CHICKEN AFRITADA
Tita Becky •
October 28, 2025
Chicken Afritada or “Afritadang Manok” will always have a special place in my heart/kitchen because it's one of the very first Filipino dishes I ever learned to cook. Back then in college, I was looking for recipes that were hard to mess up, and Afritada checked all the boxes. If you can sauté, stir, and let things simmer, you're already halfway there.
What I love about Chicken Afritada is how simple ingredients come together to create something that tastes like you spent hours cooking. Tender chicken, potatoes, carrots, and bell peppers simmer in a rich tomato sauce that's perfect for spooning over a big plate of rice, duh! It's the kind of meal that makes your kitchen smell amazing and tricks everyone into thinking you're a much better cook than you actually are.
Even now, whenever I make Chicken Afritada, it takes me back to those early cooking days when I was still figuring things out in the kitchen. It's comforting, forgiving, and delicious every single time. If you're new to Filipino cooking, this is one recipe that will make you feel like a pro without breaking a sweat
Ingredients (15)
Ingredients (15)
Instructions
Pre-heat a large wok or pan over medium-high heat. Add garlic (4 cloves) and onions (½ small). Sauté for a few minutes or until fragrant.cooking oil
Add bone-in chiclen (2–3 lb). Season with salt (½ tsp), black pepper (½ tsp) and fish sauce (1 Tbsp).
Sauté for a minute until seasonings are well incorporated
Let it sit on the pan for 3-5 minutes on both sides and let the fat render and lightly brown the meat.
Then saute, let it sit again for 3-5 minutes, a saute again. This method is called "sankutsa" in Filipino.
"sankutsa" means to saute' the meat with aromatics and seasoning until it lightly browns and fat slighly renders. See video for visuals.
Add water (1 cup), tomato sauce (1 cup), fish sauce (1 Tbsp), and dried bay leaves (2 leaves). Stir and scrape the bottom of the pan to remove all the flavors that might have been stuck.
Cover and bring to a boil.
Reduce heat to low and simmer for 20 minutes and until liquid has been reduced.
Notes
Notes
- I prefer good qualityity fish sauce to chicken bouillon to season the broth.
- DO NOT eat the dried bay leaves. Remove when serving. It’s only used for aroma and flavor in the dish.
- Bone-in chicken is better for this dish than chicken breast. Chicken breast will dry out.
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