Chicken Adobo

Put the chicken in a bowl with the soy sauce and crushed garlic, turn it over a few times, and leave it in the fridge for at least 1 hour.

💡 This is the only waiting in the whole recipe, and it is doing real work — the soy penetrates the meat instead of just coating it. Overnight is even better. Do not add the vinegar yet.

Heat the oil in a pot over medium heat. Lift the chicken out of the marinade — keep the marinade — and brown the pieces for about 2 minutes a side.

💡 Shake off the drips before the chicken hits the oil — wet soy sauce spits violently. You are after colour, not cooked-through; it finishes in the simmer.

Pour in the reserved marinade and the water, then add the peppercorns and bay leaves. Bring it to a boil, turn the heat to low, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes.

Pour in the vinegar and let it come back to a boil WITHOUT stirring. Once it is bubbling hard, stir it through.

💡 This is the one rule of adobo worth memorising. Stirring raw vinegar into the pot leaves a harsh, raw-acid taste that never quite cooks off. Let it boil first and the sharpness burns away, leaving the sourness behind.

Simmer uncovered for another 15 minutes, until the sauce has reduced and turned glossy and dark.

Stir in the sugar, taste, and add salt only if it needs it. Serve with plenty of steamed rice.

💡 Adobo is aggressively seasoned on purpose — it is designed to be eaten in small amounts with a lot of rice. Judge the salt with a mouthful of rice, not on its own.