No.30 The 100 Most Popular Recipes Ever · October 2026

Chicken adobo

Made famous by Amy Besa and Romy Dorotan

Photo: Obsidian Soul, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

From Memories of Philippine Kitchens, 2006.

The Philippines' national dish, made in nearly every Filipino home, and one of the most cooked chicken recipes in the world.

Written in our own words and tested in a home kitchen. Get the original in Memories of Philippine Kitchens.

Ingredients

• 3 lb (1.4 kg) bone-in chicken thighs and drumsticks
• 3/4 cup (180 ml) cane or white vinegar
• 1/2 cup (120 ml) soy sauce
• 1 head garlic, cloves smashed and peeled
• 4 bay leaves
• 1 tbsp whole black peppercorns, lightly cracked
• 1 cup (240 ml) water
• 1 tbsp brown sugar (optional)
• 2 tbsp neutral oil
• Steamed rice, to serve

Steps

1. Put the chicken in a pot with the vinegar, soy, garlic, bay, peppercorns and water. Let it marinate 1 hour, or overnight in the fridge.
2. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then let it bubble 2 minutes without stirring to cook off the sharpest edge of the vinegar.
3. Lower the heat, cover and simmer 30 to 35 minutes, turning the chicken once, until tender.
4. Lift the chicken out and pat dry. Boil the sauce until reduced by about half, 10 minutes, and stir in the sugar if you like it a little rounder.
5. Heat the oil in a skillet over medium-high heat and brown the chicken skin side down until crisp and dark golden, 4 to 5 minutes. Fry the garlic from the sauce briefly too.
6. Return the chicken to the sauce and turn to coat. Serve over rice with plenty of sauce.

Chef's tips

• Filipino cane vinegar is softer than white vinegar; use it if you can find it.
• Adobo keeps for days and tastes better the second day.

This is Chef Amazing's write-up of the dish, tested for a home kitchen. The original is in Memories of Philippine Kitchens by Amy Besa and Romy Dorotan: get the book, No. 81 on The 100 Greatest Cookbooks.

← No. 29Bibimbap→ No. 31Jollof rice