Pininyahang Manok

Piniyahang Manok (Pineapple Chicken) is another dish that Filipinos love. It is basically chicken marinated in pineapple juice then cooked with pineapple chunks. There are different versions of pininyahang manok. The main difference is the kind of milk used for the sauce. This is commonly cooked with coconut milk but there are some who use fresh or evaporated milk. I prefer using evaporated milk. This for me blends better with the taste of pineapple. There are also some who cook this dish with tomatoes. I don’t. Tomatoes for me overpower the taste of pineapple which is supposed to be the main flavoring agent for this dish.

This is one chicken dish my family loves so much. I guess the tender pieces of chicken and the sweet and mildly sour pineapple chunks in a creamy sauce make this dish irresistible! See for yourself!

* I shared this recipe on Friday Potluck @ EKat's Kitchen, Fresh Bites' Friday, and Foodie Fridays Bloghop 3.

Prep Time: 40 minutes                   Cook Time: ~40 minutes                    Servings: 4-6

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs chicken, cut into serving pieces
• 1 16-oz. can pineapple chunks or 1 ½ cup fresh pineapple
• 1 medium-sized yellow onion, thinly sliced
• 6 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 thumb-sized ginger, minced or julienned
• 2 medium-sized carrots, sliced diagonally into 1-cm thick
• 2 large potatoes, each cut into 8 pcs.
• ½ red and ½ green bell pepper, sliced into rectangles
• ½ cup evaporated milk
• 3 Tbsp fish sauce
• salt and pepper
• 2 Tbsp olive oil

Procedure:

1. Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper. Marinate in pineapple juice from the canned pineapple chunks for at least 30 minutes. Drain, setting aside the marinade.

2. In a large saucepan over medium heat, sauté garlic and ginger in olive oil until garlic turns light brown. Add the onions and saute until almost translucent

3. Add chicken and sauté until juice starts to come out. Add the marinade and simmer for about 15 minutes or until chicken is almost tender.

4. Add the pineapple chunks and fish sauce. Simmer for another 5 minutes.

5. Add the milk and potatoes. Simmer until potatoes are almost cooked, that is about 10 minutes. Stir to avoid curdling.

6. Add salt and pepper to suit your taste. Add the carrots and bell pepper then simmer for 5 minutes more.

7. Remove from heat. Serve hot with rice.