Instant Pot Chicken Adobo

instant pot chicken adobo | filipino chicken adobo | adobo chicken instant pot | chicken adobo pressure cooker

Step-by-Step Guide on how to make Instant Pot Chicken Adobo. Easy Filipino chicken adobo and rice is a quick one pot meal. Bursting with a caramelized flavor punch of savory, tangy, umami with a hint of sweetness. No need to marinate ahead. Sarap!

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chicken adobo instant pot

Chicken Adobo

Adobo is sometimes referred to as the unofficial Philippines national dish.

Authentic Filipino adobo is often made of meat, seafood, or vegetables cooked in soy sauce, vinegar, garlic, and other spices.

If you haven’t tried Filipino cuisine before, Chicken Adobo is a delicious gateway to a flavor-bursting adventure.

filipino chicken adobo

Filipino Chicken Adobo: The incredibly bold flavors – sharp tart, deep savory, slightly sweet, and spiced adobo sauce soaked in the juicy tender chicken. The flavor punch makes it really appetizing to eat.

If you want to try Pork Adobo, here’s the recipe: Pork Adobo

How to Make Instant Pot Chicken Adobo

chicken adobo recipe

Here are the ingredients for cooking Chicken Adobo in Instant Pot:

chicken adobo ingredients

Chicken: Best to use chicken thighs or chicken legs for this chicken adobo instant pot recipe. But you can substitute them with other parts of the chicken.

Whole Black Peppercorns + Dried Red Chili: Don’t worry! The 1 dried red chili and 4g whole black peppercorns won’t make this chicken adobo spicy.

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Filipino Soy Sauce & Vinegar

Soy sauce and vinegar are essential ingredients in this chicken adobo recipe. So the quality, flavor complexity, and flavor intensity heavily impact the final product.

Amy + Jacky’s Pro Tips – Taste & Adjust! Different bottles of soy sauce and vinegar can vary in their flavors, textures, aroma, and thickness. So, make sure to taste and adjust the amount to get the right balance for your palate.

If you prefer a milder Adobo Sauce, you can first test with a reduced amount of soy sauce.

Filipino Soy Sauces Taste Testing Product Comparison

We decided to develop this chicken adobo instant pot recipe with “Made in Philippines” or “Filipino Soy Sauce” (aka “toyo”) and Filipino Vinegar. Since these brands cater to Filipino cuisine.

We taste-tested different brands and combinations of vinegar and soy sauces.

  • Taste-Test Finding #1: We liked the Silver Swan Soy Sauce the best.
  • Taste-Test Finding #2: The Filipino Soy Sauce tastes more sour than the Chinese Light Soy Sauce (not low sodium soy sauce). We’re most satisfied with the flavors by mixing the two soy sauces.
  • Filipino Soy Sauce & Vinegar Substitutes: You can substitute them with regular soy sauce (or light soy sauce) and white vinegar. It’ll work but the flavor profile will change according to your soy sauce and vinegar. So make sure to taste and adjust accordingly.

Fish Sauce

Fish sauce may not be a common ingredient in Filipino chicken adobo recipes, but it’s a common flavor enhancer in Amy + Jacky’s recipes! 😉

Don’t worry! The amount of fish sauce won’t make your chicken adobo taste fishy. But, you can omit it if you like. Your chicken adobo will still be delicious.

For Reference – Amy + Jacky’s Adobo Sauce:

Based on our experiments, these are the brands we used to develop our easy chicken adobo recipe:

Optional: Pot-in-Pot Rice

If you want to make Instant Pot Chicken Adobo without rice, you can skip the pot-in-pot rice and use the same pressure cooking time.

If you’re making the Pot-in-Pot Rice, best to use a Stainless Steel Bowl. You can learn more with this Pot-in-Pot Guide.

Step 1

Prepare Instant Pot

Heat up Instant Pot using “Sauté More” function. Wait until Instant Pot says “HOT” (roughly 8 minutes).

Instant Pot Saute More

Step 2

Make Adobo Sauce

In a medium glass measuring cup, mix and combine 1 tablespoon (12.5g) sugar, 1 tablespoon (15ml) fish sauce, ¼ cup (63ml) Filipino soy sauce, ⅓ cup (83ml) regular soy sauce, and ⅓ cup (83ml) Filipino vinegar.

Step 3

Sauté Onions and Spices

Add 1 tablespoon (15ml) oil in Instant Pot.

Sauté onions for 2 minutes.

