Any adobo, whether it’s chicken or pork or both, will either be one of two things: swimming in sauce, or reduced until sticky-dry and glossed with fat. We like to differentiate these into “wet” or “dry” adobo. Both are good and are a matter of the home cook’s preference.
This recipe presents a third option: the “gravy” adobo. Classic Filipino meets French technique with a roux-based adobo sauce. Instead of reducing, we experimented with thickening the adobo sauce with butter and flour.
Cool thing we discovered: Because the adobo sauce is thick, buttery, and full-bodied, the tangy, savory flavors linger on your tongue a little longer, making you taste your usual adobo in a whole new way (more on that below).
What is a roux?
If you want to thicken a sauce, the most common way to do it is with a roux: a mixture of fat and flour, often in equal parts.
To make a roux, you melt fat (can be butter, oil, rendered meat drippings), add flour, then whisk over low heat until a smooth paste forms.
The longer you cook a roux, the darker it gets. The three types of roux are based on this progression in color:
- White roux. Just cooked through, usually used for béchamel.
- Blond roux. Pale golden with a faint nutty aroma, used in gravies and soups.
- Brown roux. Dark reddish-brown and deeply nutty. Common in Cajun cooking, and used in this adobo.
Once your roux is ready, slowly whisk in your liquid. Let it simmer and reduce until the sauce thickens to your liking.
Flavor release
Flavor release is the way flavors show up over time while you’re eating.
Some flavors you taste right away, like acidity, saltiness, or heat (think of biting into a red chili). Others develop more slowly, like umami, bitterness, or the subtle aromas from herbs and spices.
How food releases flavor has a lot to do with things like texture, fat, and temperature. Example: Crunchy foods release flavor quickly because they break apart fast, letting flavors escape right out the bat. Creamy foods, like chocolate or cheese, coat your mouth and melt slowly, releasing flavor more gradually.
How it works in this adobo
The roux-thickened adobo sauce in this recipe has a thicker, creamier, fuller body. In turn, its flavors unfold more slowly, too. Instead of tasting everything at once, you get the adobo’s sour, salty, and savory notes one after the other, stretched out over time. That lingering sequence makes the flavors feel more distinct—and gives you a new way of experiencing adobo.
If this all sounds abstract, give it a try to understand!
