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Home Recipes BBQ Chicken Recipes

Chicken Inasal Recipe

Chicken Inasal is a grilled chicken dish and one of the well known Ilonggo dishes. This is done by marinating chicken pieces in a unique blend of spices and grilling them until done. Sounds like a simple grilled chicken recipe, isnโ€™t it? Well, it might sound like one; however, the special marinade and basting sauce makes this Ilonggo version of the grilled chicken extra special.

Who amongst you in the Philippines havenโ€™t heard of this dish? I will be surprised if a huge number of people will say that they havenโ€™t. Chicken Inasal is all over the place. In fact, several restaurant chains that specialize in this dish are in full swing branching-out to dominate its presence in Metro Manila and the nearby provinces. Chicken Inasal and all you can eat rice, doesnโ€™t this sound familiar?

Iโ€™ve been to several restaurants and grills serving this special grilled chicken dish and they were all good. The main question is: Who serves the best Chicken Inasal in the Philippines? In Metro Manila, there is a good place somewhere in New Manila, Quezon City that is owned by a famous actor. The Chicken Inasal served by the newly emerging brand is not bad too. There should also be many good restaurants and grills in Iloilo and Bacolod where this dish originated.

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By: Vanjo Merano 37 Comments Updated: 9/2/18

This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.

Chicken Inasal is a grilled chicken dish and one of the well known Ilonggo dishes. This is done by marinating chicken pieces in a unique blend of spices and grilling them until done. Sounds like a simple grilled chicken recipe, isnโ€™t it? Well, it might sound like one; however, the special marinade and basting sauce makes this Ilonggo version of the grilled chicken extra special.

Inasal

Who among you in the Philippines havenโ€™t heard of this dish? I will be surprised if a huge number of people will say that they havenโ€™t. Chicken Inasal is all over the place. In fact, several restaurant chains that specialize in this dish are in full swing branching-out to dominate its presence in Metro Manila and the nearby provinces. Chicken Inasal and all you can eat rice, doesn’t this sound familiar? I’ve been to several restaurants and grills serving this special grilled chicken dish and they were all good. The main question is: Who serves the best Chicken Inasal in the Philippines?

In Metro Manila, there is a good place somewhere in New Manila, Quezon City that is owned by a famous actor. The Chicken Inasal served by the newly emerging brand is not bad too. There should also be many good restaurants and grills in Iloilo and Bacolod where this dish originated.

If you want your chicken less burnt, try removing the skin before grilling. This will also make this dish a bit lower in cholesterol.

In your opinion, which restaurants or grills serve the best Chicken Inasal in the Philippines?

Did you make this? If you snap a photo, please be sure tag us on Instagram at @panlasangpinoy or hashtag #panlasangpinoy so we can see your creations!

5 from 2 votes

Chicken Inasal Recipe

Prep: 1 hour hour
Cook: 18 minutes minutes
Total: 1 hour hour 18 minutes minutes
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Ingredients

  • 2 lbs chicken cut into serving pieces
  • 2 tablespoons ginger minced
  • 2 tablespoons garlic minced
  • 3/4 cup lemongrass chopped
  • 1 cup coconut vinegar
  • 1/2 cup lemon or calamansi juice
  • 1 tablespoon salt
  • 1/4 cup brown sugar
  • 1 cup lemon soda softdrink
  • 1/2 tablespoon ground black pepper
  • Basting Sauce:
  • 3 tablespoons annatto oil atsuete oil
  • 1/2 cup margarine softened
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon lemon or calamansi juice

Instructions

  • In a freezer bag or large bowl, combine chicken, lemongrass, salt, ground black pepper, ginger, garlic, brown sugar, vinegar, lemon-lime soda, and lemon juice.
  • Stir or shake the mixture until every ingredient is well incorporated. Marinade for 1 to 3 hours.
  • In a bowl, combine margarine, annatto oil, salt, and lemon juice then stir. Set aside.
  • Grill the chicken while basting generous amount of the margarine mixture.
  • Transfer the grilled chicken to a serving plate.
  • Serve with sinamak. Share and enjoy!

Nutrition Information

Serving: 4g
ยฉ copyright: Vanjo Merano

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Vanjo Merano

Vanjo Merano is the creator of PanlasangPinoy.com. His goal is to introduce Filipino Food and Filipino Cuisine to the rest of the world. This blog was the first step that he took.

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Recipe Rating




  1. chrisd says

    Posted on 7/13/11 at 4:04 pm

    I am a half-Filipina and my mom is from Negros Occidental. I have never heard of this dish but I think I’ll try it.

    I live in the States and I have no idea where to get coconut vinegar. Can I substitute rice vinegar or apple cider vinegar?

    Reply
  2. chris allarde says

    Posted on 7/11/11 at 1:36 pm

    Siguro about 2 years ago my wife and I took a vacation to Bacolod and there we had tasted and eaten the best tasting grilled chicken I’ve ever eaten. Now I’ve eaten a lot of chicken dishes and grilled chicken. Pero chicken Inasal takes chicken to another level.

    Reply
  3. ralph jan says

    Posted on 6/21/11 at 4:32 pm

    i tried your recipe, it turned out good, and my frends liked it..
    But i used toyo instead of salt,*cuz way back when i was still @ bacolod, and i was just a kid back then, i saw this inasal owner preparing inasal, and he used toyo*
    i am so happy that my friends loved it! Thanks 4 the recipe..

