Adobo Flakes – AMCARMEN'S KITCHEN

Welcome to part two of my Auguest feature! A few days ago I shared a tried-and-true vegan and gluten-free sweet recipe, and now that I’ve gotten that out of the way, we’re taking a very tasty trip to the other side of the delicious breakfast spectrum. I’m using this second recipe as a chance to make something I love but haven’t tried cooking myself before: adobo flakes! True to form (Allison reminded me that I do this every year… yikes), I left it to the last available minute, but worry not, because it actually worked out better than I expected! I did originally intend to turn this into a Filipino twist on fried chicken and waffles, but the adobo flakes turned out so fantastically that I couldn’t bring myself to make them share the spotlight. Please note that my poor time management was completely unrelated to this decision. However I do still highly recommend the waffle pairing, because I did eat them that way, and let me tell you, it was DIVINE. That isn’t even a word I use regularly, but it does so accurately describe the marriage of the saucy crispy chicken and fluffy golden waffles.

Oh, and I’m pleased to announce that all the liquid-cooking techniques from my past recipes came in very handy for the first part of this recipe.

PREP TIME 10 MINS* | COOKING TIME 1 HOUR | SERVES 4

*Not including marination time of minimum 2 hours or maximum overnight for a more intense flavour.

INGREDIENTS

For the marinade

1 & 1/2 cups white vinegar
1/4 cup soy sauce
3-4 dried bay leaves
3 red chillis, with just the tops cut off
1 head garlic, lightly crushed to remove skins
Generous amount of cracked black pepper

1/2 kg chicken breast fillets (about 2 large breast pieces)
1 can coconut milk
Canola oil spray

Pre-made waffles (I used this waffle recipe)

METHOD

Combine marinade ingredients in a large bowl and marinate chicken for at least 2 hours, or over night to really intensify the flavour.
Transfer marinade and chicken into a pan on medium heat, and cook, uncovered, turning chicken every so often. The vinegar will boil away and smell quite acidic – be prepared!
Preheat oven to 200C (180C fan forced or 400F or gas mark 6), and line a large baking tray with grease proof paper. In the meantime, remove chicken from the pan once cooked through (about 10-15 minutes) and set aside in a large bowl.
Add coconut milk to pan and bring down to a simmer. The sauce will reduce to a thicker consistency after about 15-20 minutes. Once thickened, remove from heat and discard the bay leaves (and chilli if you don’t want to eat it) – the garlic will have fallen apart and any leftover chunks will melt in your mouth.
While the sauce cooks, why not get to work shredding the chicken! I like to grip a piece on one end with tongs and rake a fork through the meat going with the grain, working my way up.
Once the chicken is well shredded, evenly distribute onto the baking tray (I did one breast per batch), and generously spray with canola oil and give the tray a shake to even the coat.
Place into the oven for 10 minutes, then increase the temperature to 220C. If the chicken looks like it’s browning more quickly in certain spots, take it out and redistribute the flakes, then return to oven and bake for another 10minutes.
Now get your waffles ready – I usually make one big batch and keep some in the freezer, then just defrost for a quick breakfast option! Putting them in the oven just after you take out the chicken and toasting them in the residual heat makes them a little bit crispy on the outside – yum!
Once ready, heap a little mountain of of adobo flakes onto your waffles, finishing off with a generous drizzle of sauce, and serve straightaway. You can thank me later.