If you're looking for a delicious and easy Asian-inspired dish to put on the dinner table tonight, Japanese Chicken Yakitori Skewers are perfect! This classic Japanese dish has all the flavor you could want without being too difficult to make. With just a few simple ingredients and a few minutes of cooking time, you'll have a tasty dinner that everyone will love.
Japanese Chicken Yakitori Recipe
Do you like Indonesian satay? This is the Japanese answer to these tasty skewers. The classic dish is made from bite-sized pieces of chicken, skewered and grilled with a sweet and savory sauce. So if you are looking for a delicious, no-fuss meal or snack, look no further than Japanese Chicken Yakitori!
It is an authentic Japanese recipe. Yakitori, which means "grilled chicken" in Japanese, is a delicious and easy-to-make dish with many variations. It can contain all kinds of chicken parts: chicken thigh, chicken breast, minced chicken, and even chicken livers. You can find it in Japan in small Tapas-like cafés, where it is served as a snack with tasty drinks. But some restaurants are entirely specialized in the best Chicken Yakitori. A recipe that the Japanese are rightly proud of.
If you're looking for an easy, fun, and flavorful recipe that will tantalize your taste buds, then Japanese Chicken Yakitori is for you! And would you love to try other Japanese dishes? Then try these Japanese Chicken Meatballs (Tsukune), Japanese Poached Salmon in Miso, or Beef Teriyaki with Broccoli and Rice.
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What do you need for Easy Chicken Yakitori?
To prepare this Japanese Chicken Yakitori Recipe, you require the following ingredients. You can find the correct amounts in the recipe card at the bottom of the blog:
- Soy sauce - Use Japanese or light soy sauce (available at the Asian supermarket). These are salty soy sauces.
- Mirin - Sweet Japanese cooking wine. Mirin is much sweeter than Chinese cooking wine (Shaoxing). If using the latter as a mirin substitute, add two teaspoons of extra brown sugar.
- Rice Vinegar - In addition to adding a light acidity, which gives you a sourness in the sauce.
- Brown sugar - to sweeten the sauce. Brown sugar is also used because it gives a caramelized flavor to the sauce.
- Ginger and Garlic - Gives an extra flavor to the sauce.
- Cornflour - for thickening the sauce.
- Chicken breast - For this recipe, I used chicken breast. But chicken breast fillets are, of course, also possible.
- Scallion - Or spring onion. Gives a fresh taste to the yakitori skewers with a bit of spice.
- Sesame Seed - This seed has a nutty flavor. Roasting it briefly makes it stronger.
How to prepare Grilled Chicken Skewers Yakitori
You can find a printable recipe with a step-by-step description at the bottom of this blog.
- In a saucepan, combine the soy sauce, water, mirin, rice vinegar, brown sugar, ginger, garlic, and cornstarch. Bring to a boil while stirring until the sauce thickens. Turn off the fire. Remove ¾ cup from the pan and put the rest aside.
- Cut the chicken into small cubes and thread them onto skewers. Place in an oven dish.
- Take the ¾ cup sauce and brush the chicken skewers on both sides with half of the sauce.
- Place the skewers under the hot grill and cook for 4 minutes. Turn the chicken skewers. Remove from the oven, turn the chicken skewers over, and brush the top of the chicken with the other half of the sauce. Fry for another 2 minutes. Turn the chicken again and cook for 2 minutes. Repeat until the chicken is cooked. Let stand under aluminum foil for 5 minutes. Sprinkle with extra sauce, finely chopped spring onions, and sesame.
Delicious as a main course with white rice (or Onigiri) and a delightful spicy cucumber salad. But this is, of course, also delicious on the BBQ or as a small snack.
Tips, Substitutions, and Variations
- You can also prepare the skewers on the BBQ or in the grill pan. Then make sure to cover the skewers with yakitori sauce in between, so the meat does not dry out.
- In addition to chicken breast, you can also use chicken thighs, minced chicken, or chicken livers.
- Instead of garnishing with scallion, you can thread the spring onion between the chicken cubes.
- The skewers are done when the core temperature is 165 °F (ca. 74 °C). Then remove it from under the grill (otherwise, the chicken will dry out too much).
- Resting the chicken for 5 minutes after grilling will give it even more flavor.
- Soak the bamboo skewers in cold water for 30 minutes before stringing. That way, they don't burn.
Did you make this recipe? Tag #byandreajanssen via Instagram. I enjoy seeing what your creation looks like. Video recipes can be found on my YouTube channel. And don't forget to save the recipes on Pinterest so you can easily find them next time!
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Japanese Chicken Yakitori Recipe
Equipment
- Conventional oven, with grill
- oven dish
- skewers
Ingredients
⅔ cup Japanese soy sauce
½ cup water
2 tablespoons Mirin wine
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
⅔ cup dark brown sugar
1 inch fresh ginger peeled off and grated (2 cm)
1 clove garlic squeezed
2 ¼ pound chicken breast in cubes of ½ x ½ inches (1 x 1 cm)
2 spring onions finely chopped
2 teaspoons sesame seeds toasted
Ingredients you need per step are listed below the step in Italic
Instructions
- Heat the grill in the oven to medium heat.
- Mix the soy sauce, water, mirin, rice vinegar, dark brown sugar, ginger, and garlic in a saucepan and stir until you have a smooth sauce.⅔ cup Japanese soy sauce, ½ cup water, 2 tablespoons Mirin wine, 2 tablespoons rice vinegar, ⅔ cup dark brown sugar, 1 inch fresh ginger, 1 clove garlic
- Heat over medium heat until it comes to a boil, stirring continuously. When the sauce thickens, simmer for another minute. Then turn off the fire and put ¾ cup in a bowl. Put the rest away for now.
- Thread the chicken onto the bamboo skewers and place it in a baking dish. Continue until all the chicken breast is used up.2 ¼ pound chicken breast
- Brush the skewers on both sides with about half of the sauce from the dish. Place under the grill for 4 minutes. Turn the skewers and grill for another 4 minutes.
- Brush the skewers on both sides with the sauce and grill for 2 minutes. Then, turn over and grill for another 2 minutes. Repeat this until the skewers are cooked (they will have a core temperature of 165 °F (ca. 74 °C).
- Remove from the grill and cover with aluminum foil. Let stand for 5 minutes.
- Pour the rest of the sauce over the chicken and garnish with spring onion and toasted sesame seeds. Serve!2 spring onions, 2 teaspoons sesame seeds
Notes
- In addition to chicken breast, you can also use chicken thighs, minced chicken, or chicken livers.
- The skewers are done when the core temperature is 165 °F (74 °C). Then remove it from under the grill (otherwise, the chicken will dry out too much).
- Resting the chicken for 5 minutes after grilling will give it even more flavor.
Allow the chicken and sauce to cool quickly before storing.
- Refrigerator - Store the skewers with sauce covered in the fridge for three days.
- Freezer - The skewers and sauce can also be frozen for two months in a sealed freezer box (I wouldn't use a bag because the tips of the bamboo skewers can poke through). The taste remains delicious, but the sauce becomes less thick due to freezing.
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