Easy Teriyaki Chicken Recipe You Can Make at Home

A note on diaspora cooking: My family immigrated to the U.S. before WWII, which means a lot of the recipes I grew up with didn’t stay frozen in time. They evolved. Ingredients changed, techniques shifted, and over the years, they became something uniquely Japanese-American. This teriyaki chicken recipe is an example of that.

So if this doesn’t look exactly like what you think of as Teriyaki Chicken in Japan… that’s kind of the point. Also, it's not easy to find "teriyaki chicken" in Japan. This is much more common in America and in Polynesian cuisine.

This is the version that we love. It’s shaped by where my family started, and where we ended up.

Don’t come at me… just try it first.

https://youtu.be/7jCvS-IbM3c?si=hTC-mI7MrvfoYKZD

Prep Time: 15 min

Estimated Cook Time: 40 min

Tools:

• Cutting board

• Paring knife 

• Measuring utensils (ha!)

• Spoon

• Marinating container

• Tongs

• Roasting pan and rack

• Aluminum foil

• Gloves (optional)

Tips and Tricks:

Scoring along the bone will help with cooking evenness and add flavor to the meat

Bone-in, skin-on thighs provide the best texture and caramelization.

Do not substitute bottled teriyaki sauce.

Rest chicken 5–10 minutes before slicing.

Ingredients

Directions

3-4 lbs of chicken Marmalade (1 jar) 1.5 cup Brown Sugar (1.5 C or more) 2 cup Shoyu ¼ cup salt ¼ cup Mirin

Marinde and Chicken Prep In a bowl, whisk together soy sauce, mirin, brown sugar, marmalade, and salt until the sugar is fully dissolved. The marinade should taste very sweet and very salty. Trim excess fat from the thighs. Then, flip the thighs over and score along both sides of the bone.  Scoring helps the marinade penetrate deeper and allows the chicken to cook more evenly. Pour a small amount of marinade into the bottom of a container. Place chicken skin-side down. Layer remaining marinade over the chicken, ensuring all pieces are coated. Cover tightly and refrigerate overnight. -------------------- Next Day - Cooking Grill Set up for indirect heat (no flame directly under the chicken; turn that burner off). Lightly oil foil and place over indirect heat zone. Arrange chicken skin-side up. Close lid and cook until internal temperature reaches 175°F (about 35–45 minutes). If desired, briefly move over direct heat to mark — do not over-char. Oven Preheat oven to 325°F. Place chicken skin-side up on a lined baking sheet. Bake for 40–50 minutes, until internal temperature reaches 175°F. If additional caramelization is desired, increase to 400°F for the final 5 minutes. Optional: Extra Sauce If serving with sauce at the table, pour remaining marinade into a saucepan. Bring to a hard boil for at least 5 minutes. Reduce until glossy and slightly thickened.