    Reply
  4. malou says

    Posted on 12/12/10 at 9:32 pm

    hi there,
    what is the procedure if I want to bake it instead? Thanks a lot.

    Reply
  5. marlene says

    Posted on 9/20/10 at 10:36 pm

    i suggest to you friend to assure the freshness of the chicken its better to put it on the freezer..so it wont get spoil…just a piece of advise

    Reply
  6. marlene says

    Posted on 9/20/10 at 10:31 pm

    looks like yummy i will try this chicken inasal…thank you for sharing your talent

    Reply
  7. perla says

    Posted on 8/16/10 at 1:51 am

    i tried it and was able to get all the pinoy ingredients here in Texas. AND it tasted very close to manokan country in Bacolod. My Kano husband ate so much! will make it again for pinay night at my home and am sharing it on Facebook. my american friends want to try making it too!

    Reply
  8. momJean says

    Posted on 8/4/10 at 7:03 pm

    hello, can’t wait to try your recipes….thanks ;-))

    Reply
  9. riche says

    Posted on 7/27/10 at 11:56 am

    hi. am in ireland and i didnt see any atsuete here. what should i use instead

    Reply
  10. ana says

    Posted on 7/25/10 at 4:01 pm

    is it ok to use butter instead of margarine in the basting sauce or will it affect the taste? Can I get ride of the chicken skin before the marinade? Coz I remember in Mang inasal their chicken is skinless.

    Reply
  11. Lillet says

    Posted on 7/25/10 at 3:34 pm

    can i bake it instead of grilling it? will it make any difference to the taste? thanks much.

    Reply
  12. May says

    Posted on 7/24/10 at 12:57 pm

    I lived in california and I missed Inasal. Thanks for the ingredients Im going to make one soon.
    By the way this is Just a thought If your aimed is that Filipino food to be noticed, know, tasted and enjoyed by the rest of the world you should make your youtube tutorial in english, so that your market will be global. Like what the Korean food guru is doing right now check maangchi.com even if her accent is very korean she tried to speak english in her tutorial thats why she have a wide range of followers.
    This is just a suggestion because I know you got a very good potential be more popular.
    God Bless!

    Reply
  13. kaye says

    Posted on 7/14/10 at 7:17 am

    can i use powdered lemon grass? if yes, whats the quantity? tnx!

    Reply
  14. Benito says

    Posted on 7/14/10 at 6:31 am

    Hi! I couldn’t resist but make a comment about chicken inasal as it is an iconic Ilonggo dish (along with Batchoy, Pancit Molo, Piyaya, and a whole bunch of pastries from the sugarlands of Negros). My parents are from Iloilo and Bacolod so inasal should be in my blood.

    The recipe you posted is actually hits the spot on being as accurate and true to how inasal is done in Ilonggo country. I’ve been doing inasal here in Australia during Pinoy gatherings and I somehow tweaked some ingredients which resulted in fantastic results. I reckon it wouldn’t hurt to add a bit more lemongrass, garlic and black pepper as these are the MAIN FLAVOUR sources. Also, it would be good to mix all the marinade ingredients first and ensure that the salt and sugar has dissolved before mixing in the chicken. Any Pinoy vinegar will do (don’t use balsamic or apple cider). Do not marinade overnight as the vinegar will cook thru the meat (not good). In the basting sauce, using garlic flavoured Star margarine is the way to go. Some sugar and black pepper in the basting sauce will bring more flavor to the inasal.

    Cheers and todoha lang kaon kay namit gid ang sabor sang inasal! ๐Ÿ™‚

    Reply
    • Panlasang Pinoy says

      Posted on 7/14/10 at 7:52 pm

      Sir Benito, thank you for your wonderful input. This will be helpful to everyone.

      Reply
  15. Gene says

    Posted on 7/14/10 at 4:14 am

    Hello Sir!

    Thank you for posting this recipe. I love chicken inasal.

    Reply
  16. Panlasang Pinoy says

    Posted on 7/13/10 at 8:42 pm

    Stephen, you got it right. It is a small place that never runs out of good food.

    Reply
  17. Panlasang Pinoy says

    Posted on 7/13/10 at 8:38 pm

    You may use white or cane vinegar as alternatives.

    Reply
    • Winnie Fish says

      Posted on 7/18/10 at 8:03 pm

      Hi! Vanjo I made the chicken inasal tonight using the drumsticks. Sooooo good n yummyyyy. Used regular white vinegar, One lime instead of lemon soda. Thought I had american margarine in the refrigerator, instead I added more olive oil as margarine substitute. Worked out really good and I will make this again next week. Cuz my picky daughter liked it so much…. so tasty….Thank you once again n more power to you…

      Reply
  18. Cecilia says

    Posted on 7/12/10 at 9:28 pm

    I love this post. My favorite of all time. I have to try your recipe.

    I agree with you Washburnmad, I am originally from Iloilo and Mang Inasal have the best. I can attest to that.

    Reply
  19. washburnmad says

    Posted on 7/12/10 at 8:40 pm

    The best chicken inasal in Iloilo is Mang Inasal. Kumbinsing! (Convincing!)

    Reply
  20. Rom says

    Posted on 7/12/10 at 8:25 pm

    is that JT’s Inasal?

    Reply
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As a huge fan of Filipino food, it is my goal to teach people how to cook it using the simplest way possible. Prepare your taste buds for an ultimate showdown of delectable Filipino dishes! Read more…

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