One of my favorite food to eat is what I consider Filipino’s national dish, yes, it’s the Adobo! Been eating Adobo since I was in my Mama’s womb. ;D

Ask any Filipino what their favorite Filipino dish is and 9/10 will tell you it's Adobo. Chicken, pork or vegetable adobos are the most common, but realistically you can adobo almost anything. Adobo cereal? Well... Maybe not everything.

Adobo is a method derived from preserving food for the Conquistadors while there were exploring, and conquering lands/territories. They needed a way to keep their food from spoiling, while they spent months at a time at sea. Vinegar is one of the main ingredients in adobo, and this works in a similar fashion as pickling.

Since the Philippines was colonized under Spanish rule for so many years, many of our foods, traditions, and dialects are derived from their culture. I guess this is also why our predominant religion is Catholic.

My boyfriend and I will be moving to Ecuador/Peru in the near future- And he told me that I would most likely pick right up on Spanish, as the dialect and tones are very similar to Tagalog already.

Just the other day, I was chatting with @foovler, we were talking about Filipino dishes and he mentioned adobo and asked me if I have any recipes. There are tons of adobo recipe out there depending on the region that you are from, and although they are all different- They are still called 'adobo'.

So, this is my take on the Adobo. You can either use a chicken or pork for your protein. Or, you can use both. Totally up to you. Heck, I’ve even seen fish and eggs, haha!

I personally love pork belly because of its fat content. Yeah, I know, why do I look this good? The key is in moderation, just like with anything. Too much of anything is not good for you, even green tea.

Yup green tea. I know it’s full of antioxidants but going overboard will also make your liver work harder. It also decreases your absorption of folic acid. A very important vitamin that helps decrease birth defects.

And, I workout to help negate those calories.

But today I am using chicken thighs. Why? Because I don’t have pork belly in my fridge. Someone buy me pork belly?

Now let’s make…..
Chicken Adobo!!!!!

Ingredients

1 kg of chicken thighs (bone in)
1 onion
8 cloves of garlic
2 star anise
2 bay leaves
2 peppercorn each chicken
1 tablespoon of oil (love extra virgin olive oil)

Marinade

½ cup soy sauce
4 tablespoon of white vinegar
½ tablespoon of honey
½ cup of water

Prep

Mix all the marinade ingredients in a big bowl.
Add the chicken and thoroughly mix everything.

While the chicken is marinating cut the onion into small pieces.
Smash those cloves of garlic and take off the skin and dice it.
Grind the peppercorns.

Cook

Get your pan or wok or pot whichever you prefer as long as it’s clean.
High heat and add oil.
Wait for oil to start to smoke then add the chicken thighs.
Sear each side until brown.
Once it has color, stir in the onions and cook until translucent.
Add the garlic and stir in for a few seconds then mix the rest of the marinade.
Chuck the star anise, bay leaves, peppercorns and water.

Wait for it to boil then reduce to simmer for 20 to 30 minutes.
I love thick sauces, so after it's been simmering for half an hour, I take out the chicken and reduce the sauce to a thicker consistency.

Serve with basmati rice or any rice you love. Enjoy!

Btw, @foovler said "oh I don't use sugar... I also put deep fried garlic in the end...". Deep fried garlic! That sounds good! Now, am interested in that recipe... sharing is caring. ;)

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Other food blogs that you might be interested in:

• Pizza Recipe: Mama Mia, Pizzaria!
• Steak: Not your Mediocre Steak!
• Copy-cat recipe from Hot Thai Kitchen, Khao Mun Gai (Hainanese Chicken & Rice)
• Sandwiches: Have a Good Sammy!
• Healthy Salad (4 different recipes): Salad to Stay in Shape
• Sushi: Sushi At First Attempt

XOXO,

Gilaine