Directions

Raw chicken pieces rest on a separate board beside prepared rice and measured aromatics.

Read and gather

For the whole recipe

Read through the recipe and gather the equipment. Use the ingredient lines to prepare and measure everything. Cut the chicken on its own board, keep it away from the sauce and the rice, and wash your hands after handling it. Everything is measured and the chicken is cut.

A whisk rests in brown sauce dotted with sesame seeds and red pepper flakes.

Whisk the sauce

For each skillet batch

Whisk 1/2 cup low-sodium soy sauce, 2 tbsp sake, 1 1/2 tbsp rice vinegar and 3 tbsp brown sugar in the bowl until the sugar dissolves. Stir in 1 1/2 tsp white sesame seeds and 1/8 tsp crushed red pepper. The sugar has dissolved and the sauce is ready.

Chicken pieces brown in a steel skillet beside a clean plate.

Heat the oils and brown the chicken

For each skillet batch

Heat 2 tsp peanut oil and 1 tsp toasted sesame oil in the 12-inch skillet over high heat until the oil shimmers. Sprinkle 1/2 tsp fine salt and 1/2 tsp black pepper over 2 lb boneless, skinless chicken thighs and lay them in the skillet in one layer, working in two batches if they do not fit. Cook without moving them until the undersides are browned and release easily from the pan, about 4 to 6 minutes. Turn the pieces, cook the second side briefly, then move them to the clean plate.

Sesame and green onion sauce bubbles in a skillet beside browned chicken.

Turn the heat to medium and build the sauce

For each skillet batch

Turn the heat to medium heat. Stir in the ginger and garlic until fragrant, then add the green onions, keeping the small handful aside for serving, and stir until they soften slightly. Pour in the sauce and scrape up the browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Let it boil until it has reduced by about a third and looks slightly thick and glossy.

A thermometer checks a chicken piece coated in glossy sauce in a steel skillet.

Return the chicken and cook it through

For each skillet batch

Return the chicken and its juices to the skillet and cook over medium heat, stirring now and then, until the sauce coats the pieces and the thickest piece reads 165°F (74°C) on an instant-read thermometer.

A spoonful of sauce rests beside glazed chicken and a small bowl of brown sugar.

Taste the sauce and adjust

For each skillet batch

Taste the sauce. Aim for salty-sweet, with a warm bite of ginger. If it tastes too salty or sharp, stir in brown sugar to taste. The sauce tastes balanced.

Three white bowls hold rice topped with glazed chicken and sliced green onions.

Spoon over rice and serve

For the whole recipe

Spoon the chicken and sauce over 1 1/2 cups cooked white rice divided among bowls to make 3 servings, and sprinkle with the reserved green onions. Refrigerate leftovers within two hours and reheat them to 165°F (74°C). Each bowl has rice, chicken and sauce.

About this recipe

Why it works

Searing the thighs in batches browns them without stewing, the browned bits flavor the soy-sake sauce, and reducing the sauce before the chicken returns turns it into a glaze that clings.

Associated with

Japanese and Japanese-American home cooking

Teriyaki-style glazes of soy sauce, sake and sugar come from Japan; Japanese immigrants carried them to Hawaii and the US West Coast. This is a skillet, home-style take on that glaze.

Taste

Sweet
Sour
Salty
Bitter
Savory
Heat

Salty-sweet soy glaze with a warm bite of ginger, nutty sesame and a little heat from crushed red pepper. · glossy coated chicken pieces over soft rice · hot

Skill level

Some practice

One skillet, but the sear, the reduction and the 165°F check each need attention.

You'll practice: Sear in batches without crowding the pan, Build a pan sauce from the browned bits, Reduce a sauce to a glaze, Check chicken with a thermometer

Allergens

Contains: wheat, soy, sesame

Soy sauce, sesame oil, peanut oil, sake and rice vinegar are packaged products: check each label for its own allergen statement.

Diets

Vegetarian: Doesn't fit as writtenVegan: Doesn't fit as writtenPescatarian: Doesn't fit as writtenDairy: See the allergen linesEgg: See the allergen linesGluten: See the allergen linesPeanuts: See the allergen linesSoy: See the allergen linesSesame: See the allergen lines

Occasions

Course: main-dish · Technique: pan-fry, simmer · Time: 15-to-30-minutes

Serving and keeping

Best served: Right after the glaze coats the chicken Spoon over rice and scatter the reserved green onions.

Make ahead: The glaze thickens when cold; loosen it with a little water when reheating.

Storage: Refrigerate within 2 hours; cool the rice promptly too.

Leftovers: Refrigerate within 2 hours, use within 3 to 4 days and reheat to 165°F.

Food safety

Cut the chicken on its own board, keep it away from the sauce and rice, and wash your hands after handling it.
Cook until the thickest piece reads 165°F.
A short reduction removes only part of the alcohol in the sake.
Refrigerate leftovers, including the rice, within 2 hours, or 1 hour above 90°F, and reheat them to 165°F.

We make no cross-contact statement for home kitchens. Check packaged ingredient labels.

Nutrition notes

The soy sauce and the added salt carry most of the sodium; even with low-sodium soy sauce this is a salty dish.

The brown sugar is the added sugar in the glaze.

The chicken brings most of the protein.

Swap notes

sake · halal.general
Works with changes
Use: water plus a little rice vinegar
What changes: Slightly sharper and less aromatic.; Use chicken from halal slaughter and a soy sauce your practice accepts.
Not a swap: Mirin or cooking wine, which also contain alcohol.
boneless, skinless chicken thighs · vegetarian
Works with changes
Use: extra-firm tofu, pressed and cubed
What changes: Milder and softer.; Cook the tofu until hot; no 165°F chicken check is needed.
Not a swap: Chicken broth or any meat.
boneless, skinless chicken thighs · catholic.abstinence
Works with changes
Use: salmon fillet pieces
What changes: Richer fish flavor and a flaky texture.; Shorter cooking; cook fish to 145°F or until opaque.
Not a swap: Any meat or poultry.

These notes don't change the amounts, allergens or nutrition shown for this recipe.

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Fields for MyFitnessPal and other trackers

Recipe url: https://isthebestrecipe.com/chicken/chicken-in-soy-ginger-sauce
Name: Chicken in Soy-Ginger Sauce
Servings: 3
Recipe yield: 3 servings
Recipe ingredient: 1/2 cup low-sodium soy sauce, 2 tbsp sake, 1 1/2 tbsp rice vinegar, 3 tbsp brown sugar packed, 1 1/2 tsp white sesame seeds, 1/8 tsp crushed red pepper, 2 tsp peanut oil, 1 tsp toasted sesame oil, 1/2 tsp fine salt, 1/2 tsp black pepper ground, 2 lb boneless, skinless chicken thighs cut into 1 1/2-inch (4 cm) pieces, 2 tsp fresh ginger finely grated, 1 tsp garlic finely minced, 1 bunch green onions thinly sliced, a small handful kept aside for serving, 1 1/2 cups cooked white rice hot
Copy action wording: Copy recipe and estimated nutrition

Chicken in Soy-Ginger Sauce

Ingredients

Before you start

Directions

Read and gather

Whisk the sauce

Heat the oils and brown the chicken

Turn the heat to medium and build the sauce

Return the chicken and cook it through

Taste the sauce and adjust

Spoon over rice and serve

About this recipe

Why it works

Associated with

Taste

Skill level

Allergens

Diets

Occasions

Serving and keeping

Food safety

Nutrition notes

Swap notes

For your food tracker

Make it the best

Nutrition Values

Your notes

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