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Yakitori (Japanese Grilled Skewered Chicken)
May 1st, 2010Recipes, Eating Light, Recipes, Japanese Recipes, Recipes23 Comments
One of my favorite things to do on the weekends is having dinner with good friends at a Japanese izakaya or yakitori restaurant. The casual gastro-pub settings and the scrumptious fares offered at these establishments have had me hooked since my first trip to Tokyo many years ago.
My favorite items at izakaya are none other than the mouthwatering, hot-off-the-grill yakitori (焼き鳥)—assortment of grilled chicken and chicken offal skewers cooked over charcoal fire. Whenever I go to yakitori, I always request the seats right in front of the grill. I love watching the yakitori masters preparing the chicken skewers. They are ever so patient and dedicated, constantly turning and checking on the yakitori, using scissors to cut out the burnt bits, and precisely applying salt or tare sauce to the skewers. Their attention to details and perfection fascinates me to no end, and I reckon that’s the very reason why Japanese cuisine is so sublime…
Here is my version of yakitori, or Japanese grilled skewered chicken. While yakitori is grilled with salt or tare sauce (a sauce made of sake, mirin, soy sauce, and sugar), I opted for a two-in-one combination, with both salt and tare sauce. I also used dashi shoyu or dashi soy sauce instead of plain soy sauce. I really enjoyed my creation. If you like yakitori, do try out my recipe, they will be great for the upcoming summer parties!
(Click Page 2 for the Yakitori Recipe)
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Yum! Reminds me of the ones we had at Yakitori Totto, Bee. Delicious!
This looks both simple and delicious. Great recipe.
It’s warm sunny in Tokyo today. To eat your yakitori with chilled beer would be heaven :)
Looks very delicious like satays. I can eat many, many sticks :D
Yakitori is the very first thing I ate on my very first day of my very first visit to Japan, and I’ve always had a soft spot for it. My jetlagged husband and I wandered out of our Tokyo hotel, and stumbled into a small yakitori bar. We didn’t speak a word of Japanese (except please and thank you), so we pointed to what someone else was eating, and in our tired state, it was the best food ever. And still is.
So delicious and authentic! Just the way it should be!
Perfect! Being in Tokyo, we eat a lot of yakitori. It’s one of our favorite things to order. This looks tasty and authentic! Nicely done!
I love izakaya and I’m in love with your yakitori chicken!
I love yakitori as well, especially those alternating with leeks, capsicums or onions.
I like Yakitori with sake! YUm :)
Love the liver, gizzard and heart too! Just salted!
Looks fab Bee. Nice and succulent.
I enjoyed living in Tokyo and Osaka and this was my fave food..thanks for this post that transported me back to those days and reminded me that I have not cooked yakitori for years…so this will be dinner tonight!
Yum! A place nearby does yakitori and hot pot, they have somewhere around 20 different yakitori offerings!
Will definitely have to give this a try. Thanks for the post
Looks delicious, now that the only authentic japanese restaurant in Oslo is officially closed due to low amount of visitors (very good chef btw). It’s now time to take things into own hands and make some homemade japanese goods. Seems like most people here want to visit the low quality “wanna be” japanese restaurants, owned by vietnamese immigrants. Not a problem with Vietnamese chefs at all, but 80% of the “chefs” are not even chefs. So Time to go ahead and test your recipes Bee. Keep up the good work.
My husband is Japanese-American so we order these a lot at Japanese restaurants. You’ll laugh, but you know what I love almost more than the chicken? Those slender logs of green onions on the skewers, all charred to bring out their caramelized sweetness.
looks so good! I have never done this at home.
I think you need some more sugar than the mirin brings to the sauce. Thicken it up more and spike the flavor punch and contrast.
Thanks for your suggestion. I don’t really like my food too sweet, and yes, sugar will make the sauce sweeter.
anyone done these ahead and kept warm for big parties? party for 70 planned SOON! thank you thank you.
I just made yakitori today following a Japanese cookbook. So in love with this skewered fare specially after trying Yakitori toto. I’ll try adding scallions in between the meat next time.
hi ,
Could I check whether we buy the dashi soy sauce off the shelf or do we need to mix?
thanks
You buy off the shelf. :)