Alexa’s chicken adobo

Updated at: Thu, 21 Sep 2023 20:43:28 GMT

Step 1

Start by prepping your garlic, onions, and shallots and the rice. Mince or roughly cut all of the garlic (yes, 2 heads worth of garlic). Julienne cut the onions and shallots. Set aside. For the rice, rinse the rice until the water is clear or almost clear. Then add water to the rice until the water reaches the top of your first knuckle when you rest your middle finger tip on the top of the rice. Let the rice soak for the entire duration of cooking the adobo.

Step 2

Process the chicken by cutting off the excess fat. Leave some on, just take off the big chunks.

Step 3

Season both sides of the chicken thighs with salt, pepper, and garlic seasoning. Pat the seasoning into the chicken and rub it in to all the crevices. Repeat on all the chicken thighs.

Step 4

In a large sauté pan, coat the bottom of the pan with a thin layer of vegetable oil and set the stove to medium high heat. Once the oil is hot, add your chicken thighs. Don’t overcrowd the pan so add the chicken in batches. Sear the chicken on both sides - once one side has browned, you’re ready to flip to the other side. Once all of the chicken has been seared, set aside and keep warm. You’ll finish cooking the chicken in the sauce later

Step 5

In a large wok, set the stove to low heat. Once the heat of the wok is at temperature, add a layer of oil to coat the wok and add all of the onions, Serrano peppers, and shallots. Heavily season with freshly cracked black pepper. Make sure the wok isn’t too hot or youwill burn your onions!!

Step 6

Now it’s time to caramelize your onions! Once the onions has started to sweat and turn translucent, add a knob of butter (about 2-3 tbsp) and toss with the onions to melt. Keep the wok on low heat for 30 minutes, occasionally stirring the onions so they cook evenly and don’t burn. If needed, add a little water to the wok to deglaze the onions.

Step 7

Once the onions are soft and have started to brown, add aaaaaall of the minced garlic, ginger, and bay leaves. Mix with the onions to combine and cook for another minute or two until fragrant. You might need to add more vegetable oil if the onions are sticking to the bottom.

Step 8

Add all of the chicken to the onion mixture and mix everything together so onions are below and on top of the chicken. Next, add the soy sauce, both kinds of vinegar, and water.

Step 9

Bring the heat of the wok up to medium-high heat until everything is at a simmer. Simmer for 30 minutes or until the chicken is fully cooked. Flip the chicken every once and a while so it cooks on all sides. If possible, cover the wok with a lid while it simmers so the sauce doesn’t all evaporate. If you don’t have a lid, you’ll need to add a little bit of water while it summers so your sauce doesn’t get too concentrated and thick.

Step 10

PREP YOUR SIDES. DO STEPS 10-12 AT THE SAME TIME. While the chicken is cooking, make the lime yogurt side, prep your garnishes, and start cooking the rice. Lime yogurt side. Scoop about about 1.5-2 cups of Greek yogurt into a bowl, add roughly 1/4 cup of heavy whipping cream (until you reach the desired creaminess consistency), a pinch of salt, and the zest and juice of 1 lime. Using a whisk, beat everything together until everything is incorporated and you get a soft, kinda fluffy texture. Add more salt and/or lime if needed until you reach the desired taste.

Step 11

Garnishes. Roughly chop the basil leaves and finely chop the chives. Set aside for garnishing.

Step 12

Rice. Add your pre-soaked rice to the stove and turn it on high heat. Once the water starts to boil, release some of the steam from the pot, and bring the heat down to medium. Once the water is no longer visible, close the lid on the rice until it’s finished cooking. To test how done the rice is, take your rice scoop and scrape it along the bottom of the pan. If the rice lightly sticks to the bottom, it’s done! Once done, remove from heat and lightly toss the rice in the pot. Put the lid back on the pot and let the residual heat steam the rice (ideally for 10 minutes) so it’s fluffy.

Step 13

Once the chicken has been fully cooked, remove the rid from the wok and turn the stove to high heat to slightly reduce your sauce. This will give it a thicker texture. If you simmered the sauce without a lid, then skip this step and turn the heat off. After the sauce has slightly cooled, add another knob of butter. Mix to combine and let the residual heat melt the butter.

Step 14

Serve the chicken with the rice and add the basil and chives on top of the chicken and with sesame seeds on the rice. Top the lime yogurt with a pinch of chives and salt and scoop into a small individual bowl for everyone to dip the chicken in. Enjoy!

1 liked

0 disliked