Chicken teriyaki

To my shame, the first time I experienced the joy of chicken teriyaki was quite recently, in a foot long sub at Subway! As is my wont, I immediately wanted to replicate that sweet, sticky pleasure and did a little research to find out how to make the perfect version at home. Chicken thigh seems to be the most popular meat (although breast is an option) and while some clearly prefer to cook the meat with the skin on (crisping the skin beforehand) for me this dish works better with a skinless thigh.

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon of groundnut oil
• 1 lb 3 ounces / 1kg skinless, boneless chicken thighs
• large thumb sized piece of ginger, finely grated
• 2 tablespoons of honey
• 3 tablespoons of soy sauce
• 3 tablespoons of mirin rice wine
• 4 tablespoons of sake

Method

Heat the oil with 1 tablespoon of the sake in a large frying pan and brown the thighs all over.

In a jug mix together the remaining ingredients.

Remove any excess liquid from the pan and add the sauce and give everything a good stir.

On a high heat, continue to cook the thighs, turning them over in the sauce constantly, until the sauce has taken on a thick caramel like consistency and is forming a glaze on the chicken.

Ensure the chicken is cooked through and cut into slices and serve with rice.

Trivia

The Japanese word teriyaki is a combination of two words: teri, meaning shiny or glossy, and yaki, meaning grilled or broiled. Teriyaki is therefore a Japanese style of cooking in which the end result is broiled or grilled, and glazed. The shiny glaze, of course, comes from the honey (in this case) or whatever sugar ingredient is used. Teriyaki cooking can be applied to other meats, such as pork, lamb, and beef, and to fish, such as tuna, salmon, trout, mackerel, and marlin. It is sometimes used with squid, hamburger steak, and meatballs.