Teriyaki Chicken and Rice

Teriyaki has to be of the most addictive flavours to come out of the kitchen. Salty, sweet and sticky, it’s the perfect quick and tasty sauce for stir-fried meats like chicken and pork.

What most people don’t realise is how simple it is to make at home, even with regular store cupboard ingredients. My easy recipe for Teriyaki Chicken and Rice is so speedy, you can have it all ready to go in the time it takes the rice to cook.

Ingredients

Even though it sounds like a restaurant speciality, teriyaki sauce is actually super simple to make at home! To make my teriyaki chicken recipe, you’ll need the following main ingredients:

• Chicken thighs (500g / 1 lb) – Boneless, skinless, juicy and packed with flavour. You can use chicken breast if you prefer, the sticky sauce keeps it nice and moist.
• Rice (1 cup / 200g) – Basmati or long-grain is my favourite rice, and with my cooking method, it is guaranteed to be light and fluffy every time.
• Soy sauce (¼ cup / 60ml) – Light soy for the teriyaki sauce., unless you like it with extra oomph!
• Mirin / Rice wine (2 Tbsp) – Mirin is a type of rice wine, similar to sake and adds sweetness and depth to the sauce. You can substitute with dry white wine or sherry if you like (and nobody will know the difference)
• Brown sugar (2 Tbsp) – Sweetens the sauce and aids caramelisation.​
• Fresh ginger (2 tsp, grated) – Go to town on the ginger if you love it (like me!) I often double or triple this amount.
• Garlic (2 cloves, crushed) – I think this amount of garlic gives the perfect balance, but if you are a garlic lover, you can add more to taste.
• Sesame oil (1 Tbsp) – For a nutty aroma and that ‘restaurant quality’ flavour.
• Butter (1 tsp) – The secret ingredient to stop the rice from sticking together… and besides, everything is better with butter!

Instructions

My Teriyaki Chicken and Rice recipe couldn’t be simpler to cook and comes together in a flash! Seriously, by the time the rice is done, so will the rest of the cooking, so get those plates ready.

1. Cook the rice: Combine rice, water, butter, and a pinch of salt in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, cover, then reduce heat to low and cook for 10 minutes. Remove from heat and let it sit, covered, for 5 minutes before fluffing with a fork.​
2. Prepare the sauce: Whisk together soy sauce, mirin, brown sugar, grated ginger, and minced garlic in a bowl; set aside.​
3. Cook the chicken: Heat sesame oil in a wok or large frying pan over high heat. Add diced chicken thighs and stir-fry until browned and starting to crisp.​
4. Combine with sauce: Reduce heat to medium, pour in the prepared sauce, and stir to coat the chicken evenly. Simmer for 4-5 minutes until the sauce thickens and coats the chicken.​
5. Serve: Spoon the cooked rice onto plates, top with the teriyaki chicken, and garnish with sliced spring onions and sesame seeds.

A perfect meal for two

This recipe makes enough for 2-3 portions. If you’d like to double it, you will need to fry the chicken in batches, so that the chicken browns and caramelises beautifully. Bear in mind the sauce will also take longer to reduce when you make bigger batches.

What to Serve with Teriyaki Chicken

I like to keep things simple and serve this easy Teriyaki Chicken with basmati rice and sliced cucumber, but you could easily make this part of a larger Japanese style feast with Pork and Spinach Gyoza or Homemade Sushi! I give instructions in the recipe below for my perfect, fluffy Basmati rice.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

This easy teriyaki sauce comes together so quickly, and all with easy to find ingredients – it’s great with meats as well as tofu or vegetables.

Teriyaki Chicken and Rice

Jay Wadams

Teriyaki has to be of the most addictive flavours to come out of the kitchen. Salty, sweet and sticky, it’s the perfect quick and tasty sauce for stir-fried meats. My easy recipe for Teriyaki Chicken and Rice is so quick, you can have it ready to go in the time it takes the rice to cook.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

4.82 from 27 votes

Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

Total Time 30 minutes mins

Serves 2

Ingredients

 

MetricU.S. Customary

for the rice:

• ▢ 200 g basmati rice
• ▢ small knob of butter
• ▢ 1 pinch sea salt

for the sauce:

• ▢ 75 ml light soy sauce
• ▢ 3 Tbsp white sugar
• ▢ 3 Tbsp rice wine vinegar
• ▢ 2 Tbsp Mirin, or dry white wine
• ▢ 1 Tbsp sesame oil
• ▢ 3 cm ginger, peeled and finely grated

for the chicken

• ▢ 500 g boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into bite-sized pieces
• ▢ 1 Tbsp vegetable oil
• ▢ 2 cloves garlic, finely diced
• ▢ 1 spring onion, scallion, finely sliced on the diagonal
• ▢ 1 tsp sesame seeds, white or black

Instructions

 

• COOK RICE: To cook the rice combine 1 cup (250ml / 200g) rice with 2 cups (500ml) water in a medium saucepan with the butter and salt. Cover and bring to the boil then reduce the heat to the minimum and cook for 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and rest for 5 minutes before removing the lid and fluffing the rice with a fork.
  
  200 g basmati rice, small knob of butter, 1 pinch sea salt
• MAKE SAUCE: Meanwhile, whisk together all ingredients for the sauce and set aside.
  
  75 ml light soy sauce, 3 Tbsp white sugar, 3 Tbsp rice wine vinegar, 2 Tbsp Mirin, 1 Tbsp sesame oil, 3 cm ginger
• COOK CHICKEN: When you have taken the rice off the heat, heat the oil in a wok or large frying pan. Cook the chicken over high heat until browned and beginning to crisp. Reduce the heat to medium and add the garlic to the pan, stirring for 30 seconds.
  
  500 g boneless, skinless chicken thighs, 1 Tbsp vegetable oil, 2 cloves garlic
• ADD SAUCE: Pour the sauce into the pan, stir through the chicken to coat, then simmer for 4-5 minutes until thickened.
• SERVE: Remove from the heat and allow to cool for 2 minutes, then serve over the rice. Scatter with sliced spring onion and sesame seeds.
  1 spring onion, 1 tsp sesame seeds

Notes

If you find that the sauce is not thickening, you can help it along by stirring 2 teaspoons of cornstarch into a little water until smooth. Stir it through the chicken and sauce in the pan an dbring to a simmer. The sauce should thicken beautifully. If the sauce has reduced too much, simply add a little more water.

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Nutrition

Serving: 1 bowl | Calories: 973kcal | Carbohydrates: 109g | Protein: 60g | Fat: 31g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 10g | Monounsaturated Fat: 10g | Trans Fat: 0.3g | Cholesterol: 253mg | Sodium: 2481mg | Potassium: 848mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 23g | Vitamin A: 298IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 81mg | Iron: 4mg

Tried this recipe?I’d love to hear how it went! Please leave a review or a star rating and let me know how it was! Use the hashtag #daysofjay on Instagram so I can see your delicious creations.

Course | Main Course

Cuisine | Japanese

Ⓒ | Jay Wadams