Filipino Chicken Adobo

I can't believe I've never made this.  It is soooo tasty, and easy.  I based mine off this recipe to give me a starting point.

• 8 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
• 5 fresh bay leaves, from the garden
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1/3 cup white vinegar
• 1/3 cup reduced sodium soy sauce
• Fresh cracked pepper, to taste

Above is what I marinated in for about 3 hours in a ZipLoc bag in the fridge.  Keep it as it will go in later.  When it was time for dinner, I got a frying pan out and heated a good swirl of grapeseed oil and lightly browned the chicken.  

I added the onions and garlic and cooked until soft and fragrant:

Below was everything that went in the sauce besides the reserved marinade which also went in.

• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 sweet onion, diced
• 1 cup water
• 2 tablespoons reduced sodium soy sauce
• 1/4 cup organic, unrefined coconut sugar
• 1 heaping tablespoon whole black peppercorns 

I simmered with top off until the liquid thickened and coated the chicken.  I ended up removing the chicken to get the sauce to thicken quicker then added it back in when reduced to coat the glaze over it and warm it back up.  That took an extra half hour.  

Next time I'd do the sauce without the chicken until it was reduced enough.  I served this over quinoa with kale and garnished it all with green onions.  

The chicken was delicious.  Tasted just as good as anywhere I've eaten it before.  However, the peppercorns were too strong and when you crunched on them, they gave too much unwanted pepper goodness.  Next time, I'd just crack my pepper like usual and add some crushed red chili flakes instead.  Simple ingredients for the win in this dish!