Filipino Chicken Adobo (Ebie Guevara’s Family Recipe)
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
This is Ebie Guevara’s family recipe for Filipino chicken adobo, shared here with the blessing of her daughters Gaile and Danielle. Bone-in chicken thighs are marinated in soy sauce, cane vinegar, and garlic, then simmered into a glossy, savory-tangy glaze.
This is Ebie Guevara’s family recipe for Filipino chicken adobo, shared here with the blessing of her daughters Gaile and Danielle. Gaile Guevara is one of my closest friends, and I’ve been making this recipe at home for years, sometimes at her house with her and Danielle. It’s the same chicken adobo Ebie made with her family growing up in the Philippines, passed down through generations before landing in my kitchen.
Gaile tells me her mom usually prepped the chicken on Sundays and sometimes marinated it for a couple of days. As she puts it, “the longer the marinade, the more the flavor is infused with garlic.” I’ve tested this in my own kitchen, and I have to agree. Thirty minutes gives you a good adobo. Overnight gives you a great one. After two days in the fridge, the garlic works its way into every fiber of the chicken.
The recipe itself is deceptively simple. First, marinate bone-in chicken thighs in soy sauce, cane vinegar, garlic, bay leaves, and whole peppercorns. Then they’re seared until the skin is golden and simmered in the marinade until the sauce reduces into a glossy, savory-tangy glaze that coats every piece.
There are as many chicken adobo recipes in the Philippines as there are families. Some lean more sour, some sweeten it up, some add coconut milk (a version called adobong manok sa gata). This one is Ebie’s. Danielle likes to add a splash of fresh lemon juice the way her mom always did, and she says a mix of acidic ingredients is what makes the sauce sing. Gaile and Danielle also both use Filipino soy sauce, ideally Silver Swan, which gives the sauce its darker color and characteristic Filipino flavor.
Danielle Guevara’s tips for the best chicken adobo
One thing that I gathered from the advice given to me by Gaile and Danielle Guevara is that chicken adobo is a flexible recipe and one that will turn out delicious even if you make substitutions.
- Danielle says, “I always add fresh lemon juice because that was what mom did. But what works well is definitely a mix of acid. I always add a splash of white vinegar, you can even add balsamic!”
- She says that she “always tries to use authentic Filipino soy sauce like Silver Swan.” If you don’t have Filipino soy sauce in your pantry, opt for a dark, Chinese soy sauce instead.
- Danielle says “what is tricky is not burning the chicken when browning – you want as much fond as possible.” In recipe testing, we found that browning the chicken over medium heat worked best to ensure that it didn’t burn.
Substitutions
Filipino chicken adobo is made with mostly common kitchen staples. The two unique ingredients are Filipino soy sauce and cane vinegar, but both of these can be substituted with alternatives that you likely have on hand.
- Soy sauce: Silver Swan is a Filipino soy sauce that is commonly used to make chicken adobo. But if you don’t have any, replace it with dark, Chinese soy sauce. In a pinch you could use lighter-tasting Japanese soy sauce, but it’s not ideal.
- Cane vinegar: The best substitute for cane vinegar is rice vinegar. Another alternative is apple cider vinegar.
- Lemon juice: Danielle Guevara told us that here in Canada her mom would always make adobo with a bit of lemon juice. But in the Philippines, Gaile tells us that her mom and aunties often use calamansi juice. So if you’re lucky enough to find calamansi where you live, try that! Lime juice is another good substitute.
- Chicken: Both Gaile and Danielle swear by bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs. Gaile says that her mom “would brown the chicken thighs with skin on for flavor.” If chicken thighs are not your thing, you can use chicken breast. Just know that breasts are never quite as juicy as thighs.
- Additions: You can also add more to the pot. Gaile says, “some of our aunts would add green beans as well as chicken hearts.” She also said that her mom would “sometimes add chopped tomatoes, parsley, or fish sauce.”
What to serve with chicken adobo
Both Gaile and Danielle told me that their mom, Ebie Guevara, served this recipe with steamed green beans. I think that my sautéed green beans with garlic go really well with chicken adobo.
