CHICKEN AND PORK BELLY ADOBO

Steps:

• ut all ingredients with the exception of the oil and ground salt and pepper into a non-reactive bowl and marinate the chicken for a minimum of 30 minutes, up to 2 hours. Pull the chicken out of the marinade and pat dry. Remove the peppercorns, garlic and bay leaves and put back into the marinade and set aside. In a pan deep enough to braise the chicken, heat 2 tablespoons of oil. When hot, add the chicken and the pork pieces and brown, taking care to let the chicken caramelize before turning so that the skin stays attached to the chicken pieces and doesn't get lost on the bottom of the pan. When brown, add the marinade. Bring to a boil, lower temperature to a light boil and cook for 45 minutes, stirring and turning the chicken pieces 3 times. Continue cooking until the color becomes a beautiful, caramel color. When done, remove the chicken to a plate with paper towels and pat dry, removing the peppercorns and bay leaves completely this time. In the meantime, heat a skillet with cooking oil to a depth of 1 - 2 inches. You're not going to deep fry the chicken, but want enough oil to cover the pieces 1/2 way. Fry until the color becomes more intense and the skin crisps up. Be very careful the chicken is going to be wet and there will be hidden pockets of marinade that will pop and spit when you slide the chicken into the hot oil and for a couple of minutes after. It will spit very far and yes, it hurts if it makes it to your skin. I included the garlic cloves in this step, which gave them a good chewy texture in the finished dish. The garlic has cooked long enough to become incredibly sweet, but if you'd rather not bite into a clove of garlic, they'll be tender enough to combine into the dish with a fork. This will take just a couple of minutes. When the skin is crispy, remove the chicken to a plate and set aside. Pour the marinade into the pan and cook for about 5 minutes to reheat and reduce just a bit. Pour over chicken and serve!