Why This Recipe Works?
Using skin-on chicken helps protect the meat from getting dried out and tough while adding a ton of flavor. Although chicken teriyaki is traditionally made with whole boneless chicken legs, cutting it into bite-sized pieces makes the chicken cook faster while making it easier to eat. Traditional teriyaki sauce only includes three ingredients, yet it’s thick and flavorful, thanks to the caramelization of the ingredients.
Ingredients for Chicken Teriyaki Bowl
Chicken - I like using boneless skin-on chicken thighs for this as they’re going to be the juiciest and most flavorful, but skin-on chicken breast will work too. I know not everyone is a fan of chicken skin, but it is fairly lean and full of flavor if you prepare it right. Aside from reducing food waste, using skin-on chicken protects the meat from the hot pan, preventing the surface from getting dried out and tough. It also renders out most of the fat from the skin, which is a much more flavorful oil for frying the chicken. Finally, the crisped skin absorbs the teriyaki sauce like a sponge. If you are using skinless chicken, you’ll need to add some oil to the pan, and you’ll also want to preheat it before adding the chicken. I show you my technique for cooking tender, juicy chicken breast in this Chicken Teriyaki Bento recipe. I also have a recipe for tender, juicy Teriyaki Chicken Meatballs that taste fantastic over a bowl of rice. Sake - Sake is added to teriyaki sauce for flavor and umami. The alcohol in it burns off as you caramelize the sauce. Normally I use equal parts sake, soy sauce, and sugar for my homemade teriyaki sauce, but you’ll want extra sauce to drizzle over the rice and veggies for teriyaki bowls. That’s why I use double the amount of sake for this. You can watch this video to learn more about why sake is used in Japanese cuisine. If you’re wondering about mirin, it can be added, but in my experience, most mirin found outside of Japan is fake (mixture of alcohol, sugar, and flavor-enhancers). Since sake is easier to find than real mirin and tastes better than the fake stuff, it makes for a good substitute. If you find real brewed mirin (be sure it does not include salt), you can substitute it for the sake and cut the amount of sugar in half. Soy sauce - Any Japanese soy sauce such as Kikkoman will work, you can use a low-sodium soy sauce to reduce the salt. If you want to go gluten-free just subsitute with tamari or coconut aminos. Sugar - The sugar balances out the saltiness of the soy sauce and creates the trademark sweet and savory taste of teriyaki sauce. I like to use evaporated cane sugar, but brown sugar, maple syrup, or honey will work. If you are using an artificial sweetener, you’ll need to adjust the amount based on the sweetness of the product you use. Also, keep in mind that many sugar substitutes don’t caramelize the same way that sugar does, so the texture and taste of your teriyaki sauce may not turn out the same. Garnishes - I like to garnish my teriyaki bowls with black sesame seeds, but chopped green onion, grated ginger, or red pepper flakes are other flavorful options. Rice - To turn the teriyaki chicken into a rice bowl, you need some cooked rice. Whatever grain/seed you usually use will work, but I used Japanese short-grain rice. If you want to go for low-carb alternative you could also use something like shirataki rice or cauliflower rice. Veggies - I like to cover half of my teriyaki bowl with veggies to balance out the meat. I used carrots and broccoli today, but you can use whatever veggies you have on hand like bell peppers, onions, or green beans. Be sure to reserve some teriyaki sauce for drizzling on top.
How to Make Chicken Teriyaki Bowl
The first thing you want to do is make two servings of the grain or seed of your choice to serve the teriyaki chicken on. Then you can cut and boil your choice of veggies to serve with the chicken. I like to use an equal amount of veggies to chicken, and depending on what you’re making; you’ll want to add them to the boiling water at different times to ensure you don’t over/undercook something. For example, if you’re using carrots and broccoli, like me, boil the carrots for 7-10 minutes and then add the broccoli to the water after the carrots are tender. Broccoli cooks very quickly, so returning the water to a boil after adding the broccoli is usually enough to cook it through. When the veggies are done, drain them and set them aside. You can start on the teriyaki chicken while you wait for the vegetables to boil. If you are using skin-on chicken, you’ll want to place them skin-side down in a non-stick frying pan off the heat. Then you can put them over medium-low heat to render out the fat from the skin. If you are using skinless chicken, you’ll want to preheat the pan and add a splash of vegetable oil before adding the chicken. Once the chicken is cooked two-thirds of the way up (you’ll see it go from translucent pink to opaque beige), flip the chicken over and continue frying it on the second side until it is cooked through. The chicken will get cooked some more as it is glazed, so don’t overcook it. Transfer the chicken to a plate, and then use paper towels to wipe out the oil and browned bits from the pan, as these will cloud your teriyaki sauce. Once the pan is cleaned out, add the sake, soy sauce, and sugar and turn up the heat to bring the mixture to a boil. Boil the teriyaki sauce until it’s forming big bubbles, and it’s the consistency of maple syrup. Put the chicken back in the pan and then toss or stir it together with the sauce to glaze each piece evenly. Assemble your chicken teriyaki bowls by placing a serving of rice (or your chosen grain/seed) in the bottom of a large bowl and then top half of it with chicken. Next, arrange the vegetables on the other half and finish the teriyaki chicken rice bowls by drizzling the remaining teriyaki sauce all over the chicken and veggies.
Other Rice Bowl Recipes
Oyakodon (chicken and egg) Teriyaki Egg Rice Bowl Chicken Katsudon (chicken cutlet and egg) Gyudon (beef bowl) Butadon (pork bowl) Teriyaki Chicken Meatballs
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