RCP: Chicken Adobo Slow Cooker Style

This is the national dish of the Philippines, popular in Filipino immigrant communities, all over the world, including the Hawaiian Islands. Serve it with white rice and stir-fried vegetables

Chicken Adobo

1 3 lb. frying chicken, skinned and cut into serving pieces
5 cloves garlic, crushed
2 bay leaves
3/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1 TBSP. finely grated fresh peeled ginger
1/4 tsp. crushed black peppercorns
1 TBSP. brown sugar
1 TBSP. cornstarch
1/4 cup chicken stock
Green onions, white and light green parts, sliced for garnish

Place the chicken in th slow cooker. Add the garlic, bay leaves, soy sauce, vinegar, ginger, peppercorns, and brown sugar, and toss until thoroughly mixed. Combine cornstarch and stock and mix to form a slurry. Add to pot and gently stir in.
Cover and cook on low for 6 to 8 hours until meat is very tender. Leave the chicken pieces whole or shred the meat, whatever your preference. Serve at once, garnished with green onions.
A mix of sautéed green, red and yellow bells looks beautiful with the white rice and the mahogany colored sauce.

Sounds delish, Karen!

Karen, I might be committing blasphemy but I gotta ask. Given that the recipe only calls for 1/4 cup of stock, why bother with it at all? It seems to me that if a quarter cup of liquid is needed then water should suffice IMO. Sometimes I just do not understand they whys and wherefores of recipes.

[Jenise]

Karen, what an interesting crock pot idea. A lot of people leave the vinegar out of the dish and I'm glad your recipe doesn't. Having only had adobo that way to begin with, it just wouldn't taste right without it and an assertively generous amount at that. I was introduced to the dish by a file clerk who worked in the same office I did and who would often bring leftovers to share. It was just divine--she usually made hers with pork, which I'd reccomend as an occasional alternative.

Karen, I might be committing blasphemy but I gotta ask. Given that the recipe only calls for 1/4 cup of stock, why bother with it at all? It seems to me that if a quarter cup of liquid is needed then water should suffice IMO. Sometimes I just do not understand they whys and wherefores of recipes.

I know what you mean, but not being a food scientiest, all I can say, is that I do not know. Recipes that call for a small amount of water, puzzle me, so I always add either, stock or wine.

Karen, what an interesting crock pot idea. A lot of people leave the vinegar out of the dish and I'm glad your recipe doesn't. Having only had adobo that way to begin with, it just wouldn't taste right without it and an assertively generous amount at that. I was introduced to the dish by a file clerk who worked in the same office I did and who would often bring leftovers to share. It was just divine--she usually made hers with pork, which I'd reccomend as an occasional alternative.

Glad you like this dish, Jenise. It's a very common dish here, and, yes, I cannot imagine it without vinegar. Actually, I don't think I've ever had any adobo sans vinegar. I, personally, much prefer pork over chicken adobo myself.

Karen, I might be committing blasphemy but I gotta ask. Given that the recipe only calls for 1/4 cup of stock, why bother with it at all? It seems to me that if a quarter cup of liquid is needed then water should suffice IMO. Sometimes I just do not understand they whys and wherefores of recipes.

I know what you mean, but not being a food scientiest, all I can say, is that I do not know. Recipes that call for a small amount of water, puzzle me, so I always add either, stock or wine.

Adobo (like kare-kare) is one of those home recipes that most any local household has its own recipe of. Add to that that there are general regional variations of the dish. There are countless versions. I, myself, do not think I've ever tried one that uses brown sugar (though I could be mistaken). The recipe our cook uses is one from the province of Zambales. I'll try to get the recipe and post it soon.

[Jenise]

Karen, I might be committing blasphemy but I gotta ask. Given that the recipe only calls for 1/4 cup of stock, why bother with it at all? It seems to me that if a quarter cup of liquid is needed then water should suffice IMO. Sometimes I just do not understand they whys and wherefores of recipes.

But why not add more flavor at every opportunity?

Karen, what an interesting crock pot idea. A lot of people leave the vinegar out of the dish and I'm glad your recipe doesn't. Having only had adobo that way to begin with, it just wouldn't taste right without it and an assertively generous amount at that. I was introduced to the dish by a file clerk who worked in the same office I did and who would often bring leftovers to share. It was just divine--she usually made hers with pork, which I'd reccomend as an occasional alternative.

Jenise, I copied Karen's post to file to try soon, and now I read that it can be used with pork as well. I think I have a package of "country style ribs" in the freezer and it seems that this would be a good way of using them up. Of course they would require some trimming of fat, but I bet they would fit the bill very nicely. What do you think?

But why not add more flavor at every opportunity?

I would agree so long as one has the stock sitting around for the use, but I wouldn't want to either make it or even thaw it for a 1/4 cup amount. It seems to me that it would have to be a very concentrated stock to add noticeable flavor.

[Jenise]

Glad you like this dish, Jenise. It's a very common dish here, and, yes, I cannot imagine it without vinegar. Actually, I don't think I've ever had any adobo sans vinegar. I, personally, much prefer pork over chicken adobo myself.

Roma's version was truly delish. She was so unusual: a tall American white woman in her 40's who only knew how to cook Filipino food. Her husband came to the States from the Phillipines as a young man, and worked as a laborer on a railroad line whose camp was in one of those small backwoods "hollers" in the South Dolly Parton sings about, which is where Roma's family lived. He was in his 20's and she was only 13, which she assured us was not unusual in those parts. And since she was really just a child, he taught her how to cook and he taught her the food of his homeland.

[Jenise]

Karen, what an interesting crock pot idea. A lot of people leave the vinegar out of the dish and I'm glad your recipe doesn't. Having only had adobo that way to begin with, it just wouldn't taste right without it and an assertively generous amount at that. I was introduced to the dish by a file clerk who worked in the same office I did and who would often bring leftovers to share. It was just divine--she usually made hers with pork, which I'd reccomend as an occasional alternative.

Jenise, I copied Karen's post to file to try soon, and now I read that it can be used with pork as well. I think I have a package of "country style ribs" in the freezer and it seems that this would be a good way of using them up. Of course they would require some trimming of fat, but I bet they would fit the bill very nicely. What do you think?

Perfect, Bob. Roma always used shoulder, and that's what country style ribs are--just cut up.

[Jenise]

But why not add more flavor at every opportunity?

I would agree so long as one has the stock sitting around for the use, but I wouldn't want to either make it or even thaw it for a 1/4 cup amount. It seems to me that it would have to be a very concentrated stock to add noticeable flavor.

Ah, I see. I always have a quart in the fridge because I use it so often in so many ways so no problem here, but if I didn't for a quarter cup I too would use water. You're right that in that quantity, the difference isn't going to be noticeable.

Karen, I might be committing blasphemy but I gotta ask. Given that the recipe only calls for 1/4 cup of stock, why bother with it at all? It seems to me that if a quarter cup of liquid is needed then water should suffice IMO. Sometimes I just do not understand they whys and wherefores of recipes.

I know what you mean, but not being a food scientiest, all I can say, is that I do not know. Recipes that call for a small amount of water, puzzle me, so I always add either, stock or wine.

Many slow cooker recipes call for little or no additional liquid since it doesn't evaporate during cooking. This may explain the 1/4 cup of stock. I do agree that given the small amount, any liquid, even water, would be fine.

This recipe does sound delicious. I really need to get a replacement for my crockpot!

What do people think of adapting a recipe like this to a sous vide approach? Does it offer any benefits? Problems? Just curious, I guess -- I'm not going to throw out the crock pot just yet.

Mark Lipton