[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":420},["ShallowReactive",2],{"recipe:chicken-inasal":3,"recipe:country:philippines":209},{"slug":4,"title":5,"nativeName":6,"pronunciation":7,"countrySlug":8,"region":9,"emoji":10,"summary":11,"intro":12,"story":13,"whyThis":14,"tips":19,"substitutions":26,"variations":43,"serveWith":53,"storage":55,"faq":56,"equipment":72,"baseServings":77,"prepMinutes":78,"cookMinutes":79,"restMinutes":80,"difficulty":81,"course":82,"diet":84,"mainIngredients":86,"ingredients":93,"instructions":154,"nutrition":183,"images":190,"keywords":200,"publishedAt":207,"updatedAt":207,"authorSlug":208},"chicken-inasal","Chicken Inasal (Bacolod Charcoal-Grilled Annatto Chicken)","Inasal na manok","ee-nah-SAHL","philippines","Negros Occidental","🍗","Bacolod-style grilled chicken marinated in calamansi, lemongrass, ginger and cane vinegar, then basted with annatto oil over coals until the skin lacquers deep orange.","Inasal is grilled chicken from Bacolod, and what sets it apart is a sour marinade rather than a sweet one: calamansi juice, cane vinegar, lemongrass, ginger and crushed garlic, with black pepper and a little salt. The chicken goes onto coals and is brushed repeatedly with annatto oil melted with garlic, which lacquers the skin a deep orange and drips into the fire to produce the smoke that flavours it. The meat comes off juicy and tangy, faintly perfumed with lemongrass, with charred skin that tastes of garlic and fat. Eat it with garlic rice, a dipping sauce of vinegar, soy and chile, and a spoonful of that orange oil poured over the rice.","Inasal belongs to Bacolod, capital of Negros Occidental, in a way few Filipino dishes belong to a single city. It is grilled and sold along entire streets there — Manokan Country, a row of open-air stalls near the waterfront, is essentially a district devoted to it — and the format is fixed: a quarter chicken skewered on bamboo, a mound of rice, and a saucer for mixing your own dip. Chicken is ordered by part, and the vocabulary is local: paa for leg, pecho for breast, and a set of names for the offal and trimmings that make the cheaper skewers, including the chicken tails known as isaw ng manok and the wing-and-back pieces.\n\nThe defining flavour is not sugar. Most Filipino barbecue marinades lean sweet, built on banana ketchup, brown sugar and soy sauce, and produce dark, sticky meat. Inasal goes the other way — the marinade is dominated by acid from calamansi and cane vinegar, with lemongrass and ginger doing the aromatic work — which is why it tastes lighter and sharper than the barbecue skewers sold everywhere else in the country. Sugar appears at most in a pinch, to help the skin colour.\n\nThe second signature is the basting oil. Annatto seeds are steeped in oil or melted margarine with crushed garlic until the fat runs bright orange, and the chicken is brushed with it constantly through grilling. That oil does more than colour the skin: it drips into the coals, catches, and sends up a garlicky smoke that seasons the meat from below. The same oil is poured over rice at the table, staining it orange, which is the part regulars go quiet about defending. Cooked in a home oven the dish loses its smoke and gains a certain neatness, which is a real trade — but the marinade and the basting oil carry enough of the character that it is still recognisably inasal.",[15,16,17,18],"Keeps the marinade genuinely sour, the way Bacolod makes it, instead of drifting into the sweet soy-and-ketchup barbecue of Manila.","The annatto basting oil is steeped gently with garlic, so it colours and perfumes rather than turning bitter.","Includes a workable oven-plus-broiler method for cooks with no grill, and is honest about what that costs you.","Butterflied quarters mean the meat cooks evenly and the skin renders, rather than burning before the thigh is done.",[20,21,22,23,24,25],"Marinate at least 4 hours but not past 12. The acid keeps tenderising, and overnight in that much calamansi and vinegar turns the surface of the breast chalky.","Flatten each quarter by cracking the thigh joint with the heel of your knife. A flat piece sits on the grate and cooks evenly; a folded one chars on the high spots.","Steep