I grew up eating my mom’s chicken adobo, the national dish of the Philippines that braises chicken in an irresistible combination of soy sauce, vinegar, garlic, and sugar. Now that I’m officially an adult though, I no longer rely on trips back to my parents’ house to satisfy my regular cravings for Filipino chicken adobo. Instead I’ve done the ultimate “adult” thing and have taken advantage of my Crockpot to make this Slow Cooker Chicken Adobo which I now want to share with you.
I’ve found that investing in a slow cooker is one of the biggest steps in becoming a full fledged grown up. It involves preparation and planning ahead, and it means that you are now leading a life which requires 1) meals to be scheduled and 2) every task to be as easy and time-efficient as possible. While breaking out the Crockpot makes cooking easier in general, I like to think that this Chicken Adobo is one of the absolute easiest slow cooker recipes, which is why it fits so perfectly in my adult life.
Unlike other slow cooker recipes which require you to brown or even marinate meat or cut up vegetables before it goes into the slow cooker, this chicken adobo is as easy as dumping everything in and setting the timer until you have your end product of fall-off-the-bone chicken adobo.
Yes, you technically need to crush some garlic, but if you really want to go for convenience, crushed garlic is totally available for purchase. And remember what I said about chicken adobo tasting better as it sits? That means you can make a ton of it in your slow cooker and pack it away for meals to come (it freezes great!).
Eat it with rice, or for a unique twist, I’ve also been eating it Mexican-style and making Filipino chicken adobo tacos by simply serving it in corn tortillas with raw onion, cilantro, and a squeeze of lime. By no means authentic, but it’s a damn good way to celebrate #TacoTuesday. Have you had chicken adobo before? What’s your favorite way to eat it?
Easy Slow Cooker Chicken Adobo
Ingredients
- 2 lbs. bone-in chicken drumsticks or boneless thighs, skin removed*
- 1/2 cup soy sauce or coconut aminos
- 3/4 cup cane vinegar (can also use apple cider or white vinegar)
- 1 tbsp. granulated sugar
- 6 cloves garlic, crushed
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 tbsp. whole black peppercorns
- 1/2 cup water
Instructions
- Combine soy sauce, vinegar, and sugar until sugar is dissolved.
- Spread crushed garlic cloves, peppercorns, and bay leaves along bottom of the slow cooker. Layer on chicken, then pour soy-vinegar mixture and water to coat the chicken, turning chicken pieces to coat if necessary.
- Cover and cook in slow cooker for 4 hours on high or 6 hours on low, or until chicken is falling off the bone.
- Remove chicken from the slow cooker. Strain sauce, discarding the peppercorns, garlic, and bay leaves. Serve as is, or remove bones from chicken and add chicken back into sauce. Serve with rice or store in refrigerator for up to 5 days to allow chicken to continue to meld with sauce. It just tastes better and better!
Notes
*You can also use chicken breasts if you’re conscious of fat, but for flavor I would recommend then mixing in 1-2 drumsticks or thighs with the skin on to add a bit of fat to the lean meat
If you make this recipe, I’d love to see the final product. Tag your photos on Instagram with #indulgentrecipes and @indulgenteats so I can see them!
Yes, I read somewhere that adobo is all about the garlic but I am one of the crazy few who likes to add onions in hers. Hehe
Thanks for linking to my bistek recipe 🙂
[…] Note: Every part of the Philippines has their own version. In the northern part of the Philippines, they omit the coconut milk and chilies in favor of ginger root, whole pepper corns, garlic, and bay. Get the recipe for that version done up in slow-cooker here. […]
super easy and delicious! 5 stars
Soo happy you enjoyed it!
[…] Easy Slow Cooked Chicken Adobo | Image courtesy of Jen Balisi, Indulgent Eats […]