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This was really REALLY good! I loved the recipe.. I’m Filipino and I am not the best cook. Your recipe was really tasty!
Jane
When I think about the sights and smells of our street in the Philippines, this is what I’ll think of – little homemade grills with hot, smoking coals, where people stand around in a cloudy haze of smoky-smoke leisurely fanning the grill area with little pieces of cardboard. And if you walk closer and get past the haze, you’ll see that there are wire grates over the coals holding sizzling skewers of golden, crispy filipino chicken barbecue.
I’ll be the first to admit it: I feel confused calling it chicken barbecue because in my mind that involves barbecue SAUCE and I’m a girl who loves my Sweet Baby Ray’s. But here, chicken barbecue is nothing more than perfectly grilled pieces of real chicken (no boneless-skinless-chicken-breasts here) in easy-to-eat skewer form. How seriously genius.
For this, the skin stays on so the chicken meat gets nice and juicy, even though the outside is basically double-charred-crispy. Like literally, the uncle (like how it’s the uncle this time instead of the aunties? thank you very much sir!) who showed me how he was making this communicated that the first pan of chicken in this picture below was like a little resting pan for keeping the chicken after grilling it just once, and then the second pan was for when the chicken pieces that had been finished by putting them back on the grill… again. Grill, rest, grill. And it’s totally crispy and juicy and wonderful, especially with that skin. Thank you, Filipinos, for opening my eyes to the magic of chicken skin.
So here’s chicken barbecue, CSC slash Filipino style, in pictures.
Filipino Chicken Barbeque
- Total Time: 4 hours 5 minutes
- Yield: 5 1x
Description
This recipe for Filipino chicken barbecue comes from the orphanage that I worked at for a year. Chicken on skewers, marinated and cooked over an open grill.
Ingredients
- 6 cloves garlic, crushed
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 2 tablespoons lime juice
- 2 tablespoons oyster sauce
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1 bouillon cube
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 2 lbs. chicken thighs, cut into small pieces (at the shelter they keep the bone in)
Instructions
- Combine all the ingredients except chicken to make a marinade. Marinate the chicken for 3-4 hours.
- Start a charcoal grill and let the coals get very hot. You want smoking, flameless coals. Thread the chicken pieces onto wood skewers and place on a metal grate over the coals. Brush with oil and grill until the chicken is cooked through, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and let rest for a few minutes.
- Repeat the grilling process with the cooked chicken, brushing with oil as necessary, until the outside of the chicken is a deep golden brown with a crispy exterior. Dip in a soy sauce and vinegar mixture with bird’s eye chilis for a little spiciness.
- Prep Time: 4 hours
- Cook Time: 5 mins
- Category: Dinner
- Cuisine: Filipino
Keywords: chicken barbecue, filipino chicken, filipino chicken recipe
Hop on over here for my post on Chicken Barbecue on the Children’s Shelter of Cebu website. And if you start thinking that I’ve forgotten about FRIED chicken, believe me you. I ate so much of that in my year in Cebu – there’s a full post on that a-comin.
Yes, this is totally happening. My mouth is watering at 8 am for this crispy, beautiful chicken!
Oh geez!! This chicken looks amazing. The Filipino’s really know how to do it!! I think this just got added to the Labor day menu!
Wow, the flavor combination is amazing. I love how crispy the chicken gets!
Looks so delicious! The combination of flavors sounds perfect.
Oh man, this reminds me of the bbqs we had back home in Sierra Leone. Especially the picture of the man fanning the flame. I want……
This makes me want to stop at the store on the way home, grab some chicken and fire up the grill.
This make me want to fire up the grill. I am really into tailgating so maybe I can make these for our first tailgate party.
Love the pictures in this post – such a great glimpse into how you ate in the Philippines! This chicken sounds beyond delicious.
heavenly.
What! No banana ketchup again? 🙂 Photos are so awesome. I love how you capture the “cloudy haze of smoky-smoke”. 🙂
The flavors of this have to be amazing together judging by the ingredients. I don’t eat meat but would easily use this as a marinade or sauce.
Lunch just finished, and now I’m hungry again.
Thanks for that.
BBQ chicken is the bomb! This looks gorgeous and succulent.
Oh I wish I could smell those photos through the computer. I bet it would make my mouth water.
Yum! Love the rooster on top of the truck!
So funny because he was standing right next to where they were grilling the chicken!! No fear.
I am enjoying all the Filipino recipes!
I was born in the US, but my parents are Filipino.
Can’t wait to make this!
That’s great! Thanks Cathy!
Awesome photos! Thanks for sharing 🙂
Oh wow – that chicken looks so yum! so crispy so juicy!
Back in Sri Lanka, everyone -related or not- was an uncle or auntie too 🙂
Gorgeous photos!
Exactly! 🙂
Found your blog through Pinterest and love your posts about Filipino food! My Mom was from Cebu City and has a lot of family that’s still there. Brings back memories of my visit there about 15 years ago now.
That’s great! I love getting comments like this. Thanks Beth! We love Cebu!!
Love the simplicity of this! Looks like a good way to end the Summer! Grilled anything is always ah-may-zing.
I’m loving all of your Filipino posts! So heartwarming – not to mention delicious!
Thanks Mary!
Wow these look amazing. The oyster sauce is an interesting addition, what kind of flavor does that provide would you say?
Salty! Like a flavorful brown sauce.
We were put on dinner duty short-notice today and had chicken to work with. The delicious pictures from the email with this post came to mind and we tried it right away tonight.
It was awesome! The whole family loved it and not a single piece of chicken was left over.
Thank you for this wonderful recipe Lindsay. We love to eat ‘globally’ 😉
How cool! Thanks Regina!
same thing is done with pork – porkloin or shoulder is best, sliced into 1/8 to 1/4 inch thin slices of about 1 inch wide and threaded through the marinade. For extra tenderness, we like to pound the meat a bit prior to marinating. Traditionally, an inch of pork belly fat is threaded in first. Gives a wonderful smoky flavor to the BBQ.
Lindsay, are you back in Cebu? c”,)
I forgot… banana ketchup or tomato ketchup/sauce is also sometimes added into the marinade.
No, I’m in the US now. 🙂
I love a good char on my chicken, and this looks perfect! Thanks for sharing your beautiful photos and mouthwatering recipe, Lindsay!
Thanks Georgia! 🙂