the annatto seeds in warm — not hot — oil for a few minutes only. Take them past a gentle sizzle and the colour goes brown and the taste bitter.","Grill over medium coals banked to one side, skin up first. Skin-down over direct heat at the start means flare-ups and black skin over raw meat.","Baste at every turn, and keep basting through the last five minutes. The layers of oil build the lacquer; one coat at the end just makes it greasy.","Make the dip in a saucer, not a bottle: vinegar, a splash of soy, crushed garlic, chopped chile and a squeeze of calamansi, mixed by whoever is eating it.",[27,31,35,39],{"original":28,"swap":29,"note":30},"Calamansi juice","Equal parts lime and mandarin orange juice","Calamansi sits between the two — sharper than mandarin, more floral than lime. Straight lime juice works but tastes flatter and more one-dimensional.",{"original":32,"swap":33,"note":34},"Cane vinegar","Rice vinegar, or coconut vinegar","Both are mild enough. Distilled white vinegar is too harsh here and will dominate the lemongrass.",{"original":36,"swap":37,"note":38},"Annatto seeds","2 tsp achiote powder, or 1 tbsp sweet paprika","Powder dissolves instantly and needs no steeping — just whisk it into the warm oil. The colour is close, and at this quantity the flavour difference is negligible.",{"original":40,"swap":41,"note":42},"Fresh lemongrass","2 tbsp frozen lemongrass paste, or the zest of one lemon plus a stalk of trimmed leek","The lemongrass stuffed into the cavity of each piece is more aromatic than flavouring, so a rough approximation still does the job.",[44,47,50],{"name":45,"description":46},"Inasal na baboy","The same marinade and basting oil on pork belly strips or pork skewers. Pork takes the acid well and the fat crisps beautifully over coals.",{"name":48,"description":49},"Chicken inasal rice bowl","Debone the grilled chicken, chop it and serve over garlic rice with the annatto oil, a fried egg and pickled papaya (atchara) — the standard fast-food format across the Philippines.",{"name":51,"description":52},"Oven inasal with chicken thighs","Bone-in thighs roasted at 200°C and finished under the broiler. Faster and easier to control than quarters, with the same marinade and basting routine.",[54],"Garlic fried rice with a spoonful of the annatto oil poured over it, and a saucer of vinegar, soy, garlic and chile for dipping.","Grilled inasal keeps 3 days refrigerated. Reheat in a hot oven or under a broiler rather than a microwave, which turns the skin rubbery — 8 minutes at 200°C with a fresh brush of annatto oil brings it most of the way back. Raw marinated chicken can sit in the fridge for up to 12 hours or be frozen in its marinade for 2 months, thawing in the marinade as it defrosts. Leftover annatto oil keeps a month in the fridge and is excellent on rice, eggs and vegetables.",[57,60,63,66,69],{"question":58,"answer":59},"What makes inasal different from other Filipino barbecue?","Most Filipino grilled meats use a sweet marinade of soy sauce, banana ketchup and brown sugar, which caramelises dark and sticky. Inasal is built on acid instead — calamansi and cane vinegar — with lemongrass and ginger for aroma, and gets its colour from annatto oil rather than sugar. The result is tangy and lighter rather than sweet and lacquered.",{"question":61,"answer":62},"Can I make inasal without a charcoal grill?","Yes, though you lose real smoke. Roast the marinated quarters at 200°C for about 30 minutes, basting twice, then finish 10 cm under a hot broiler for 5 minutes a side with more basting until the skin blisters. A ridged cast-iron grill pan gives you char marks and some of the same effect.",{"question":64,"answer":65},"What is annatto and do I need it?","Annatto (atsuete, achiote) is the brick-red seed of a tropical shrub, used across the Philippines and Latin America as a natural food colouring. It contributes colour and a faint peppery earthiness but very little actual flavour, so sweet paprika substitutes acceptably. Without something in that role the chicken simply looks pale rather than tasting wrong.",{"question":67,"answer":68},"How long should the chicken marinate?","Four to eight hours is ideal, and twelve is the outer limit. The marinade is