Sizzling sisig made with chicken and crispy chicken skin! Spicy, and savory with calamansi, onions, and chilies. You’ll be surprised how delicious it is. A perfect alternative to pork sisig that you can enjoy as pulutan (beer match) or as a main dish for lunch or dinner.
Chicken Sisig
Chicken is one of the best alternatives to pork. It’s high in protein, low in fat, and goes so well with any flavor profile. So it’s no surprise why it worked wonderfully for sisig.
So if you’re craving for sisig but have been trying to cut back on red meat or just love chicken in general, then this recipe is for you!
I promise you won’t miss pork. That much 🙂
What you need
Here’s what you need for chicken sisig:
- Chicken – use boneless chicken thighs or breasts. I use a combination of both to get varying textures. Separate the skin and fry it separately to get that delicious chicharron texture!
- Soy sauce – to be used as a marinade for the chicken.
- Calamansi – gives sisig its distinct citrusy Filipino flavor. It can be substituted with lemon juice or lime juice but best if you can find calamansi.
- Red onion – its sweet pungent flavor gives character to the whole dish. I love adding it raw. So good!
- Liquid seasoning – the secret ingredient to make the best-tasting sisig. Highly, highly recommended!
- Chilies – use mild green chilies or add red chilis if you like it spicy!
How to prepare the chicken
There are two ways to prepare the chicken for sisig. Nothing complicated, really.
- Pan-fried chicken – marinate the chicken meat in soy sauce and calamansi for 15 minutes. Pan-fry until cooked through.
- Use leftovers – got any leftover roasted chicken, Lechon manok or chicken barbecue? Make it into sisig! It’s as simple as that!
Chop the cooked chicken into small pieces and it’s ready for sisig.
Simple Crispy Chicken Skin
Crispy. Chicken. Skin.
My guilty pleasure.
I mean who doesn’t love crispy chicken skin? Using it as a topping for sisig was the best idea. Ever! And it’s so easy to make!
Pat dry the chicken skin then season with salt and pepper. Fry in hot oil until crispy. Cut into pieces and sprinkle all over the sizzling sisig.
That’s it! Easy peasy!
Sizzling Chicken Sisig
Finally, the last vital steps:
Combine the pan-fried chicken, onions, garlic, and chilies (except chicken skin) in a large bowl or plate.
Heat oil in a sizzling plate or cast iron pan over high heat. When the oil is hot enough, add all the ingredients. Stir until everything is combined.
Pour the liquid seasoning and calamansi juice. Add more red onions and sprinkle the crispy chicken skin. Remove from heat and drizzle the mayonnaise on top.
Serve immediately and enjoy!
Variation: Add Chicken Liver
Adding chicken liver to your sisig is another way of making the dish much more interesting. If you love chicken livers, I highly recommend adding it to any of your sisig dishes.
Here’s how:
- Place the chicken liver into a bowl. Marinate in vinegar, calamansi juice, or lemon juice for 5 minutes. Wash with tap water and drain completely. This step will help eliminate any gamey flavor.
- Slice the liver into half then season with, salt and pepper.
- Pan-fry in hot oil for 2 minutes on each side until browned.
- Let it cool and slice into smaller pieces before adding to the chicken sisig mixture.
That’s it!
Serve
Serve chicken sisig straight from the pan then top with more raw onions and raw egg to make it extra creamy (residual heat will cook the egg, don’t worry!)
Serve with rice or enjoy on its own paired with any of your favorite ice-cold drinks.
Watch how to make it
More Filipino chicken recipes
- Chicken Kare Kare
- Tinolang Manok
- Easy Chicken and Mushroom Salpicao
- Nilagang Manok sa Patis (Chicken Soup with Fish Sauce)
- Chicken Menudo
- Easy Chicken Sinigang with Gabi
- Chicken Binagoongan Recipe
- Easy Chicken Afritada Recipe
- Sweet and Sour Chicken
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Chicken Sisig with Crispy Chicken Skin
Ingredients
Marinade
- 500 grams / 17 oz boneless chicken fillet (see note 1)
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 cloves garlic (finely chopped)
- 2 tbsp calamansi juice (see note 2)
- 1 piece chicken liver (optional)
Other sisig ingredients
- ½ cup vegetable oil (i used canola, divided)
- 1 large red onion (finely chopped, divided)
- 2 cloves garlic (chopped)
- ¼ cup calamansi juice (divided)
- 2 tbsp liquid seasoning, add more to taste (see note 3)
- 2 tbsp mayonnaise (add more, if preferred)
- green and red chilies (chopped)
- onion leaves (optional topping)
- salt and pepper (to taste)
Instructions
- Separate the chicken skin from the meat. Set aside.
- Slice chicken meat into strips. Place in a bowl and add the rest of the marinade ingredients; include the chicken liver, if using. Marinate for 15-30 minutes. Meanwhile, prepare the rest of the ingredients.
- Remove chicken from the marinade and garlic bits. Discard the marinade. Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a pan over medium heat. Pan-fry chicken on each side for 4 to 5minutes on each side. Do this in batches to avoid overcrowding the pan. Transfer to a plate and let it cool.
- Pan-fry the chicken liver in the same pan. About 1 minute on each side. Chopped the cooked chicken and liver into small pieces. Set aside.
- Season chicken skin with salt and pepper. In another pan, heat 1/3 cup of oil over medium-high heat. Fry chicken skin until crispy. Let it cool then cut into pieces.
Serve sisig (see note 4)
- Heat oil in a sizzling plate or cast iron pan over high heat. Add the chicken, half of the onion, garlic, and chilies. Cook until fragrant, about 2 minutes.
- Pour the liquid seasoning and calamansi juice. Season with black pepper. Turn off heat then top mayonnaise and remaining red onions. Sprinkle the crispy chicken skin. Serve immediately and enjoy with a glass of beer or your drink of choice. Enjoy!
Recipe Notes & Tips:
- Chicken – use chicken thigh or chicken breast or a combination of both. You can also use leftover chicken pieces from roasted chicken/lechon manok) or baked chicken.
- Calamansi – also known as calamondin. It can be substituted with lemon or lime but the flavor difference will be noticeable.
- Liquid seasoning – you can use Maggi, Knorr, or Braggs.
- Use a regular stainless skillet if the sizzling plate and or cast iron pan is not available. Serve sisig in the same pan or transfer to a serving dish.
- Nutrition: chicken liver is not included in the calorie calculation.
The crispy chicken skin was a good idea!
Thanks for the recipe!
Where does the mayo come into play?
Hi Sharon, put it after turning off the heat and just before serving. Sorry, I’ve missed that. I’ve updated the recipe.
– Mella