Instant Pot Chicken Adobo Recipe (2024)

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Make authentic Filipino Chicken Adobo in your Instant Pot – so delicious! This Instant Pot Chicken Adobo is so full of flavor and cooks in 15 minutes!

Instant Pot Chicken Adobo Recipe (1)

Filipino Chicken Adobo is a great recipe to cook in the Instant Pot! Instant Pot allows you to brown the chicken in the same pot and also cooks the chicken in 15 minutes instead of 40!

Instant Pot Chicken Adobo Recipe (2)

No Instant Pot? No problem! You can make chicken Adobo in a crockpot or on the stove with my classic chicken Adobo stovetop and slow cooker recipes!

Instant Pot Chicken Adobo Recipe (3)

A classic Filipino Chicken Adobo recipe calls for marinating the meat, then browning it before cooking in a marinade. If you are short on time or like to keep things simple, you can skip the marinating and/or browning! You can make this into a “dump dinner” by simply dumping the chicken, garlic, bay leaves, soy sauce, vinegar and water into the Instant Pot and pressure cooking it for 15 minutes! Dinner is ready!

Instant Pot Chicken Adobo Recipe (4)

The best cut of chicken for making chicken Adobo is the chicken thighs or chicken legs. You can use bone-in or boneless. Or you can use the whole cut-up chicken!

Instant Pot Chicken Adobo Recipe (5)

I usually use boneless skinless chicken thighs as I usually have them on hand. They are so tasty, tender and juicy!

Instant Pot Chicken Adobo Recipe (6)

On the picture above, Chicken Adobo is served alongside mushroom rice. If you’d like the recipe for this rice, check out my easy mushroom rice. Chicken Adobo goes really well with rice in general! Did you know you can cook perfect rice in your Instant Pot? Check out my Instant Pot White Rice and Instant Pot Brown Rice recipes.

Instant Pot Chicken Adobo Recipe (7)

How To Make Instant Pot Chicken Adobo

First, make the Adobo marinade by mixing equal parts of white vinegar, soy sauce and water. Add chicken thighs, a whole head of peeled garlic cloves and several bay leaves and marinate in Adobo overnight. You can also marinate for 20 minutes on the counter instead, or skip the marinating altogether!

The next step is to brown the chicken to seal in the flavor. A great thing about the Instant Pot is that you can brown meat directly in the pot! This way you won’t have to wash another frying pan :) Brown the chicken in some oil for 2 minutes per side. If you are in a rush, you can just skip this step as well!

Next, cook the chicken in the Adobo marinade in the Instant Pot. Instant Pot does a perfect job of cooking the chicken quickly and making it tender and juicy! The chicken cooks completely in 15 minutes, and it’s so soft and full of deep Adobo flavor!

After the chicken is cooked, remove it from the pot and switch the Instant Pot to a Saute mode. Cook the Adobo sauce on a saute mode until it thickens and reduces to a desired consistency. Spoon some of the Adobo sauce over the chicken.

Instant Pot Chicken Adobo Recipe (8)

If you like this Instant Pot chicken adobo, you will also love these other easy & yummy Instant Pot recipes:

Instant Pot BBQ Chicken – you can make this recipe with chicken breasts or thighs, it’s super easy and tastes amazing!

How To Cook Frozen Chicken Breast In Instant Pot – Instant Pot is a life-saver for people who forget to defrost meat in advance :)

Instant Pot Lemon Garlic Chicken Legs – you can cook them directly from frozen! Just dump and cook! So simple you won’t believe it!

Instant Pot Meatloaf – cut the meatloaf cooking time in more than half by making it in the Instant Pot! This is the easiest meatloaf recipe ever!

Instant Pot Meatballs – meatballs in the Instant Pot are so tender and juicy! Ready in 15 minutes!

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Instant Pot Chicken Adobo Recipe (10)

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Instant Pot Chicken Adobo Recipe

This Instant Pot chicken adobo recipe is amazing! Make an authentic Filipino chicken adobo right in your Instant Pot! So quick and easy and full of flavor!

Cook Time20 minutes mins

Total Time20 minutes mins

Course: Main Dish

Cuisine: American

Servings: 6 servings

Author: MelanieCooks.com

Ingredients

Instructions

Marinate the chicken

  • Mix the vinegar, water, soy sauce and pepper in a cup to make Adobo marinade.

