A superb Filipino chicken adobo with onions and garlic cooked in the Instant Pot pressure cooker. Low carb and keto.
Chicken adobo is traditional Filipino comfort food made easy with a pressure cooker. The chicken comes out tender and flavorful, and the adobo sauce is simultaneously tangy, sweet, and savory. I don’t get the chance to eat Filipino food often, but this is one of my favorites!
The main ingredients in chicken adobo are chicken thighs (I use boneless and skinless ones), onions, soy sauce, and vinegar. The chicken thighs are seasoned and pan seared, followed by pressure cooking with soy sauce, vinegar, and onions in the Instant Pot. The saute mode is then used to reduce the sauce to an almost sticky consistency.
The adobo sauce is the highlight of this dish, so here are a few details regarding the last step when you’re reducing the sauce. The recipe recommends 15 minutes of boiling to be on the conservative side, but you can boil longer for a different result.
If you boil for…
- 15 minutes then you’ll get a decent amount of remaining sauce to spoon over the chicken but it won’t be very thick. The sauce will, however, taste amazing with the onions and chicken.
- 20 minutes then you’ll end up with a thick glaze that easily sticks to the chicken. However, since it’s more of a glaze than a sauce, you won’t have much liquid to spoon over the chicken. You’ll also have to be careful that the sauce doesn’t burn on the bottom of your pressure cooker pot.
Personally, I like the consistency of the sauce when boiled about 17 minutes. I recommend 15 minutes for most people because it’s easy to burn the sauce when it starts becoming glaze-like, but it’s up to you!
A few notes on ingredient substitutions:
- The onions are a must and cannot be skipped. The sauce would have a very different taste and texture without them.
- If you follow the Paleo or Whole30 diet, you can substitute soy sauce with coconut aminos.
- I don’t recommend using chicken breasts. Use chicken thighs, legs, or drumsticks. I use boneless and skinless ones because it’s easier, but you don’t have to.
This recipe’s ingredients were a good amount for my 6 quart Instant Pot, but you can easily double them for an 8 quart pressure cooker.
If you have any leftovers, they store well in the refrigerator and can be reheated the next day in the microwave.
Instant Pot Chicken Adobo
A superb Filipino chicken adobo with onions and garlic cooked in the Instant Pot pressure cooker. Low carb and keto.
Ingredients
- 2 - 2.5 pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs
- 1/2 cup low-sodium soy sauce (do not use regular, which will be too salty)
- 1/3 cup white vinegar
- 1 onion sliced
- 5 cloves garlic minced
- 3 bay leaves
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne
- salt and coarse black pepper
For serving:
- 2 scallions sliced
- cooked white rice or cauliflower rice
Instructions
-
Select the saute mode on the pressure cooker for medium heat. Generously season chicken thighs on both sides with salt and pepper. When the display reads HOT, add olive oil to coat the bottom of the pot. Add half of the chicken thighs and cook for a few minutes on each side before transferring them to a plate. Repeat for the remaining chicken thighs. Turn off the saute mode.
-
Add soy sauce, vinegar, onion, garlic, and cayenne to the pot. Stir well and scrape up any brown bits stuck to the bottom of the pot. Return all chicken thighs to the pot in a single layer, placing them snugly on top of the onions. Top with bay leaves. Secure and seal the lid. Cook for 10 minutes at high pressure followed by a manual pressure release.
-
Uncover and select the saute mode. Keeping the chicken in the pot, boil for about 15 minutes to thicken the sauce. Remove the bay leaves. Serve the chicken and sauce, optionally with cooked cauliflower rice. Top with sliced scallions.
Nutrition Info
This recipe yields 6.5 g net carbs per serving. Nutrition information doesn't include serving ingredients like rice.
| Nutrition Facts Per Serving |
| Calories 370 | |
| Total Fat 21g | 33% |
| Saturated Fat 1g | 5% |
| Trans Fat 0g | |
| Cholesterol 182mg | 61% |
| Sodium 1540mg | 64% |
| Potassium 10mg | 0% |
| Total Carb 7g | 2% |
| Dietary Fiber 0.5g | 2% |
| Sugars 3g | |
| Protein 37g |
Made it tonight for my Filipina spouse. She said it’s better than what what her mom used to make! Thanks for a great recipe!!