Other greens that I’ve enjoyed with this recipe are sautéed bok choy and my garlic butter sugar snap peas.
And a rice dish is an almost mandatory side. Basmati rice is the easiest, but garlic butter rice or ginger rice are extra delicious.
And Danielle tells us that if you want to get fancy, garnish your chicken adobo with garlic chips. Yum!
Filipino Chicken Adobo (Ebie Guevara’s Family Recipe)
Ingredients
- 1 cup soy sauce (see notes)
- ½ cup cane vinegar (or rice vinegar)
- ¼ cup brown sugar (optional)
- ¼ cup lemon juice (see notes)
- 16 cloves garlic (smashed with the side of your knife – see notes)
- 4 bay leaves
- 1 tablespoon whole black peppercorns (or 1 teaspoon ground pepper)
- 2 lb bone-in chicken thighs (see notes)
- 2 tablespoons cooking oil
Instructions
- Mix the soy sauce, vinegar, brown sugar if using, lemon juice juice, garlic, bay leaves, and black pepper in a baking dish. Add the chicken pieces and mix them around so that the chicken is well coated with the marinade. Cover the dish and put it into your fridge for 30 minutes to 24 hours to marinate.¼ cup lemon juice, 1 cup soy sauce, ½ cup cane vinegar, 16 cloves garlic, 4 bay leaves, 1 tablespoon whole black peppercorns, 2 lb bone-in chicken thighs, ¼ cup brown sugar
- Remove the chicken from the marinade (save the marinade!) and pat it dry with paper towels. Heat the oil in a large frying pan over medium heat and sear the chicken for 5-6 minutes on each side, until it is nicely browned. The chicken won't be cooked at this point.2 tablespoons cooking oil
- Turn the chicken so that it is skin side facing up and then pour the reserved marinade into the pan. Bring to a boil and then reduce the heat to low, cover the pan, and let it simmer for 10 minutes. Uncover the pot and continue to simmer the chicken for another 5-10 minutes, until the chicken is tender and the sauce has reduced by half, stirring occasionally.
- Serve the chicken with some rice and lightly steamed greens on the side.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
We have thoroughly tested this recipe for accuracy. However, individual results may vary. See our full recipe disclosure here.
More Asian chicken recipes
For more inspiration, check out all of my dinner ideas!
Can I use chicken breast in this recipe?
While I prefer bone-in thighs as they stay juiciest, you can sub chicken breast. Just be careful of the cooking time as they cook faster. If needed, you can remove them from the sauce once cooked then continue to boil the sauce to thicken it slightly.
Honoured to have our family recipe shared with so many more families to enjoy. Makes me so happy to see Kristen share our love of a home-cooked meal especially when it’s adobo. My sister and I were so fortunate to grow up with a mom who was an amazing cook. The highlight of growing up was the meals our mom would prepare. If you are lucky enough to find fresh Calamansi in the supermarket highly recommend it or you can now find concentrate. So great to have great video instruction so we too can reminded of our best memories of our mom. Thank you Kristen, love this post XO
It means the world to me that you let me share your family recipe on my website. Thank you for allowing everyone to make your mom’s recipe!
I used your recipe for a church cookout and everybody raved about it. Even the pastor’s wife asked me for the recipe! I used gluten free soy sauce so that everyone could eat it. And also added the sugar.
I’ve tried a few different adobo recipes but this one of my favorite. The sauce is super flavorful so we pour it over rice. There is usually some leftover so I save it and use it to make fried rice.
I’ve completed everything step by step and my sauce isn’t Thickening up
If it isn’t thickening for you I would suggest removing the chicken from the pot then cranking up the heat and boiling the sauce hard until it reduces. 🙂
If the chicken is double stacked in the pot should the water go to the middle of top chicken or the bottom row of chicken?
I would cover the top row of chicken halfway. Since you will probably have more liquid in the pan than when I cook this, you may need to reduce the sauce a little longer than 5 minutes. Hope that helps!
I made this for the family last night and added the sugar. It turned out great. I think it would have been too acidic for our tastes without the sugar, but with it we gobbled it up.
This looks right up my alley!
So happy to hear you like it!!