Add 12 cloves of crushed garlic, 1 teaspoon (4g) whole black peppercorn, dried red chili, and 4 dried bay leaves in Instant Pot. Then sauté for another 45 seconds.

saute onions and spices

Step 4

Deglaze Instant Pot

Add adobo sauce mixture (from Step 2) in Instant Pot. Then deglaze by scrubbing the flavorful brown bits off the bottom of the pot with a wooden spoon.

deglaze

Step 5

Pressure Cook Chicken Adobo and Pot in Pot Rice

Coat the chicken with adobo sauce by dipping the skin side into the adobo sauce. Then flip and place the chicken with skin side up in Instant Pot.

Place a steamer rack in Instant Pot. Then layer a stainless steel bowl of 1 cup (235g) Jasmine rice and 1 cup (250ml) cold water on top of the rack (as shown in the photo below).

chicken adobo and pot in pot rice

With Venting Knob in Venting Position, close the lid, then turn Venting Knob to Sealing Position.

Instant Pot Chicken Adobo Cook Time: Pressure cook chicken adobo at High Pressure for 6 minutes, then 10 minutes Natural Release.

After 10 minutes of Natural Release, carefully turn Venting Knob to the Venting position to release the remaining pressure.

Once the floating valve drops, remove the lid.

chicken adobo and rice

Step 6

Thicken Chicken Adobo Sauce

Remove the stainless steel bowl and steamer rack.

Set aside the chicken adobo in a serving bowl.

set aside chicken

Press Cancel button, then Sauté button to heat up the adobo sauce.

In a small mixing bowl, mix 2.5 tablespoons (22.5g) cornstarch with 3 tablespoons (45ml) cold water. Mix it into the adobo sauce one third at a time until the desired thickness.

thicken sauce

Taste and adjust the seasoning with more vinegar, sugar, or soy sauce accordingly.

Coat the chicken with adobo sauce by placing them back in the Instant Pot.

adobo chicken instant pot

Step 7

Optional: Crisp Skin

Note: If you want to kick it up a notch, finish the chicken under a broiler to enjoy the deeply caramelized adobo deliciousness. Yum~

Place chicken adobo (coated with a thin layer of sauce on top) on a baking tray. Then, put it under a broiler for 5 to 10 minutes. This will maximize the flavor and crisp up the skin.

instant pot adobo

Step 8

Serve Instant Pot Chicken Adobo

Serve Instant Pot chicken adobo with rice.

Lightly drizzle the chicken with more adobo sauce, then garnish with green onions.

instant pot adobo chicken

What to Serve with Filipino Chicken Adobo

This Instant Pot Chicken Adobo and Rice makes a quick and easy one pot meal. You can serve chicken adobo with delicious Filipino dishes like Kare-Kare, Sisig, Sinigang, Lechón, Kaldereta, or Lumpiang Shanghai.

You can also serve it with other side dishes, soups, or desserts.

Vegetables: Instant Pot Broccoli, Instant Pot Cabbage, Instant Pot Green Beans, Instant Pot Carrots, Instant Pot Beets

Soups: Instant Pot Tomato Soup, Instant Pot Minestrone Soup, Instant Pot Mushroom SoupInstant Pot Butternut Squash Soup

Dessert: Flan, Tofu Pudding, Halo Halo

Enjoy the Instant Pot Chicken Adobo!

4.98 from 36 votes

Instant Pot Chicken Adobo

Author: Amy + Jacky
How to make Instant Pot Chicken Adobo. Classic Filipino chicken adobo and rice is a quick and easy one pot meal. Bursting with a caramelized flavor punch of savory, tangy, umami with a hint of sweetness. No need to marinate ahead. Sarap!
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Servings 4
Total Time 40 minutes
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Ingredients

  • 6 (995g) chicken thighs or 2 pounds chicken meat
  • 1 tablespoon (15ml) peanut oil or vegetable oil
  • 1 (150g) medium onion , sliced
  • 12 cloves (34g) garlic , crushed
  • 1 teaspoon (4g) whole black peppercorn
  • 1 dried red chili
  • 4 dried bay leaves
  • 1 stalk green onions , thinly sliced for garnish

Adobo Sauce (See Notes)

Optional - Pot in Pot Rice

  • 1 cup (235g) Jasmine rice , rinsed and drained well
  • 1 cup (250ml) cold water