Substituted rice vinegar for the white vinegar.
I just made this and it was amazing. I added some chicken stock to make sure the 10qt Instant Pot had enough liquid but it was still excellent. Thanks Julia!
I made this tonight for the first time, and my family smashed it down. They both complain about cauliflower anything, but I served it on cauliflower mash with ghee and they wanted more. I also used coconut aminos and apple cider vinegar instead of soy sauce and white vinegar as I am doing Whole30. This will definitely be going on the keep list. Thank you for the recipe 😊
You’re welcome, Cheryl. Thanks for sharing your Whole30 substitutions!
Definitely use the low sodium soy sauce. I’ve made this many times since finding this recipe and it’s always delicious. I made it last night and used regular soy sauce since it’s what I had on hand. It was so salty that we couldn’t finish it. I made a huge batch and now I have leftovers I’m not sure what to do with. But made with low sodium soy sauce this is perfect and delicious.
Casandra, next time you only have regular soy sauce on hand, you can dilute it with 50% water for this recipe. Won’t be as good as simply using low sodium soy sauce, but it’s a decent substitution.
If I’m substituting coconut aminos for soy sauce and apple cider vinegar for white vinegar, are they equal parts?
Hi Ashley. I haven’t tested this recipe with either of those ingredients, but a 1:1 substitution should be a good start.
Absolutely love this recipe! Planning to make it for family camping trip next week. If I made this at home would it be good two days later? I was thinking of skipping the 15 minutes of boiling until I take it out at the campsite and reheat in my cast iron skillet. Please let me know what you think- this recipe is my husbands ONLY request for the whole trip:) Its a hit!
Yes, I think it would be good 2 days later and it should be fine if you boil it in a cast iron skillet when you reheat it. Just make sure it’s boiled down enough so that it’s a nice and thick concentrated sauce. Hope you guys enjoy this during your camping trip 🙂
Can you use chicken party wings instead of thighs or drumsticks? Looking for another way to prepare them other than in the oven.
This was my first instant pot meal and it is so amazing! I’ll be making this a lot. Great served over riced cauliflower, peppers and broccoli. I couldn’t help but eat the rest before I went to bed…
Ms. Julia, Ms. Julia, Ms. Julia!!! I have never tasted Adobo chicken before, but if the chicken is tender and seasoned anything like this, then I am a fan! I am making two more of your recipes, but this one is a WINNER! Thank you.
I made this tonight after reading the recipe and hearing all my Filipino friends rave about chicken adobo growing up. It was the first meal I made with my Instant Pot and it was amazing!
When you say “Boil for 15 minutes…” I’m assuming you removed the chicken thighs after pressure cooking but before boiling the sauce to thicken it. If so, you might add a brief mention to clarify this in your recipe. Thanks.
No, the chicken thighs stay in the sauce during boiling.
Made this tonight and it was delicious!! My sauce never thickened though, any suggestions?
Was the sauce boiling? If it was boiling for 15 minutes, it should definitely thicken. If you make this again, I would verify that your saute mode was on medium heat and the liquid was hot enough to boil.
Just made this tonight and the flavor was super tasty! My husband devoured it, I liked it a lot but it was a little too salty for me, even with the low-sodium soy sauce. Next time I’ll omit the salt when seasoning the meat. Have you ever tried this with pork? Maybe cubes of pork shoulder? I think it would be a great combo.
By manual release, do you mean quick or natural. Thank you.
Quick release.
This is one of the favourites in our home. Easy and budget friendly! Give it a whirl you won’t be disappointed!
It would help to know which cooking program to actually cook the adobo, e.g. soup/broth, meat/stew, etc. (for Novice cook).
Depending on your Instant Pot model, I have seen it labeled as “manual” or “Pressure Cook”