It was from my mother-in-law that I first learned about Chicken 1-2-3 but I didn’t know at the time that it was a Filipino dish. Later on, I would find several versions of the recipe in various cookbooks by Filipino authors. In The Philippine Cookbook by Virgina Roces de Guzman and Nina Daza Puyat (a collection of recipes contributed by socialites, more than anything), the dish is called Ely’s 1-2-3 Chicken. The contributor is one Eligio Teehankee so I suppose he is Ely.
The name of the dish is derived from the proportion of ingredients — 1 portion of sugar, 1 portion of rice wine, 2 portions of vinegar and 3 portions of soy sauce. The addition of ginger makes the dish very similar to teriyaki except that the vinegar adds a bolder flavor to it. My version is based on the same ingredients and follows the same proportions but I deviate heavily with the preparation and cooking procedure.
The two chicken drumsticks in the photo went into Alex’s lunchbox. Hence, the following recipe is good for one person only. Multiply the ingredients if you intend to cook for more.
Ingredients:
2 chicken drumsticks, skins on
a small piece of ginger, about a square inch, peeled and grated
1 tbsp. of sugar
1 tbsp. of rice wine (I used mirin)
2 tbsps. of vinegar
3 tbsps. of soy sauce
1 tbsp. of cooking oil
Place all the ingredients in a resealable plastic bag (like Ziploc). Shake well to distribute the seasonings evenly. Marinate in the fridge overnight.
Pour all the contents of the bag into a sauce pan. Cook the chicken in the marinade, covered, over medium-low heat for about 20 minutes, turning them occasionally, until most of the liquid has evaporated. Turn up the heat to high, add the tablespoonful of cooking oil and cook the chicken until glossy and the marinade thickens and is reduced to about a tablespoonful.
Garnish with sliced onion leaves.
hi connie,
i would like to try ur recipe but my problem is where will i buy the mirin naka sachet b yan or nka bottle? im just curious about it kasi para maiba nmn mga menu ko n luto hehehe,i always browsing ur site whats new tnx sa recipes mo i try some of ur menus,its great…
Bottled.
Hello Connie, after spending a few days on your site I luv it. Yep. the recipes by farare the best for filipino food. My wife is filipino but I’m the cook. Reason for this contact is Aol will not accept e mail longer than 16 characters as I found out trying to contact you about an old comment – bingo – which made me so angry.Best way for contact? Lance
“Aol will not accept e mail longer than 16 characters”
I don’t get it. 16 characters? Considered taking a Gmail account?
Looks great! I’ll have to try this one. Thanks.
That looks good!
dami kanang fans connie…this chicken recipe
i added a little tabasco ….
sounds so simple! masusubukan ko ito agad
hmm, yum!
Hi Ms. Connie! I will be trying this for my baon on monday. I’m sure the taste would be perfect since every recipe I’ve tried here in your website is just perfect but medyo ‘saucy’ po akong kind of person.
I want more of the sauce so that I can pour some over my rice. Is it ok if I double the ingredients of the marinade?
The flavors might be too strong if you double the ingredients. You can always add broth or water during cooking if you want more sauce.
okidoki Ms. Connie… Thank you so much!
Hi Connie,
I have been a lurker for a long time now, but we’re practically neighbors since we live in Brookside Hills, Cainta.
I have rice wine vinegar in the pantry and I was wondering if i could use this instead of the separate required ingredients of rice wine and vinegar? It would really be nice if you can reply to my question.
Thanks so much.
Meg
Meg, it might work but the amount might be different. I suggest tasting the marinade and adjusting the amount of rice wine vinegar accordingly.
Thanks Connie. I’ll try your suggestion. Hope you get better luck with finding new househelpers
Thanks, Meg.
i’d like to know where i could buy rice wine? and what other recipes can i use rice wine with? by the way, i’m learning how to cook through your recipes. my husband loves all the dishes i cook. thanks alot for sharing your recipes!
Supermarket and Oriental food stores.
OMG it looks superyummy. Wine will do better with it. Keep it up the good work. Cheers
Cooked the marinated chicken last night… i didn’t need to put oil anymore. Too much chicken skin kaya ayun dami mantika.
Pero masarap pa din & so simple!
i’ll try this sa off ko! =) looks sooo yummy!
My son really likes chicken…I tried this one this morning for my son’s baon for lunch…super sarap…thank you Ms. Connie…
hello po..i just wanna ask if rice wine is different from white wine vinegar? thanks po
Yes, very much different.
hi Connie! another happy dinner for me and my husband. thanks!