When I was 19, I was keeping house for my brother, D, while we were both studying in Manila (J was in LB by then). He was still in high school, and I took care of the laundry, ironing, and preparing his lunch. The problem was, I wasn’t - and still am not - a morning person. Waking up at 5 a.m. to cook was torture. Meal prep wasn’t a thing yet (this was the early ’90s), and with my then-undiagnosed ADHD, I was definitely not equipped for it.
The easiest dish to throw together at that ungodly hour? Fried chicken. Except most of the time I forgot to thaw or marinate it the night before. My workaround was to boil the chicken with salt and pepper to defrost and “season” it, then give it a quick fry for that golden-brown skin. It tasted… okayish. D, however, got so sick of it he started trading his lunch with his dorm friends. 😅
(For context: I was 19, hated cooking, and knew nothing about keeping house - even though I’d already been doing it for four years. Chicken was the only dish I had in my arsenal, and Rustan’s Supermarket always had this buy-one-take-one deal on what they called “American chicken” - cuts bigger than the local ones.)
By sheer luck, T loved fried chicken (still does), so it became our comfort food, alongside sinigang. I was still forgetting to thaw and marinate, still boiling the chicken first, but I’d figured out that adding onion gave it more flavor. Eventually, I discovered another marinade - patis, garlic, and pepper - when I actually remembered to thaw the chicken. Frying it was like frying dried fish: the smell filled the house, but damn, it was good.
T christened it Mamy Fried Chicken - because it tasted nothing like Jollibee or KFC. And since I hated cooking, this dish became our shorthand for comfort. She’d lambing when she wanted it, and I’d oblige. Over the years, I finally learned to marinate the chicken before freezing, and the recipe evolved: rosemary, garlic powder, parsley, paprika, chili flakes. Then last year, I added my not-so-secret ingredient - a pinch of Knorr sinigang mix. It gives the chicken that little kick of acidity, the extra oomph.
A pinch, a drop, a dollop - that’s how I measure when I cook. Then I wait for my ancestors to whisper if the dish needs more salt, more pepper, more whatever. Apparently, this is a family thing. My 14-year-old nephew, L, noticed it while working on his first cookbook, inspired by family traditions and lore. (For real. His sisters have been published authors since they were 11.)
So, as my contribution to his book, I finally sat down and wrote the recipe for Mamy Fried Chicken.
- 1 kg or so chicken thigh or drumstick (Breast is okay but it can be quite unforgiving and turns dry if overcooked.)
- Herbs and seasonings (How much of each? - Let your ancestors guide you.)
- Herbs (dry): rosemary, chives, parsley, oregano, paprika
- Seasoning: salt, freshly ground peppercorn, garlic powder, chicken powder, sinigang mix
- Olive oil
- Dump everything in a large ziplock bag. Shake until all the chicken pieces are covered in herbs and seasonings.
- Put in the freezer overnight.
- Thaw and fry.
- Dump everything in a pot, doubling the herbs and seasonings, and add enough water to cover the chicken.
- Boil until cooked.
- Fry lightly, just enough to brown the chicken.
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