strongly acidic, and beyond about half a day it starts denaturing the surface of the meat, giving the breast a chalky, slightly mealy texture. If you are short on time, even one hour makes a noticeable difference.",{"question":70,"answer":71},"Why does my chicken burn before the inside is cooked?","The coals are too hot or the chicken is sitting directly over them the whole time. Bank the coals to one side, start the pieces on the cooler zone skin-side up to cook through, and only move them over direct heat for the last few minutes to colour the skin. A grill lid or a foil tent speeds up the indirect stage.",[73,74,75,76],"Charcoal grill (or oven with a broiler)","Small saucepan for the annatto oil","Basting brush","Meat thermometer",4,25,35,300,"medium",[83],"main",[85],"dairy-free",[87,88,89,90,91,92],"chicken","lemongrass","ginger","vinegar","achiote","garlic",[94,99,105,108,111,115,119,124,128,132,134,137,139,142,144,148,150],{"ref":87,"qty":95,"unit":96,"name":97,"group":98},1.6,"kg","chicken, cut into 4 quarters, skin on","Chicken",{"ref":100,"qty":101,"unit":102,"name":103,"group":104},"lime",120,"ml","calamansi juice, or lime and mandarin juice mixed","Marinade",{"ref":90,"qty":106,"unit":102,"name":107,"group":104},80,"cane vinegar or coconut vinegar",{"ref":88,"qty":77,"unit":109,"name":110,"group":104},"piece","lemongrass stalks, bottom halves bruised and chopped",{"ref":89,"qty":112,"unit":113,"name":114,"group":104},40,"g","ginger, peeled and grated",{"ref":92,"qty":116,"unit":117,"name":118,"group":104},10,"clove","garlic, crushed",{"ref":120,"qty":121,"unit":122,"name":123,"group":104},"soy-sauce",2,"tbsp","soy sauce",{"ref":125,"qty":126,"unit":122,"name":127,"group":104},"brown-sugar",1,"brown sugar",{"ref":129,"qty":121,"unit":130,"name":131,"group":104},"black-pepper","tsp","freshly cracked black pepper",{"qty":121,"unit":130,"name":133,"group":104},"fine salt",{"ref":91,"qty":121,"unit":122,"name":135,"group":136},"annatto (achiote) seeds","Basting oil",{"qty":101,"unit":102,"name":138,"group":136},"neutral oil",{"ref":140,"qty":112,"unit":113,"name":141,"group":136},"butter","butter or margarine",{"ref":92,"qty":77,"unit":117,"name":143,"group":136},"garlic, finely crushed, for the oil",{"ref":90,"qty":145,"unit":102,"name":146,"group":147},100,"cane vinegar, for the dip","Dipping sauce",{"ref":120,"qty":121,"unit":122,"name":149,"group":147},"soy sauce, for the dip",{"ref":151,"qty":152,"unit":109,"name":153,"group":147},"thai-chili",3,"bird's eye chiles, chopped",[155,159,164,169,172,176,180],{"title":156,"text":157,"tip":158},"Flatten the chicken quarters","Lay each quarter skin-side down and crack the joint with the heel of a heavy knife so the piece lies flat. Score the thickest part of each thigh twice, about 1 cm deep, so the marinade reaches the middle.","Flat pieces are the whole trick to even grilling — a folded quarter chars on the high points while the thigh stays raw.",{"title":160,"text":161,"timerSeconds":162,"tip":163},"Mix and marinate","Whisk the calamansi juice, vinegar, lemongrass, ginger, crushed garlic, soy sauce, sugar, pepper and salt together, then rub it into the chicken, working it into the scores. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, turning once.",14400,"Stop at 12 hours. Past that the acid starts to firm and dry the breast meat.",{"title":165,"text":166,"timerSeconds":167,"tip":168},"Make the annatto basting oil","Warm the neutral oil and butter in a small pan over low heat, add the annatto seeds and crushed garlic, and steep for 4 minutes until the fat is a strong orange and the garlic is barely golden. Strain out the seeds and keep the oil warm.",240,"The oil should never bubble hard. Scorched annatto goes bitter and turns muddy brown instead of sunset orange.",{"title":170,"text":171},"Build the fire","Light the charcoal and let it burn down until the coals are covered in grey ash and you can hold your hand 15 cm above the grate for about 5 seconds. Bank the coals to one side so you have a hot zone and a cooler one.",{"title":173,"text":174,"timerSeconds":175},"Grill indirect first","Shake the marinade off the chicken and lay the pieces skin-side up on the cooler side of the grill. Cover or tent with foil