Adobo, the National Dish of the Philippines

The key to this tender, braised chicken and pork belly recipe lies in finding the proper balance between sweet, sour, and salty.
I learned a version of this recipe for the first time in Culinary School in upstate New York. After the adobo was finished, we delivered a plate of it to one of the chef instructors whose family was from the Philippines. I remember him exclaiming: “This dish should be more sour—add more vinegar!”
If you ever want to befriend someone from the Philippines, try making them this fantastic dish.

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Adobo, the National Dish of the Philippines

The key to this tender, braised chicken and pork belly recipe lies in finding the proper balance between sweet, sour, and salty.

I learned a version of this recipe for the first time in Culinary School in upstate New York. After the adobo was finished, we delivered a plate of it to one of the chef instructors whose family was from the Philippines. I remember him exclaiming: “This dish should be more sour—add more vinegar!”

If you ever want to befriend someone from the Philippines, try making them this fantastic dish.

Ingredients

• 3 Tbsp vegetable oil
• 2.5 lbs bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
• 10 oz pork belly, cut into 1.5” cubes
• 4 bay leaves
• 1 Tbsp whole black peppercorns
• 1 head of garlic cloves (crushed and skins removed)
• 3 tsp fresh ginger, finely minced
• ½ cup apple cider vinegar
• 1 cup soy sauce
• 3 Tbsp oyster sauce
• 3 Tbsp brown sugar, or more to taste
• 2 cups chicken stock

Instructions 

• Quickly brown the chicken thighs in the vegetable oil in a saute pan on high heat.
• Remove chicken thighs from the pan and add them to a Dutch oven or stew pot.
• Deglaze the saute pan with a splash of chicken stock and add the deglazing liquid to your stewing pot.
• Add remaining ingredients to the stewing pot and bring to a gentle simmer.
• Reduce heat to low, and cook for roughly 2.5 hours, until the chicken is fall-of-the-bone tender.
• Season the liquid with additional soy sauce or brown sugar if desired.
• Serve hot, over white rice.

Notes

This dish is great for feeding a family, and tastes even better the next day.
You can make a variation of this recipe using coconut milk instead of chicken stock—this is wonderful to eat as well.