I’m not sure why I’m posting this……it is something that I make quite often, and maybe too simple, but what the heck.
I always hesitate when someone asks me for a Teriyaki recommendation…..why? Because as simple as Teriyaki is, there are variations, on the basic 4 ingredient recipe. There is what I call "American Teriyaki", which is sweeter than what I’m used to. You can call this the "bottled stuff"…..much of it contains corn syrup, or some similar sweetener. There’s what I call Hawaiian Teriyaki, which is sorta, kinda like the stuff called "Hawaiian BBQ"…..which is what I grew up eating, and uses mainly shoyu(soy sauce) and sugar, and has marinating as a step. I’m very familiar with this, as mirin was scarce(and pricey) while I was growing up, and Sake was priced out of our range. So Mom’s
"Teriyaki" used Soy Sauce, and Dark Brown Sugar, with garlic and ginger…and low grade meat was marinated to tenderize. As time passed, and mirin and sake became more affordable, the recipe changed, and became closer to the "tare" that describes traditional teriyaki. So you can understand my dilemma when someone emails me and asks for "something like the best teriyaki in the world, just like xxxx or xxx in yyyyy." (Many times the yyyy is Seattle, San Francisco, or New York) There’s much more to it than the basic 4 ingredient recipe….. ’nuff said.
This recipe is really quick, you can get the dish to the table in 20 minutes or less. I sometime spend more time in the check-out line purchasing the chicken than cooking.
Teriyaki Sauce:
(Makes enough for 2 uses)
1/2 Cup Soy Sauce
1/2 Cup Sake
2/3 Cup Mirin
2-4 Tb Granulated Sugar
Boneless Chicken legs(2), thighs(4), or breasts(2), with skin on.
2 Tb Canola Oil
1 – Pierce the skin of the chicken pieces with skewer or fork to prevent excess shrinkage and allow for absorption of the sauce during cooking.
2 – Mix all sauce ingredients, except sugar, in a small pot and bring to a boil to burn of excess alcohol. Lower to a simmer, add 2Tb sugar, and whisk to dissolve.
3 – Heat oil in a pan. Place the chicken skin side down and fry over medium heat for 3-5 minutes until the skin is brown and crisp. Lower heat, and turn chicken, and fry until done, about 8-10
minutes.(You may cover the pan to enhance cooking)
4 – Taste Teriyaki Sauce, and adjust sugar to taste.
5 – Remove the chicken from the pan.
6 – Pour off excess oil from pan, increase heat to medium high, and pour about 1/3 cup of sauce into pan. The sauce should start boiling/foaming.
7 – Return chicken to pan, turning to coat. Coat chicken well. Remove chicken from the pan when almost all the sauce has been absorbed/reduced.
8 – Chop chicken and pour sauce over as desired.
Store remaining sauce in a sterile/clean jar, and place in frig when cooled. I’ve kept the sauce in the frig for several weeks with no problems. There are many things you can do to adjust the sauce to your taste. I add a dash of dashi-no-moto, but you can add finely minced garlic, and grated ginger…or any number of things.