and cook for 20 minutes, brushing with annatto oil every 7 minutes and turning once.",1200,{"title":177,"text":178,"timerSeconds":80,"tip":179},"Char the skin","Move the quarters over the coals skin-side down and grill for 4–6 minutes, basting and turning, until the skin is blistered, deep orange and crackling at the edges. The thigh should read 75°C at the bone and the juices should run clear.","Expect flare-ups from the dripping oil — that flame is where the smoke flavour comes from, but move the piece aside if it catches for more than a couple of seconds.",{"title":181,"text":182},"Rest, dip and serve","Rest the chicken for 5 minutes and give it one last brush of annatto oil. Stir the vinegar, soy sauce and chopped chiles together in individual saucers, and serve with garlic rice drizzled with the remaining orange oil.",{"calories":184,"protein":185,"carbs":186,"fat":187,"fiber":126,"sugar":77,"sodium":188,"estimated":189},610,46,7,44,1100,true,[191,194,196,198],{"src":192,"alt":193},"\u002Fimages\u002Frecipes\u002Fchicken-inasal\u002Fhero.jpg","Charcoal-grilled chicken inasal quarters with orange annatto-lacquered skin beside garlic rice and a vinegar dip",{"src":195,"alt":193},"\u002Fimages\u002Frecipes\u002Fchicken-inasal\u002Fhero-16x9.jpg",{"src":197,"alt":193},"\u002Fimages\u002Frecipes\u002Fchicken-inasal\u002Fhero-4x3.jpg",{"src":199,"alt":193},"\u002Fimages\u002Frecipes\u002Fchicken-inasal\u002Fhero-1x1.jpg",[201,202,203,204,205,206,8],"chicken inasal","bacolod","grilled chicken","annatto","calamansi","filipino 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(Filipino Crispy Fried Pork Belly)","Lechon kawali",20,75,480,[83],[85,249],[228,322,92,90,129],"bay-leaf",[324],{"src":325,"alt":326},"\u002Fimages\u002Frecipes\u002Flechon-kawali\u002Fhero.svg","Chopped lechon kawali with blistered golden pork crackling and juicy fat, beside a saucer of garlic vinegar dip",[328,329,330,331,332,333,8],"lechon kawali","crispy pork belly","pork crackling","filipino pork","deep fried","spiced vinegar",{"slug":335,"title":336,"nativeName":337,"countrySlug":8,"baseServings":271,"prepMinutes":316,"cookMinutes":316,"difficulty":224,"course":338,"diet":339,"mainIngredients":340,"images":345,"keywords":349,"publishedAt":207,"updatedAt":207,"authorSlug":208},"pancit-bihon","Pancit Bihon (Filipino Stir-Fried Rice Noodles)","Pancit bihon guisado",[83],[85],[341,87,342,343,344,120],"rice-noodles","shrimp","cabbage","carrot",[346],{"src":347,"alt":348},"\u002Fimages\u002Frecipes\u002Fpancit-bihon\u002Fhero.svg","Platter of pancit bihon rice noodles with shrimp, chicken strips, carrot matchsticks and cabbage, calamansi wedges alongside",[350,351,352,353,354,355,8],"pancit","pancit bihon","rice noodles","filipino noodles","birthday noodles","stir fry",{"slug":357,"title":358,"nativeName":359,"countrySlug":8,"baseServings":77,"prepMinutes":316,"cookMinutes":360,"difficulty":224,"course":361,"diet":363,"mainIngredients":364,"images":368,"keywords":372,"publishedAt":207,"updatedAt":207,"authorSlug":208},"sinigang","Sinigang na Baboy (Sour Tamarind Pork Soup)","Sinigang na baboy",85,[362,83],"soup",[85,249],[228,365,366,280,367],"tamarind","daikon","okra",[369],{"src":370,"alt":371},"\u002Fimages\u002Frecipes\u002Fsinigang\u002Fhero.svg","Steaming bowl of sinigang na baboy with pork belly, daikon, okra and water spinach in clear sour tamarind broth",[357,373,374,237,375,8,376],"tamarind soup","sour soup","filipino soup","kangkong",{"slug":378,"title":379,"nativeName":380,"countrySlug":8,"region":270,"baseServings":77,"prepMinutes":244,"cookMinutes":381,"difficulty":273,"course":382,"diet":385,"mainIngredients":386,"images":389,"keywords":393,"publishedAt":207,"updatedAt":207,"authorSlug":208},"sisig","Sisig (Sizzling Chopped Pork from Pampanga)","Sisig kapampangan",105,[383,384],"appetizer","street-food",[85],[228,387,388,100,151],"chicken-liver","onion",[390],{"src":391,"alt":392},"\u002Fimages\u002Frecipes\u002Fsisig\u002Fhero.svg","Sizzling cast iron plate of chopped pork sisig with red onion, chopped chiles, calamansi halves and a raw egg on top",[378,394,395,396,397,205,8],"pampanga","sizzling pork","chopped pork","filipino bar 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