Japanese · Lunch · Dinner · Snack
Yakitori
焼き鳥 (Yakitori)
Juicy bites of chicken thigh and sweet scallion threaded onto skewers and grilled until lightly charred. Half are brushed with a glossy soy-mirin tare and half are seasoned simply with salt, just like at a Tokyo yakitori bar.
- Prep
- 35 min
- Cook
- 20 min
- Total
- 55 min
- Serves
- 4
Calories come from: Carbs 12% · Fat 31% · Protein 57%
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Ingredients
For 4 servings- 600 g (about 6 thighs)boneless skinless chicken thighs
- 1 large bunch150 gthick scallions or Japanese negi
- 3 tbsp48 greduced-sodium soy sauce
- 3 tbsp50 gmirin
- 2 tbsp30 gsake
- 2 tsp8 gsugar
- 2 tbsp30 gwater
- 1/2 tspfine sea salt
- 1 tsp5 gneutral oil
- 1/2 tspshichimi togarashi (optional)
Steps
- 1
Soak 12-16 bamboo skewers in water for 30 minutes so they do not burn.
- 2
Trim any visible fat from the chicken thighs and cut them into 3 cm pieces.
- 3
Cut the white and pale green parts of the scallions into 3 cm lengths.
- 4
Combine the soy sauce, mirin, sake, sugar and water in a small saucepan.
- 5
Simmer the tare over medium heat for 6-8 minutes until it thickens to a light syrup, then set aside.
- 6
Thread the chicken onto the skewers, alternating with pieces of scallion and packing them snugly.
- 7
Heat a grill, grill pan or broiler to high and brush the grate or pan lightly with the oil.
- 8
Season half of the skewers on all sides with the salt; leave the other half plain for the tare.
- 9
Grill all the skewers for 4-5 minutes, turning once, until lightly charred.
- 10
Brush the unsalted skewers with tare, turn and grill 1 minute, then repeat 2-3 times to build a glossy glaze.
- 11
Keep grilling until the chicken reaches 74 °C / 165 °F inside and the juices run clear, about 10-12 minutes in total.
- 12
Sprinkle with shichimi togarashi if you like and serve hot.
Swaps, storage and make-ahead
Swaps
- Use tamari labelled gluten-free instead of soy sauce, and check that your mirin and sake are also labelled gluten-free, since some mirin contains added ingredients.
- Swap the scallions for shishito peppers or chunks of red bell pepper if negi are hard to find.
- Use boneless skinless chicken breast instead of thigh for a leaner option, pulling it off the heat as soon as it reaches 74 °C / 165 °F so it stays juicy.
- Replace the sake with extra water plus a squeeze of lemon juice if you prefer to cook without alcohol. Mirin also contains alcohol, so use an alcohol-free mirin-style seasoning in its place as well.
Storage
Refrigerate leftover skewers in an airtight container within 2 hours and eat within 3 to 4 days, reheating until steaming hot. They are best eaten fresh off the grill, as the chicken firms up and the glaze softens on reheating.
Make ahead
Make the tare up to a week ahead and keep it covered in the fridge. You can also thread the raw chicken and scallion skewers up to a day ahead and keep them covered in the fridge until you grill.
Nutrition values are for the recipe as written.
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Allergens and nutrition
Contains: GlutenSoySesame
Check the labels of packaged ingredients for allergens and suitability for your diet.
Full nutrition
| Per serving (231 g) | Per 100 g | |
|---|---|---|
| Calories | 245 kcal | 106 kcal |
| Protein | 31.4 g | 13.6 g |
| Carbohydrates | 6.4 g | 2.8 g |
| of which sugars | 2.9 g | 1.3 g |
| Fiber | 1.1 g | 0.5 g |
| Fat | 7.4 g | 3.2 g |
| of which saturated | 1.7 g | 0.7 g |
| Sodium | 872 mg | 377 mg |
Nutrition is calculated from USDA FoodData Central data and may differ from what you cook.
