Olympic Yakitori Chicken
You can prepare the tare sauce (marinade) a day or two ahead of time. Let it cool to room temperature and refrigerate until you’re ready to marinate the chicken.
Equipment
- 1 small saucepan
- 1 chef's knife
- 8-10 wooden skewers
- 1 basting brush
Ingredients
Chicken
- 1½ pounds skinless, boneless chicken thighs
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Tare Sauce
- ¾ cup soy sauce
- ¾ cup mirin (or dry vermouth)
- 1/3 cup sake (or dry sherry)
- 1/3 cup water
- 3 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- 1 clove garlic grated
- 1 1-inch piece ginger, grated
Remaining Ingredients
- 5 green onions, divided
- Oil, for grill
- Toasted sesame seeds, for garnish (optional)
Instructions
Chicken
- Pat the chicken dry and cut it into 1½-inch pieces. Place it in a shallow bowl. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, rubbing to coat. Refrigerate while making the marinade.
Tare Sauce
- Combine soy sauce, mirin, sake, water, brown sugar, sesame oil, garlic, and ginger in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil. Cook 15 minutes or until thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. Cool to room temperature.
- Set aside 1/3 cup of the marinade. Pour the remaining marinade over the chicken, tossing to coat. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours.
To Finish
- Soak 8-10 wooden skewers 30 minutes.
- Cut the white and pale-green parts of onions into 1-inch pieces. Thinly slice darker green parts for garnish.
- Preheat the grill to high.
- While the grill heats up, remove the chicken from the marinade; discard the marinade. Thread the chicken, alternating with 1-inch green onion pieces, snugly onto the skewers.
- Oil the grill grates. Grill skewers 5-7 minutes or until done, turning to cook evenly and basting with the reserved tare sauce. Serve garnished with thinly sliced green onions and, if desired, sesame seeds.