Filipino Adventure

Passport & Plate - Filipino Chicken Adobo

Philippines | Thursday, February 6, 2014 | 5 photos

Ingredients
Chicken Breast
Potato
Zucchini
bay leaves
soy sauce
cider vinegar
water
onion
peppercorns
chicken stock
tomato sauce

 

How to prepare this recipe
add chicken and onion diced into a pot with olive oil, seal the chicken and then add the soy sauce, water and vinegar along with the diced potato.

Then add 3 bay leaves, the salt, pepper, stock and tomato sauce to the pot.

Allow to simmer for 30 minutes before adding the zucchini and let simmer for another 15 minutes before serving with rice, pancip noodles and lime to garnish.

 

The story behind this recipe
The Philippines recently suffered a huge typhoon which devastated much of the country, I saw the footage of aftermath on the news and felt that I wanted to help so i flew over there at short notice with the money I had been saving and planning to spend on a trip to Italy and France. It was my first time leaving my home country and I flew alone, it was daunting but I enjoyed it a lot.

I spent time packing up aid supplies, which were flown by plane and helicopter to the worst affected regions of the country. I then travelled deep into the jungle where I trekked through swamp and forest, and across a river on a cart drawn by Carabo to reach a tribe where my Aunty lives. The people were so welcoming and generous and during my stay they made an Adobo for me, which is a very popular dish in the Philippines and comes in many different variations, as well as this they also allowed me to try Bagoong, which is fermented shrimp, it tasted unlike anything I have tried before and I quickly got used to its strong, pungent flavor and smell

My Adobo recipe uses zucchini and potato rather than the Filipino vegetables Uriband, Okra and Ampalaya which I was unable to source in NZ.

I loved every minute of my stay on the Island of Palawan in the Philippines and felt that the richness and warmth of the food completely matched the nature of the people who I was privileged enough to get to know a little during my stay. When I make this meal for my family and friends it brings back great memories and I am so thankful to have something that is such a nice reminder of my experience.