I LOVE my ROOTS

Reminiscing is probably the right theme for this. And tonight was just amazing. A few of my friends and I had a 'Private Dinner' somewhere in Westchester county...where the Dinner theme was all about Filipino! I made my all-time childhood favorite, Pork and Chicken Adobo!

Pork and Chicken Adobo is one of the best known Filipino dishes. It is made in almost all Filipino households and it is often one of the first dishes one learns how to cook due to it’s simplicity and short ingredient list. It is a very simple dish made with chicken or pork, slow cooked in a mixture of soy sauce, vinegar, garlic, bay leaf, and pepper. There are many variations and each family has their own particular tricks and techniques to making this dish.

The ratio of soy sauce to vinegar I used is 2:1. Some recipes call for a 1: 1 ratio but I was afraid that would be too strong for me. I prefer using rice vinegar because it is a mild vinegar but you can use white vinegar (keep in mind this is stronger) or white wine vinegar. Marinating the chicken before is optional but it allows the flavors to soak into the chicken. I try to limit salt intake so overall, I was a bit conservative with the soy sauce. The original quantities were 1 cup soy sauce, 1/2 cup vinegar, and 1 cup water (one cup of soy sauce is much too excessive, it would have been way too salty).

Pork and Chicken Adobo

about 2 - 2 1/2 lb chicken, 8 thighs
about 2 - 2 1/2 lb Pork, Country Style Cut
1 small onion or half a medium onion, cut into thick slices
2/3 C soy sauce
1/3 C rice vinegar
3/4 C water (I decreased the water so the sauce is easier to reduce later)
1 Tbsp brown sugar, packed
5 garlic cloves, minced
2 bay leaves
1/4 tsp black pepper

Optional: Combine everything (except the onions) and marinade for 1 to 3 hours.

Bring everything up to a boil then lower the heat and simmer for about 45 minutes to an hour, until the chicken is fall-off-the-bone tender. You can simmer ahead of time and broil before serving. The more time the chicken sits the sauce the more flavorful it becomes. I didn’t marinade it beforehand but I let it sit in the sauce for about an hour before broiling.

Remove the chicken to a baking tray. Broil the chicken, skin side up, until the skin is crisp and bronze. Meanwhile, skim off excess fat and reduce the sauce until it’s thick and syrupy.

Serve the chicken over rice and spoon the sauce on top.

Serves 4 - 6