Thickener

  • tablespoons (22.5g) cornstarch
  • 3 tablespoons (45ml) cold water

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Instructions 

  • Prepare Instant Pot: Heat up Instant Pot using “Sauté More” function. Wait until Instant Pot says “HOT” (roughly 8 minutes).
  • Make Adobo Sauce: In a medium glass measuring cup, mix and combine 1 tbsp (12.5g) sugar, 1 tbsp (15ml) fish sauce, ¼ cup (63ml) Filipino soy sauce, ⅓ cup (83ml) regular soy sauce, and ⅓ cup (83ml) Filipino vinegar.
  • Sauté Onions and Spices: Add 1 tbsp (15ml) oil in Instant Pot. Sauté onions for 2 minutes.
    Add 12 crushed garlic cloves, 1 tsp (4g) whole black peppercorn, dried red chili, and 4 dried bay leaves, then sauté for another 45 seconds.
  • Deglaze Instant Pot: Add adobo sauce mixture (from Step 2) in Instant Pot. Deglaze by scrubbing the flavorful brown bits off the bottom of the pot with a wooden spoon.
  • Pressure Cook Chicken Adobo and Pot in Pot Rice: Coat the chicken with adobo sauce by dipping the skin side into the adobo sauce. Then flip to place the chicken skin side up in Instant Pot.
    Place a steamer rack in Instant Pot. Layer a stainless steel bowl of 1 cup (235g) Jasmine rice and 1 cup (250ml) cold water on top of the rack.
    With Venting Knob in Venting Position, close the lid, then turn Venting Knob to Sealing Position. Pressure cook at High Pressure for 6 minutes, then Natural Release for 10 minutes. Turn off heat. Open lid carefully.
  • Thicken Chicken Adobo Sauce: Remove stainless steel bowl & steamer rack. Set aside chicken in a serving bowl.
    Press Cancel button, then Sauté button to heat up the sauce.
    In a small mixing bowl, mix 2.5 tbsp (22.5g) cornstarch with 3 tbsp (45ml) cold water. Mix it into the adobo sauce one third at a time until desired thickness.
    Taste and adjust the seasoning with more vinegar, sugar, or soy sauce accordingly. Coat chicken with adobo sauce by placing them back in the pot.
  • Optional Step - Crisp Skin: Place chicken adobo (coated with a thin layer of sauce) on a baking tray. Put it under a broiler for 5 to 10 minutes to maximize the flavor and crisp up the skin.
  • Serve: Serve chicken adobo with rice. Lightly drizzle the adobo sauce and garnish with green onions. Enjoy~

Notes

1. Chicken: Best to use chicken thighs or chicken legs, but you can substitute them with other parts of the chicken.
2. Filipino Soy Sauce & Vinegar: Different soy sauces and vinegar have different flavors, saltiness, or acidity. Make sure to taste and adjust the amount to get the right balance for your tastes. If you prefer a milder adobo sauce, you can reduce the amount of soy sauce.
  • Substitute: You can substitute them with regular soy sauce (or light soy sauce) and white vinegar. It'll work but the flavor profile will change according to your soy sauce and vinegar. Make sure to taste and adjust the amount accordingly!
3. Fish Sauce: The amount in this recipe won't make your chicken adobo taste fishy. But you can omit it if you like. Your chicken adobo will still be delicious.
4. Amy + Jacky's Adobo Sauce
5. Is the Chicken Adobo Spicy? Don't worry! The 1 dried red chili and 4g whole black peppercorns won’t make this chicken adobo spicy.
6. Pot-in-Pot Rice: If you want to make Chicken Adobo without rice, you can skip the pot-in-pot rice and use the same pressure cooking time.
7. Shopping Tip: Try to buy these sauces from your local Asian market. They're usually available at a lower price. 
Rate Amy + Jacky's Recipe: If you've tried our recipe, rate the recipe in the Comments section. Thank you!
Calories: 661kcal
Course: Main
Cuisine: Asian, Filipino
Keyword: chicken adobo instant pot, chicken adobo pressure cooker, chicken adobo recipe, filipino chicken adobo, instant pot chicken adobo

Nutrition

Calories: 661kcal | Carbohydrates: 20g | Protein: 43g | Fat: 45g | Saturated Fat: 12g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 10g | Monounsaturated Fat: 19g | Trans Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 244mg | Sodium: 882mg | Potassium: 641mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 242IU | Vitamin C: 6mg | Calcium: 53mg | Iron: 2mg
instant pot chicken adobo | filipino chicken adobo | adobo chicken instant pot | chicken adobo pressure cooker
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