ / Serving | Try Again? |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | | | |
From the results in the chart above, you couldn’t tell whether anything changed, but the meat was definitely softer and very tasty with the sauce. Also, the fact that my family helped me finish the entire bowl of chicken, I certainly deemed this recipe a success!
For me, this chicken adobo recipe is delicious as is. However, since there’s a note in the instructions that the longer the chicken is marinated, the better, below is what I’ll try next time:
Continuous Improvement
- Marinate the chicken for at least four hours.
Given that it took me three tries to find the perfect chicken adobo recipe, I learned the following from this experience:
Lesson for Dumber Self
- It’s worth persisting.
What will you do now?
Next Step for You
- Try the Filipino Chicken Adobo Recipe from the Filipino food blog, Panlasang Pinoy?
- Share your favorite adobo recipe aside from chicken?
- Read another post on this site? (Go to the menu at the top of the page.)
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