Teriyaki Chicken

This super easy Teriyaki Chicken will be your new favorite go-to weeknight meal. The chicken is so flavorful while the sauce is rich and thick. Nobody will believe it took just minutes to prepare!

Teriyaki Chicken was the very first dish that I attempted to make when I moved out of my university dorm room into my own apartment. I finally had my very own kitchen and I was so excited to cook my own meals. I had hardly any cooking experience at the time so I picked up a bottle of prepared teriyaki sauce - how hard could it be, right?

I marinated the chicken in way too much sauce, and as the chicken was cooking in the searing hot pan, I drenched it with even more sauce and ended up burning most of it. My new apartment smelled like burnt teriyaki sauce for weeks!

Regardless of that incident, I was still obsessed with Teriyaki Chicken and eventually started making my own teriyaki sauce at home from scratch. Thankfully, my cooking skills have improved and I no longer burn teriyaki sauce!

Teriyaki Chicken is one of our favorite go-to meals in our home. It's quick, easy and delicious, making it a perfect dinner solution for busy weeknights. The chicken is so flavorful and tender, and the sauce is rich and thick. Nobody will guess that it took only a few minutes to put together!

How to Make Teriyaki Chicken

Prepare the sauce by combining 1 cup water, ½ cup soy sauce, 2 tablespoons mirin, 2 teaspoons of honey, ¼ cup brown sugar, ½ teaspoon of grated ginger and 2 tablespoons of cornstarch.

Stir well to break up all of the clumps in the cornstarch.

Cut 1 lb of chicken thighs into strips or into bite-sized pieces. You could also use chicken breast, but I find chicken thighs a much better match for this recipe in terms of flavor and texture. Pour 2 tablespoons of the teriyaki sauce mixture on to the chicken, then stir to coat the chicken in the sauce.

Allow the chicken to marinate for at least 15 minutes. If you will be marinating the chicken for longer than 30 minutes or so, keep it in the fridge.

While waiting for the chicken to marinate, heat up the sauce in a small saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring frequently.

As the sauce starts to boil, it will thicken very quickly. At this stage, stir the sauce constantly to ensure a smooth consistency. This also prevents the sauce from burning.

When the sauce has thickened, remove it from the heat and set it aside.

Now it's time to stir-fry the chicken.

If you had kept the chicken in the fridge to marinate, let it sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes before you cook it. If the chicken is too cold, it will cool down the wok, preventing that nice sear you want to properly cook the chicken. Bringing the chicken to room temperature also ensures that the chicken cooks evenly.

Heat 2 tablespoons of cooking oil in a wok over medium-high heat. As soon as the wok starts to smoke a little, add the chicken to the wok in a single layer.

Leave the chicken untouched for about 30 seconds before flipping them over.

Continue to stir-fry the chicken until fully cooked.

Remove the chicken from the wok and transfer to a serving plate.

Garnish with chopped scallions and sesame seeds.

Serve the chicken and the sauce separately, or drizzle the sauce on to the chicken - whichever your family prefers.

Of course, don't forget the steamed rice to soak up all of that yummy Teriyaki Sauce!

Teriyaki Chicken

Char Ferrara

This super easy Teriyaki Chicken will be your new favorite go-to weeknight meal. The chicken is so flavorful while the sauce is rich and thick. Nobody will believe it took just minutes to prepare!

5 from 2 votes

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 10 minutes mins

Marinate Time 15 minutes mins

Total Time 35 minutes mins

Cuisine Japanese

Servings 4 servings

Ingredients

 

US CustomaryMetric

 

1x2x3x

• 1 cup water
• ½ cup soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons mirin
• 2 teaspoons honey
• ¼ cup brown sugar
• ½ teaspoon grated ginger
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 2 tablespoons cooking oil
• 1 lb boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut into thin strips
• Scallions
• Toasted sesame seeds

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

 

• Prepare the sauce by combining water, soy sauce, mirin, honey, brown sugar, grated ginger and cornstarch. Stir well to break up any cornstarch lumps.
• Pour 2 tablespoons of the teriyaki sauce mixture on to the chicken. Stir to coat the chicken in the sauce.
• Allow the chicken to marinade for at least 15 minutes.
• Heat the teriyaki sauce in a small saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring frequently. As the sauce starts to boil, stir constantly as it thickens. Remove from heat and set aside.
• Heat cooking oil in a wok over medium-high heat. Add the chicken to the wok in a single layer.
• Leave the chicken untouched for about 30 seconds before flipping them over. Stir-fry the chicken until fully cooked.
• Transfer to a serving plate.
• Garnish with sesame seeds and chopped scallions
• Serve the chicken and sauce separately, or drizzle the sauce on to the chicken - whichever your family prefers.
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Nutrition

Calories: 303kcalCarbohydrates: 21gProtein: 28gSaturated Fat: 1gCholesterol: 71mgSodium: 1747mgSugar: 18g

Keyword teriyaki chicken

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