Duck Adobo (Instant Pot and Slow Cooker version)

Duck adobo is a dish I first had in the Philippines about a decade ago, and I absolutely fell in love with duck adobo. Its not a dish I make often because duck is quite expensive and can take a while to cook. Here I will show 2 modern methods on how to cook Duck Adobo, Instant pot and slow cooker. 

Instant Pot Duck Adobo

The pro's of using an instant pot for Duck adobo is that the cooking time is really cut in half. I love the saute option because you can reduce the sauce after. The meat gets extremely soft and tender that its falling of the bone. My only flaw with cooking with duck is that the breast and the dark meat cook very differently. If I were to redo this dish I would cook with only duck thigh and leg. 

Ingredients

1/2 duck

1 head of garlic

1/3 cup soy sauce

1/3 cup cane vinegar

1 tsp whole black pepper

2 bay leaves

1 tbsp chicken broth powder

1 cup water

1. Using half a whole duck, separate into thigh, leg, breast and back bone to be similar in size. 

2. Duck a quite a gamey meat and if not cleaned properly your adobo can have a funky flavour. In a large bowl add the duck pieces and add water. Rinse until the water runs clear, this will ensure excess blood is removed and small bone fragments are also removed. Once the water runs clear, add duck 1 cup of vinegar and ensure all the pieces are coated with the vinegar. Then rinse with cold water again. Adding vinegar to gamey meats will remove unwanted odors and unwanted gamey taste. I highly recommend doing this before cooking the adobo. 

3. In the instant pot add the duck pieces with the rest of the ingredients. On saute mode, bring to a boil until the liquid reduces to half.

4. Set the instant pot to pressure cook and cook for 50mins. Ensure the valve is set to seal. 

5. Once finished pressure cooking, ensure all the pressure is released. 

6. Optional set but a must in my books for adobo cooking. In a medium non stick pan set to medium high heat, add some oil and fry the duck pieces until they are golden brown and a bit crispy.

7. Enjoy with some white rice.

Slow Cooker Duck Adobo

One of the differences between the instant pot and slow cooker was that although I cooked the duck for 8hrs on low the integrity and structure of the duck pieces was more intact than cooking in the pressure cooker. The slow cooker did take 8hrs compared to 50mins of pressure cooking and they both had the same flavour. In my case, my slow cooker is larger therefore I could fit more. As for my instant pot I have the 4 quart and it just barely fit all the duck pieces. It really depends on your lifestyle. Both offer cooking that doesn't need to be watched or cooked over a stove, its pretty much set it and forget it. Of course if you are pressed for time and want a quick meal and the tenderize meat fast then the instant pot is the best option. 

Ingredients

1/2 duck

1 head of garlic

1/3 cup soy sauce

1/3 cup cane vinegar

1 tsp whole black pepper

2 bay leaves

1 tbsp chicken broth powder

1 cup water

1. Using half a whole duck, separate into thigh, leg, breast and back bone to be similar in size. 

2. Duck a quite a gamey meat and if not cleaned properly your adobo can have a funky flavour. In a large bowl add the duck pieces and add water. Rinse until the water runs clear, this will ensure excess blood is removed and small bone fragments are also removed. Once the water runs clear, add duck 1 cup of vinegar and ensure all the pieces are coated with the vinegar. Then rinse with cold water again. Adding vinegar to gamey meats will remove unwanted odours and unwanted gamey taste. I highly recommend doing this before cooking the adobo. 

3. In a medium pan add your duck pieces and the rest of the ingredients. Bring to a boil and reduce the liquid to half. 

4. Once liquid is reduced, transfer the duck pieces to the slow cooker including the remaining liquid. Add about 1/2 cup of water.

5. Cover and slow cook on low heat for 8hrs.

6. In a non stick pan on medium high heat add oil and fry duck pieces until they are golden brown.