Chicken Teriyaki

 

Ingredients

6 chicken thighs or 4 chicken breasts

4 tablespoons light soy sauce

4 tablespoons mirin

2 tablespoons sugar

Method 

Debone your chicken if necessary, then heat a frying pan and fry the meat until browned on both sides.

Combine the sauce ingredients in a bowl and add to the pan containing your browned meat. All you do then is bubble the sauce until it is thick and syrupy. By now it should be reduced right down. Keep a close eye on it or the sugar will burn. If this happens (you'll tell by the smell, the very dark colour of the sauce, and probably the smoke!) the chicken will taste pretty awful and you'll most likely have to throw it out.

Once the sauce has reduced, remove the chicken from the pan and slice into strips. If eating immediately, do this when it's hot, but if you're eating it in a bento, allow it to cool so it's easier to handle. Once the meat is cut into strips, you can add it back into the pan to coat it with any extra sauce, if you want. 

NOTES:

Whether you choose to use chicken thighs or chicken breasts is up to you. However, chicken thighs are generally cheaper, and although you usually have to debone them yourself, they give a better flavour. They are also much more resistant to overcooking than chicken breasts, which can have a tendency to break or flake up, or dry out, during cooking. Chicken thighs will remain moist and stay together longer.

You can decide to remove the skin of your chicken, or leave it on. Leaving the skin on is more authentically Japanese, and tastes better, but the fat content is higher.

The teriyaki sauce will fade in colour by the time you come to eat your chicken the next day, but the sauce will retain all of its flavour. Eaten immediately, the teriyaki sauce is a wonderful caramel colour.

Lay the chicken on the top of rice - this will not only keep the rice fresh for the following day, but the excess teriyaki sauce will filter through and flavour the rice too.

You can pre-slice the chicken into strips and fry it to cut down on cooking time.