This article was co-authored by wikiHow Staff. Our trained team of editors and researchers validate articles for accuracy and comprehensiveness. wikiHow's Content Management Team carefully monitors the work from our editorial staff to ensure that each article is backed by trusted research and meets our high quality standards.
The wikiHow Culinary Team also followed the article's instructions and verified that they work.
This article has been viewed 110,209 times.
Learn more...
Teriyaki chicken is one of the most well-known Japanese chicken dishes. With dashes of spices and herbs whipped into a sweet and savory marinade sauce, this chicken meal hits the spot every time. For a simple yet elegant preparation, follow this no-fuss recipe.
Ingredients
- 1 pound boneless chicken thighs
- 2/3 cup mirin (Japanese sweet rice wine)
- 1 cup reduced sodium soy sauce
- 4 1/2 teaspoons rice vinegar
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 1/3 cup white sugar
- 7 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, minced
- 1 dash red pepper flakes
- 1 dash black pepper to taste
Steps
Making the Teriyaki Sauce
-
1Over high heat, bring the mirin in a medium saucepan to a boil. Once at a boil, turn heat down to medium-low and simmer for 10 minutes.[1]
-
2Add soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame oil, and sugar. Stir until fully incorporated.
- If you desire a thicker Teriyaki sauce, add 2 teaspoons of cornstarch dissolved in a little bit of water to the sauce. Cornstarch will help thicken the Teriyaki sauce and let it bind more to the outside of the chicken.
Advertisement -
3Add the seasonings to the sauce at this point. Add the garlic, ginger, pepper flakes, and pepper.
-
4Continue to simmer for 5 more minutes. Remove from the burner and let cool for 10 minutes.
Preparing the Chicken
-
1Be sure that the Teriyaki sauce has sufficiently cooled before using. If the sauce is too hot, it will begin to cook your chicken, risking overcooking.
-
2Transfer all but 1/4 cup of the Teriyaki sauce to a resealable plastic bag, along with the chicken thighs. The 1/4 cup of sauce not used for marinade can be used either as a baste at the end of the cooking process or as a dipping sauce.
-
3Refrigerate the marinade and the chicken. Marinate the chicken thighs for at least an hour but preferably up to a day. The longer you are able to let the chicken steep in the marinade, the juicier and more flavorful it will turn out.
-
4Prepare the chicken for cooking. When you're ready to start cooking, remove the chicken from the resealable bag and set a burner at medium heat. Discard — do not use — the marinade that came in contact with the chicken.
- Dispose of the marinade. It may contain bacteria or other microorganisms from the raw chicken and thus cannot be used for anything else.[2] To dispose of, place into an unwanted plastic bag or non-recyclable container you're throwing out anyway, and toss in the garbage.
-
5Cook the chicken. In a large pan, cook the chicken thighs on one side for 6 minutes. Cover the pan during the cooking. Do not flip yet.
-
6Flip each chicken thigh after the first 6 minutes. Cook the other side, covered, for another 6 minutes. The chicken should start to develop good color on both sides.
-
7Baste the chicken thighs with the remaining Teriyaki sauce. Flip each thigh, and sear on medium-high for 2-3 minutes per side, uncovered. Be vigilant about preventing burning.
- In order to avoid burning, cover the bottom of the pan with more of the reserved Teriyaki sauce.[3]
-
8Serve. Pair your Teriyaki chicken with steamed rice, asparagus, and crispy edamame.
Community Q&A
-
QuestionCan I cook my food without using heat?CaeiiaTop AnswererNo. Raw chicken is not a food to be eaten.
References
About This Article
Start your teriyaki chicken by boiling 1/3 cup of mirin and letting it simmer for 10 minutes. Then, stir in 1 cup of soy sauce, 4.5 teaspoons of rice vinegar, 1 teaspoon of sesame oil, and 1/3 cup of sugar. Once combined, add 7 cloves of minced garlic, 1 tablespoon of fresh minced ginger, a dash of red pepper flakes, and a dash of black pepper to the liquid and simmer for 5 minutes. Finally, marinate the chicken in the sauce for at least an hour before cooking over medium heat. Cook for six minutes on each side. For delicious tips on how to serve your teriyaki chicken straight from the wikiHow test kitchen, scroll down!