Chicken Afritada
Chicken Afritada is a dish I have eaten and cooked a lot in the past. It is a dish that my grandmother used to make and cook for us since we were small. I am not sure where this dish originated from but judging from the name, I think it has Spanish origin or inspired by Spanish cuisine. The Philippines is one of the countries colonized by Spain (300 years!) so a lot of our culture are rooted from the time and era where we lived under their rule. So there are a lot of food we still enjoy to this day that we acquired from the Spanish era for sure!
Similar to most dishes I cook at home, I can’t vouch for the authenticity of this dish even if I have eaten it a number of times in the past. I think that’s the “beauty” of cooking your own meals. You can get the inspiration from an existing recipe and cook it according to your preference!
For this recipe, this is the way my grandmother used to cook it. Sometimes I’ll change the vegetables a bit by adding peas but I don’t do it often.
1 kg chicken pieces (I typically use chicken drumsticks or oyster thighs)
250 g potatoes, peeled and cubed
2 large carrots, chopped
1/2 red bell pepper, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 small onion, chopped
1/2 cup tomato passata
freshly ground pepper and salt, to taste
1 tbsp oil
4 tbsp fish sauce
Steps to make / cook Chicken Afritada:
Get a saucepan big enough to fit the chicken pieces and place over medium-high heat. Once the pan is hot enough, pour the oil in. Reduce the heat to medium if you feel the pan is too hot to avoid burning the garlic.
Saute the garlic until golden brown. Once it is, add the chopped onion and cook until translucent.
Once it is cooked, add the chicken pieces making sure to put on the pan the side where it has skin. Cover and cook on that side for 10 minutes.
After 10 minutes, flip the chicken pieces to the other side. Add the fish sauce and ground pepper. Adjust the heat as necessary to make sure the meat will not burn but will be hot enough to cook it. Cook for another 10 minutes.
Check the chicken pieces to see whether it is cooked through by piercing the meat with a fork. If the chicken oozes some blood – cover, and cook for another 5 minutes, but you can add in the potatoes and bell pepper in the pan.
Check the chicken pieces again and continuously do so until there’s no more blood oozing out. When there’s no more blood, add in the tomato passata and bring to a boil.
This time, check if the potatoes are soft enough. If it is, add the chopped carrots and adjust the seasoning as necessary.
Simmer for 2-3 minutes and remove from heat.
Serve with steaming hot rice!
Note: Some use a stock cube for seasoning but I am not into this when it comes to cooking.
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Wow! Love your recipe! I also love cooking at home and learn from my mom since i was a kid. Another recipe to do! Thanks for sharing.
It is quite easy to make and the taste is GORGEOUS! Perfectly tender chicken, delicious sauce, yummy veggies… I fried potatoes and carrots separately before adding them to the dish. For this reason they didn’t absorb the sauce and have a different texture which brings a bit of a different flavor for this meal. Total deliciousness!
Ingredients
2 lbs chicken drumsticks, skin on
3-4 small potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 carrot, chopped
1 yellow bell pepper, sliced into strips
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 red onion, chopped
1 (14 oz.) can tomato puree
1 can (8 oz.) pineapple chunks, drained (reserve syrup)
2 tablespoons soy sauce
3 dried bay leaves
½ cup green peas
salt and pepper, to taste
6 tablespoons cooking oil, divided
Instructions
In a big pan over medium heat, heat 4 tablespoons of oil. Add potatoes and cook for about 1 minute. Then add carrot and cook for about 2 minutes. Add bell pepper and cook for about 1 minute. Remove all vegetables from pan and drain on paper towels.
Warm the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil in the same pan over medium heat. Add onion and garlic and cook for 1-2 minutes. Then add chicken and brown it slightly. Add the tomato puree, pineapple syrup, soy sauce, and bay leaves.
Bring to a boil, cover and simmer for about 20 minutes, or until the chicken is almost tender. Stir occasionally.
Add potatoes, yellow bell pepper, carrots, and pineapple chunks and continue to cook for 5-6 minutes, or until the potatoes are cooked. Add the green peas, season with salt and pepper and cook for 2 minutes more. Serve hot. Enjoy!