SAWCLicious: Chicken Afritada

This is one of my favorite home-cooked dishes on a weeknight, simply because I can leave it cooking while I multi-task around the house. I believe this dish was inspired from Spain and is basically chicken simmered in tomato sauce and vegetables. 

Chicken Afritada

Ingredients

• 5 pcs. chicken drumstick
• 1 carrot sliced (2 inch crosswise)
• 2 potatoes quartered
• 1/4 red bell pepper sliced
• 2 tbsp. frozen green peas
• 1 pc. tomato quartered
• 350ml tomato sauce
• 1 white onion minced
• 3 cloves garlic minced
• 1.5 tsp. white sugar
• 2 tbsp. fish sauce
• salt & pepper
• 5 tbsp. corn oil
• 1/2 cup water or chicken broth
• 1 bay leaf
• Optional: sliced hotdog 

Procedure

1. Heat oil in a pot and add the potatoes and carrots. Fry the potato and carrots for around 5 minutes and set aside.
2. In the same pot, saute garlic and onion until onion becomes translucent. Add the chicken and season with 1 tbsp. fish sauce. Cook for 5-10 minutes. Make sure you stir occasionally to avoid burning the garlic and onion.
3. Mix in the red bell pepper, tomato, and bayleaf and stir for a minute.Then, pour in the tomato sauce and water. Season with remaining  fish sauce, sugar, salt and pepper. 
4. Let it simmer for 30 minutes. -> This is when you can multi-task. 
5. Add in the green peas, potato and carrots and let it simmer for another 30 minutes. 

Best served with white rice!