Makechicken inasal at home! Bacolod’s famous chargrilled chicken marinated in sinamak, garlic, lemongrass, calamansi, and ginger. You can make this with any cut of chicken, and it can be cooked in the oven, stove or BBQ.
Prep Time20 minutesmins
Cook Time40 minutesmins
Servings: 4-5 servings
Calories: 534kcal
Author: Mella
Ingredients
1kg/2 lbs. chicken legs or thighsbone-in, skin-on (see notes)
Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Place in a zip bag and let it sit for 10 minutes.
Remove the outer leaves of the lemongrass. Bruised with the back of your knife or a meat tenderizer. Crush the garlic and ginger if using fresh pieces. You can also use the spices from the prepared sinamak.
Place the spices in a bowl then add the sinamak, calamansi juice, pineapple juice, liquid seasoning, sugar, and black pepper. Stir until dissolved. Taste and adjust seasoning/sugar based on preference. You can also add some annatto oil in the marinade to deepen the color of the chicken. Totally optional!
Pour the marinade over the chicken. Massage until each pieces are covered with the liquid. Seal the bag and marinate for a minimum of 6 hours or overnight in the fridge. Turn one to two times to evenly marinate the chicken pieces.
Baste
Pour the vegetable oil in a small skillet over medium heat. Add the butter or margarine and annatto seeds. Set the heat to low. Stir together until the oil starts to turn red. After cooking for 2 minutes, turn off the heat. Continue stirring and cook using the residual heat for another 2 minutes. Remove from the stove and allow to cool for 10 minutes.
DAY 2: COOK THE CHICKEN
Remove the chicken from the marinade and as well as the spices that stuck to the skin before cooking.
Grill and Bake (cooking method 1)
Pre-heat oven to 180c/ 350F.
Preheat ovenproof skillet, grill pan, or cast iron pan. Add annatto oil. The skillet should be smoking hot to prevent the chicken from sticking.
Add chicken skin-side down and cook undisturbed on medium-high heat for 4 minutes or until chicken is nicely browned. Baste the top with the annatto oil. Flip to the other side and baste again with the annatto oil. Cook for a few minutes until charred. The sugar in this marinade burns quickly so watch it carefully.
Transfer the partially cooked chicken in a heat-proof tray and cook the next batch of chicken using the same procedure.
Transfer all the chicken pieces back to the ovenproof pan or place it on a roasting rack. Bake until cook through. Internal temperature must reach 165°F (75°C). See notes for suggested cooking times.
Charcoal/Gas (cooking method 2)
Preheat the grill for 5 minutes. Grill over the hottest side of the grill, turning occasionally until charred in spots, about 5 to 10 minutes.
Set the heat to medium-low, continue grilling (covered), basting with annatto oil and turning every 5 minutes or so, until the meat is cooked through, 20–40 minutes longer. Adjust the time depending on the size and thickness of the chicken. See notes for suggested cooking times.
Video
Notes
Here are some cook time guidelines for other cuts:
Drumsticks/Thighs bone-in: Bake for 30 minutes
Skinless boneless thighs: Bake for 20 – 25 minutes
Breast: Bake for 25 minutes
Wings: Bake for 18 to 20 minutes.
Substitutes:
Calamansi juice can be substituted with lemon juice or lime juice.
Liquid Seasoning - use Knorr, Maggi, or Braggs liquid aminos. Substitute with soy sauce if not available.
Pineapple juice - substitute with lime soda like 7-up or sprite.
To Serve:
Chicken inasal is best served with rice and your favorite sawsawan. And because I made this in the oven, I was able to save all the chicken drippings in the pan. Tossed the rice over it and made an instant “inasal” flavored rice. Ughh! Soooo GOOD!
Dipping Sauce: I use a mixture of sinamak, soy sauce, and calamansi just like what we had in Bacolod. I also added a few more chilies to level up the spice. Feel free to customize your own mixture depending on your preference