Teriyaki Chicken is a super easy chicken recipe cooked in 10-minutes with no marinating!
Crispy skinless chicken thighs stir-fried and swimming in a beautiful flavoured homemade teriyaki sauce. A hint of garlic adds a twist on a traditional Japanese Teriyaki Chicken recipe and makes it absolutely addictive. This is better than ANY store-bought teriyaki sauce, guaranteed.
Why get Japanese take out when you can make a deliciously close to authentic Teriyaki Chicken right at home!
Better than Panda Express
This Teriyaki Chicken recipe is fast, simple AND delicious. The best part is there’s no need to de-bone chicken thighs or worry about rendering fat from skin.
It’s no secret that this is one of our favourite flavours and sauces to cook chicken in. Through the years you can find The Best Teriyaki Beef Meatballs, Teriyaki SALMON, and my favourite Simple Chicken Teriyaki Stir Fry.
One thing I found is that I haven’t actually given you a simple and easy Teriyaki Chicken Recipe for those hectic days in the week where dinner is no where in sight, but CAN be in no time at all. No wonder Teriyaki chicken is one of the most popular chicken recipes in the world! Just look at that glossy glaze.
How to make Teriyaki Chicken
This recipe will be loved by your entire family, using minimal ingredients you already have in your pantry or refrigerator!
- Soy sauce (use a light soy to reduce the sodium content)
- Sugar (white is the preferred sugar used in a traditional Teriyaki sauce, however I prefer using brown sugar)
- Sake (or a rice wine vinegar if you have it, but any white vinegar will work)
- Mirin (This is an optional ingredient because I understand not many readers have it or can find it. If you want to get yourself a bottle, any Asian or Japanese store will stock it. Otherwise, you can always order it online. Or just skip it all together!
- Garlic (because…well, garlic) — you can substitute garlic for ginger if you prefer!
Please use chicken thighs for this. Breasts do work well, BUT chicken thighs stay extra juicy.
When searing your chicken, make sure the oil in your pan is hot before adding the meat to get a really nice golden sear. Use a large pan to avoid over-crowding and simmering your chicken in their own juices. You want them to fry! The pans I tend to use are 12-inches (30 cm) or over.
Sake and Mirin
Both are Japanese alcoholic beverages, although Mirin is generally only used in cooking. Mirin is stronger and sweeter than sake, but if you can’t find Mirin, Sake can be used as a substitute with a pinch of sugar.
If you cannot get a hold of Sake, you can use sherry, any white vinegar, apple cider vinegar, Chinese shiaoxing wine, Vermouth or dry white wine. Both provide good flavours in Teriyaki Chicken.
You could leave them out all together, but they do add a hint of acidity to balance out the sweetness of the sugar while adding a nice subtle tang to the Teriyaki sauce.
What to serve with Teriyaki Chicken
Steamed broccoli and garlic butter rice are the BEST sides (white, jasmine, brown or even wild rice work really well), or r try it with our Fried Rice recipe! Drizzle all of the extra sauce over everything in your bowl for ultimate flavour.
You can also top your chicken with sesame seeds and/or sliced green onion and enjoy a Teriyaki Chicken Bowl in the comfort of your own home!
Teriyaki Chicken On Video
Love the soy flavour? Try these:
3 ingredient Barbecue Soy Chicken Drumsticks
Garlic Teriyaki Chicken Thighs
Honey Soy Baked Chicken Thighs
Teriyaki Chicken
Ingredients
- 1.3 pounds skinless boneless chicken thighs cut into 1 ½-inch pieces
- 1 tablespoon cooking oil
- ¼ cup low-sodium soy sauce
- 3 tablespoons light brown sugar or white granulated sugar
- 3 tablespoons cooking Sake rice wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar
- 2 tablespoons Mirin optional - white wine or dry sherry can be substituted
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil optional, adds a wonderful flavour
- 2 teaspoons garlic minced, 2 cloves garlic
- 1 green onion sliced to garnish
- 4 cups broccoli florets lightly steamed
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch or corn flour mixed with 2 teaspoons water - if needed
Instructions
- Heat cooking oil in a large pan over medium heat. Stir fry chicken, stirring occasionally until lightly browned and crisp.
- In a small jug or bowl whisk together the soy sauce, sugar, Sake/vinegar, Mirin and sesame oil to combine. Set aside.
- Add the garlic to the centre of the pan and saute until lightly fragrant (about 30 seconds). Pour in the sauce and allow to cook, while stirring, until the sauce thickens into a beautiful shiny glaze (about 2-3 minutes).*
- Add in the steamed broccoli. Garnish with green onion (or shallot) slices and serve over steamed rice.
Notes
- Replace garlic for ½ teaspoon minced ginger. You can also use both if you wish.
- If for some reason your sauce has not thickened, quickly whisk in the cornstarch/water mixture and continue stirring until syrupy.
- Alternatively, if sauce is too thick, add water in tablespoon increments until reaching your desired thickness.
Mirandyy says
This was absolutely delicious. I’m skeptical about trying new recipes but this was a winner.
Mandana says
I’ve made this once and it was a hit. Thanks for the recipe.
I was wondering if I can make it one night before the party and heat it up or the chicken will taste different?
Christy Landry-Sasser says
This is hands down the BEST chicken teriyaki! The sauce is amazing. It is now on the rotation at our home. I do have to triple everything because my family gobbles this up. Thanks for the great recipe!
Kellie says
Made this the other night in just a stirfry version w bone in thigh and it was good…
I added another ts of soy and a good squirt (maybe 1tb) of honey to get a more glazed sauce but it was good.
Vee says
This recipe was extra yummy! The entire family loved it and wanted seconds, but what really impressed me was when my 4 year old nephew asked for more and he almost never finishes his plate. Will definitely keep this recipe on rotation for dinner.
Cheryl says
This was absolutely beautiful – thank you so much for sharing! And so easy – so I was skeptical, but there was no need to be! Keeping this one & also sharing 🙂
Vicki says
My picky granddaughter took a bite and asked incredulously, “Did you make this sauce”? It was in fact delicious and so easy. A definite keeper for us!
Marisa says
Made this tonight for dinner with chicken breast. Amazing! Next time I will double the sauce!
DEG says
First of all, I have never had bottled teriyaki sauce from the store that I liked. I always make my own as it is very easy to make. I have mixed up several different batches with a little different twists on ingredinace and pretty much liked all of them. When it comes to teriyaki sauce, homemade is the only way to guarantee a good dish.
This recipe is really good. It is close to what I normally make. I usually make a couple extra bottles full and keep in the fridge. The only change I made is I went very light on the sesame oil as that flavor has a tendency to over power your dish. I went half minced garlic and half fresh graded ginger root. In my opinion that is the only way to get your teriyaki sauce full flavored. It is a keeper.
Cindee Sheldon says
This recipe is absolutely amazing. I used all ingredients recommended and it came out fantastic my first time making it. I did have to add the cornstarch mixture at the end, which turned out to be fantastic. Prepped everything and paired with fried rice and roasted Brussels sprouts with prosciutto. So delicious, thanks for sharing.
Sue Leung says
I love this recipe! I would recommend this to others. I purchased all my items online with a website called Food For Foodies as I don’t have a Chinese supermarket near me. I would recommend them.
I would also recommend using a lower salt soy sauce if you want to be healthy!