Chicken Adobo With Coconut Milk

The quest for pantry clearage continues! I made a ton of food this weekend, some for a Lasagna Love partner event with a homeless shelter, some for home. Adobo was obviously for home. I don’t need much of a reason to make adobo - it’s just just one of those simple no-brainer one pot meals - but this time, my excuse was the can of coconut milk found during my pantry inventory.

Now, I usually use the Aroy-D cartons - the flavor is more aromatic, the consistency is better. The Aroy-D can isn’t bad; it’s as widely available and imo better than Chaokoh. But the carton version definitely makes a noticeable difference when it comes to a recipe where the coconut flavor is front and center, like a dessert for example.

For adobo, the can is perfectly fine. This is a short post with a pretty simple recipe, but highly recommend as something to keep in your back pocket for an easy and satisfying meal using mostly pantry ingredients.

The aforementioned milk

Threw bayleaf in too, oh well!

Chicken Adobo With Coconut Milk

1. In a large pot toast over medium-low heat for about 5 minutes:

   • 2 Tbsp coconut oil

   • 15 clove garlic, smashed or roughly chopped

   • 2 tsp black peppercorns, whole

   • 1 tsp black peppercorns, ground

   • 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

2. When the above mixture is fragrant, and the garlic softens, add:

   • 4 lbs bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs

   • 1 onion, roughly sliced

3. Add the chicken skin-side down, and sear on medium-high heat to render out the fat and develop some color on the skin, about 5 minutes undisturbed.

4. Flip the chicken over, and add:

   • 1 cup coconut milk

   • 1 cup water

   • 8 fresh bay leaves

   • 1/2 cup soy sauce

   • 2/3 cup cane vinegar

5. When the mixture comes to a boil, reduce to a simmer, put the lid on, and cook for about 1 hour.

   • Check on it occasionally for preferred doneness, but I think it’s generally falling apart.

   • I usually cook it a little less time for my personal preference.

6. Take the lid off, turn the heat up to high, and reduce the liquid until it thickens into a velvety gravy.

7. Garnish with cilantro and/or green onion if desired, and serve over rice.

Crowded pan don't care

Brown food made better by greenery

NOTES!

• Slightly adapted from NYT recipe: video; recipe - I add onions for a little sweetness (I’d put more in a non-coconut milk version) and up the vinegar amount after subbing in cane vinegar for coconut vinegar. If you end up using something like apple cider (tho I recommend getting at least cane vinegar), you might only need 1/2 cup.

• I have made this version a few times before, and I really like how the sweetness and richness of the coconut milk really rounds out the dish. But even if you replace it with more water, it’ll still be great.

• Along the same lines, this recipe has a few more steps than the most basic way to make adobo, which is to dump everything into the pot and let it simmer until it’s falling apart. The added steps provide a little extra layer of flavor - it’s worth doing if you have time, but feel free to skip some or all of them otherwise.