Try this Easy Teriyaki Chicken Recipe - all in one pan and great for an easy weeknight meal. Even your pickiest eaters will approve!
Teriyaki chicken is one of those dishes that even picky eaters are willing to try. The sweetness of the teriyaki sauce combined with the savory chicken is a great combination and making these with boneless, skinless chicken thighs makes the prep much easier.
Ingredients
- Boneless, skinless chicken thighs
- Vegetable or canola oil
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- Soy sauce
- Apple cider vinegar
- Brown sugar
- White sugar
- Ground ginger
- Garlic cloves, minced
- Cooked rice, for serving
I like boneless, skinless chicken thighs the best because they are juicy and tender and cook quickly. Boneless, skinless chicken breasts are a perfectly fine substitute.
Pro Tips For Chicken Teriyaki
I learned some useful things about cooking chicken teriyaki; the recipe below uses vegetable or canola oil but some feel their teriyaki lacks something when prepared this way. Ideally, you would use sesame oil for a more specific teriyaki flavor, but sesame oil can get a bit smoky at higher temperatures.
If you miss the flavor you can always toss your chicken in sesame oil once the cooking is finished. Cooked rice is recommended in my recipe, but what kind of cooked rice? Short-grain sushi rice is closer to "traditional" but long-grain jasmine rice can be amazing, too.
If you want to substitute a gluten-free soy sauce, consider tamari, but be sure to sample it first as tamari brings its own flavor profile to the dish. Tamari is traditionally a byproduct of making miso paste, but check the label on your brand to make sure.
Step number four in the cooking instructions is something you should note for other dishes. In step four, the recipe says, "immediately reduce heat to low and pour in soy sauce and vinegar" and you should stir to catch browned bits from the bottom of the pan. This is called deglazing, and it's a technique used in many different dishes to keep those flavorful extra bits in the dish.
Garnishing
When serving, consider adding some minced red onion to the top of the sushi rice as a garnish. Red pickled ginger can also be an attractive finishing touch. You can get pickled ginger in many Asian grocery stores and in the "international" aisle in local grocery stores.
My youngest daughter is always begging me to make this, too, so I know that everyone in the family will eat up this easy Teriyaki Chicken recipe, no questions asked!
{Side note: This is the first time I've used my new Le Creuset Braiser that I got for Christmas (in the photo above). It's awesome and was perfect for this dish!}
Easy Teriyaki Chicken Recipe
This Teriyaki Chicken recipe is easy to make with just one pan and perfect for a weeknight meal.
Ingredients
- 12 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
- 1 tablespoon vegetable or canola oil
- kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to season chicken
- 1 cup soy sauce
- ½ cup apple cider vinegar
- ½ cup light brown sugar
- ¼ cup white sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- cooked rice, for serving
Instructions
- Pat chicken thighs dry and season with salt and pepper.
- Preheat a large, deep skillet or dutch oven over med-high heat. Add oil.
- Once oil is shimmering, add chicken thighs in batches (about 4-5 at a time) and brown on both sides. Remove chicken and set aside.
- Once the last batch of chicken is browned, immediately reduce heat to low and pour in soy sauce and vinegar, stirring to remove any browned bits from bottom of pan.
- Add remaining ingredients, stir well then bring to a boil. Nestle chicken into the sauce, turning to coat. Reduce heat to low again, cover pot and simmer for 10 minutes.
- Remove cover from pan, turn chicken and continue briskly simmering for another 20-30 minutes uncovered until chicken is cooked through and sauce is thickened. Serve immediately with hot rice on the side.
Notes
If you are using stainless steel cookware, be sure to fully preheat the pan to avoid your chicken sticking to it when cooking. Ceramic pans are great for chicken teriyaki and other lower-heat dishes.
When serving, you won’t need seasonings that add more salt, thanks to the soy sauce. Taste this one before you season it just in case!
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 6 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 575Total Fat: 22gSaturated Fat: 6gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 15gCholesterol: 287mgSodium: 2797mgCarbohydrates: 34gFiber: 1gSugar: 23gProtein: 62g
This data was provided and calculated by Nutritionix.
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Sara says
I’m making this for dinner tonight! I prefer skin on though, how much does that change the cooking time?
Lucien says
What do you suggest serving Teriyaki Chicken as a side dish? Starch? Vegetable?
Kristy Bernardo says
Hi Lucien, I usually serve these sugar snap peas: http://www.thewickednoodle.com/garlic-snap-peas-recipe/ They're quick and easy. You could also make some rice to go with it. Hope that helps! Cheers 🙂
Dhia says
I saw this on Yummly. There is a misprint in the ingredients. It says 4 cups sugar, I almost didn't click because of that. Four cups sugar for four servings but I'm glad I did. The recipe sounds great.
Kristy Bernardo says
Hi Dhia! I just double-checked and the recipe is correct on my site (it states 1/4 cup sugar). Perhaps it was showing incorrectly on their site? Regardless, I'm glad you found your way here and I appreciate you alerting me to a potential problem with the recipe! I'll follow up with them to be sure it's right on their side. Cheers 🙂
Michelle at A Dish of Daily Life says
This is going on the menu! I'm all about easy! And this looks delicious!
Kristy Bernardo says
Thanks, Michelle!
Brandon @ Kitchen Konfidence says
I'm loving the flavors here!! And the photos 🙂
Kristy Bernardo says
Thanks so much, Brandon!
heather @french press says
consider me sold! I;m out the door to buy what I need to make this tonight!
Kristy Bernardo says
You'll love it, heather!
William says
My daughter and I made this tonight. We added a sliced yellow onion. It turned out very well. This is a great recipe.
Kristy Bernardo says
Sliced onions would be great! A reader on Facebook mentioned that adding broccoli or snow peas would also be good; I'm thinking all three 🙂 Thanks, William, glad you and your daughter enjoyed it.
Nutmeg Nanny says
Chicken thighs are my go-to meat of choice when cooking chicken. They always turn out moist and they work so well with almost any flavors. Love the idea of a quick teriyaki - sounds delicious!
Kristy Bernardo says
I agree, NN, and they're so easy to work with. Thanks & have a great day 🙂
Kimberly Ann @ Bake Love Give says
We LOVE our Le Creuset Braiser. I'm thinking we need to make this recipe in it ASAP!
Kristy Bernardo says
Kimberly Ann, I was so excited when I got mine for Christmas!! I have two dutch ovens that I love, too, but I'd been wanting the braiser for a long time. LOVE it so much 🙂
Susan@LunaCafe.com says
This looks delicious. And easy too. Perfect weekday dinner. You're making me hungry. 🙂
Kristy Bernardo says
haha, that's a good thing 🙂
Des @ Life's Ambrosia says
It's so funny because I too am not usually a huge teriyaki fan but have been totally loving it lately. I love this recipe, my favorite part is that you used boneless thighs. Dark meat is not only less expensive it is sooooooooo much more flavorful! 🙂
Kristy Bernardo says
I much prefer dark meat over white, too, Des! Thanks so much 🙂
Kristen says
That sounds like such a wonderful weeknight meal. My family goes nuts for Teriyaki anything, so I am sure this would be a hit!
Kristy Bernardo says
That's great! Thanks, Kristen 🙂
Heather | girlichef says
This just went on the menu for dinner tonight! I love boneless, skinless chicken thighs...so easy, and such great flavor. My family is going to be a happy one...
Kristy Bernardo says
Thanks, Heather!! I hope your family enjoys it 🙂