Air Fryer Filipino Chicken Adobo

Name: Air Fryer Filipino Chicken Adobo
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 45 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Filipino
Ingredients: 2.5 lb (1.1 kg) bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs; 1/3 cup (80 ml) soy sauce; 1/3 cup (80 ml) white or cane vinegar; 6 garlic cloves, smashed; 1 tsp whole black peppercorns; 2 bay leaves; 1 tbsp brown sugar; Cooked rice, to serve

Classic adobo is a braise. Here you still marinate (and briefly simmer if you want sauce), then finish the chicken in the basket so the skin turns glossy and browned instead of soft. Serve over rice with the reduced marinade spooned on top.

45 min total
380°F / 193°C
4 servings
15 min prep

Jump to recipe See steps

Vinegar first, sugar second

Cane or white vinegar keeps the soy from tasting flat. A little brown sugar helps the finish caramelize under airflow.

Air Fryer Filipino Chicken Adobo

Prep 15 min · Cook 30 min · Total 45 min · 4 servings

Air Fryer380°F / 193°C

Basket time26 min

Flip / shakeat 12 min

Tested onCosori 5.8 qt, 1700W

Crowding. Skin needs space. Batch if your basket is small.

Step-by-step instructions

Follow each step in order. Photos show what to look for so the basket finish matches the plate.

Marinate

Build the marinade
Combine soy sauce, vinegar, garlic, peppercorns, bay leaves and brown sugar. Add chicken and marinate at least 30 minutes (overnight is better).
Equal parts soy and vinegar is the classic backbone. Bay and peppercorns are not optional garnish. They define the aroma.
Simmer for sauce
Optional but recommended: pour marinade and chicken into a skillet, simmer 8-10 minutes, then transfer chicken to the air fryer and reduce the liquid until syrupy for serving.
A short simmer seasons the meat and gives you liquid to reduce into a glossy spoon sauce for rice.
Chicken adobo simmering in soy-vinegar sauce

Air fry

Air-fry for skin
Preheat the air fryer to 380°F (193°C). Place thighs skin-side up in a single layer. Brush with a little marinade.
The basket turns soft braised skin into bronzed, sticky skin. Brush lightly so it does not drip and smoke.
Adobo chicken thighs in the air fryer basket
Finish the cook
Cook 12 minutes. Flip and brush again. Cook 10-14 minutes more until skin is bronzed and meat near the bone reads 175°F (79°C).
Bone-in thighs are done near 175°F. Keep brushing once mid-cook for shine.
Plate with sauce
Rest 5 minutes. Spoon reduced sauce over rice and chicken.
Reduced marinade over rice is the point of adobo. Do not throw that liquid away.
Finished Filipino chicken adobo