30-minute Homemade Teriyaki Chicken

Teriyaki sauce is a very popular Asian sauce and...I totally get why! It's sweet, sticky and basically makes any meat or vegetable delicious. Love love. But most of the recipes I've seen online involve the bottled stuff, full of nasties or a ton of refined sugar.  Good news: you don't have to use either! You can have a healthy, homemade teriyaki sauce ready in 10 minutes. Yes, for real!

And then you can have this amazing teriyaki chicken for dinner and lick your fingers. Oh YUM. It was so good! I used chicken drumsticks because I love dark meat but you could definitively use another cut, breasts included. It's not pictured here but I've made a stir-fry with broccoli and the sauce, and it was delish. And the pasta you're seeing are soba noodles: they're Japanese pasta and they go perfectly well with the teriyaki chicken.  If you need side ideas, you know what to do now 🙂 Enjoy!

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30-minute Homemade Teriyaki Chicken

Course Main Course

Cuisine Japanese

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 25 minutes

Total Time 30 minutes

Servings 4 people – sauce makes about ½ cup

Calories 380 kcal

Ingredients

• 2 tsp olive oil
• 2.5 lbs - 1.2 kg chicken drumsticks about 8 large drumsticks

Teriyaki Sauce

• ¼ cup low sodium soy sauce or tamari for gluten free
• 3 tbsp pure maple syrup
• 1 tbsp rice wine vinegar
• 1 garlic clove peeled
• ¼ tsp ground ginger
• 1 tbsp cornstarch dissolved with ¼ cup water

Instructions

1. Heat olive oil in a large non-stick skillet over high heat. Add chicken and brown, about one minute on each side. Season with sea salt and freshly cracked pepper, reduce to medium-low heat, cover with a lid and cook for 20 to 25 minutes or until no longer pink inside (cooking time will vary depending on the drumsticks' size so start checking after around 15 minutes).
2. While chicken is cooking, prepare teriyaki sauce. Pulse all sauce ingredients in a blender or food processor, until garlic is totally incorporated. Transfer sauce to a small pot, add cornstarch dissolved in water and bring to a boil. As soon as bubbles start to form, whisk constantly and cook for about 2 minutes or until sauce has thickened. Remove from the heat and set aside until chicken is ready.
3. When chicken is cooked, drain cooking liquid if any and pour teriyaki sauce on drumsticks. Stir to coat and cook for about 1 minute, just enough to reheat sauce. Serve immediately. Side ideas: soba noodles and/or stir-fry veggies.

Nutrition Facts

30-minute Homemade Teriyaki Chicken

Amount Per Serving (1 /4th – 2 drumsticks + sauce)

Calories 380 Calories from Fat 171

% Daily Value*

Fat 19g29%

Saturated Fat 4g25%

Cholesterol 174mg58%

Sodium 1009mg44%

Potassium 488mg14%

Carbohydrates 13g4%

Sugar 9g10%

Protein 34g68%

Vitamin A 85IU2%

Vitamin C 0.2mg0%

Calcium 38mg4%

Iron 1.5mg8%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.