  • Put the chicken in a bowl and pour Adobo marinade over it. Add garlic cloves and bay leaves to the bowl. Marinate the chicken in refrigerator overnight (or for 20 minutes on the counter).

Brown the chicken (optional)

  • Put the Instant Pot on a Saute setting. Add the oil in the Instant Pot. Take the chicken pieces out of the sauce and saute right in the Instant Pot in batches until the chicken is just browned (2 minutes per side).

Cook the chicken

  • Add browned chicken, Adobo sauce, garlic and bay leaves to the Instant Pot. Close the lid and turn the valve to Sealing position.

  • Press the "Manual" or "Pressure Cook" button and set the time for 15 minutes on High Pressure. When it's done cooking, do the Quick Release (QR) of the steam.

Reduce the sauce (optional)

  • Remove the chicken from the pot and switch the Instant Pot to a Saute mode. Cook the Adobo sauce for 5 minutes, or until it's thickened and reduced to a desired consistency. Spoon some sauce over the chicken.

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Instant Pot Chicken Adobo Recipe (2024)

FAQs

Does chicken get more tender the longer you cook it in an Instant Pot? ›

This dinner staple cooks up perfectly every time in the Instant Pot. You can aim for firm but juicy chicken for cubing, or let it cook a little bit longer for tender shredded chicken.

What if I add too much water to my adobo? ›

The more water you use in your adobo, the longer your adobo cooks. This also means more time for your meat to absorb flavor and fully tenderize. But too much water can waterlog your adobo, which risks losing all the flavor you've already developed up to this point.

What happens if you cook chicken too long in Instant Pot? ›

Can you overcook chicken breast in an Instant Pot? Yes, you can! Pressure Cookers don't work the same as slow cookers, where longer cooking times equal more juicy and tender meat. Too much time in a pressure cooker will create dry tough meat.

How much chicken can you put in an Instant Pot? ›

You can make up to 5 pounds of chicken breast in the Instant Pot at once, if yours is 6 quarts like mine. I usually stick to no more than 4 pounds, as 5 pounds doesn't always cook evenly.

Why is my chicken tough after pressure cooking? ›

Without watching over your shoulder in your kitchen, the most likely reason is overcooking. Pressure cookers are powerful, and it can be a fine line between perfectly done vs. too much. Longer cook times squeeze more moisture out of the tissue, leaving it drier and tougher.

Is it better to pressure cook or slow cook chicken? ›

So can a Crock-Pot cook better chicken than an Instant Pot? Well, it really depends on what you're making. The Instant Pot cooks chicken much faster than its non-pressure counterparts, but the resulting texture isn't going to be the same as what you'd get with a slow cooker or Dutch oven.

What is the most important ingredient in adobo? ›

The most basic ingredient of adobo is vinegar, which is usually coconut vinegar, rice vinegar, or cane vinegar (although sometimes white wine or cider vinegar can also be used). Almost every ingredient can be changed according to personal preference.

How do you balance adobo? ›

Adobo's flavour profiles are simple but well-balanced:
  1. Sour – Vinegar balances spice and enhances sweet notes. ...
  2. Salty – Soy sauce, garlic, and chicken balance any bitterness and enhance sweet flavours.
  3. Sweet – Adding sugar or oyster sauce to your dish will boost sweetness to complement the soy sauce.

Why do you not stir vinegar in adobo? ›

You can stir it while it's simmering or boiling. But, as for my father's words, do not stir it after you add the vinegar because "it may ruin the taste of the adobo." Bay leaves are quite optional to put when I cook my adobo.

Does chicken need to be submerged in a pressure cooker? ›

One is having the chicken submerged in the liquid and the other option is placing the chicken on top of the trivet. Submerging the chicken method is great for shredding in enchiladas, etc; while cooking the chicken on the trivet creates a firmer chicken that can be sliced for salads, etc.

Does cooking chicken longer make it tougher? ›

In addition, chicken breast has less fat and can become dry (chewy or rubbery) if cooked for too long.

Does chicken get harder the longer you cook it? ›

Yes, chicken breast will get softer the longer you cook it. However, if you cook it for too long, it will become dry and tough.

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