I’m all about quick weeknight dinner recipes and this easy teriyaki chicken is one that I think you’ll come back to over and over again. It’s almost too easy, and who doesn’t love teriyaki chicken?? The simple marinade turns into a gorgeous light glaze that adds just the right amount of salty, sweet, and savory flavor to juicy chicken thighs for a simple yet satisfying dinner. The leftovers are pretty good for lunch the next day, too. ;)
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This is by far the best (and easiest!) teriyaki chicken I have ever made. Simple ingredients, simple to prepare. 10/10. Won’t ever need or want to order this from takeout again! Thank you so much.
Sam K.
Teriyaki sauce is the star of the show here, and my cheap and easy version tastes delicious with so little effort. It’s not quite authentic, but it’s pretty close to the bottled stuff from the store. It makes this chicken so tender, juicy, and delicious!
Ingredients
Here’s what you’ll need to make chicken teriyaki:
- Soy Sauce: Creates the savory and umami base for the sauce.
- Brown Sugar: Adds richness and sweetness to the sauce.
- Water: Helps thin the sauce to the correct consistency.
- Garlic: Enhances the savory flavor of the sauce.
- Ginger: Adds a slightly sweet and spicy flavor to the sauce.
- Cooking Oil: Helps the sauce stick to the chicken and helps the chicken cook without burning.
- Chicken Thighs: You can make this teriyaki chicken with boneless, skinless chicken thighs or breasts, or even chicken tenders. I find chicken thighs to be the best for this recipe because they cook quickly and stay super tender and juicy. If using chicken breasts, make sure to fillet them into two thinner pieces or pound the chicken to a ½-inch thickness before marinating. This will help them cook quickly and evenly in the skillet before the glaze burns.
Serving Suggestions
When I’m in a hurry I just keep things simple with some long-grain white rice and steamed broccoli, but you could always make your meal a little more interesting by pairing your teriyaki chicken with something like a Crunchy Cabbage Salad, Sesame Roasted Green Beans, or a Sesame Cucumber Salad.
Marinating Tip
You can marinate your chicken for as little as 30 minutes, or up to a full day for maximum flavor. This gives you the flexibility to start marinating the chicken just before you begin preparing dinner, in the morning before you leave for work, or even the night before. The longer it marinates, the more delicious it will be!
Storage Instructions
Store leftover chicken teriyaki in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months. I recommend placing individual portions in Ziploc baggies to store the chicken in the freezer. Then, you can just let each serving thaw overnight in the refrigerator before reheating in the microwave until warmed through.
Easy Teriyaki Chicken
Servings 5 thighsIngredients
- 1/4 cup soy sauce ($0.24)
- 3 Tbsp brown sugar ($0.12)
- 1 Tbsp water ($0.00)
- 1 clove garlic, minced ($0.08)
- 1 tsp grated fresh ginger ($0.10)
- 2 Tbsp cooking oil, divided ($0.08)
- 1.75 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken thighs ($5.72)
Instructions
- Prepare the marinade first. Stir together the soy sauce, brown sugar, water, garlic, ginger, and 1 Tbsp of the cooking oil in a bowl.
- Place the chicken in a shallow bowl or dish, then pour the marinade over top. Turn the chicken a couple of times to make sure it's well coated. Let the chicken marinate for 30 minutes to one day (refrigerated), turning the chicken occasionally as it marinates.
- When ready to cook the chicken, heat the remaining 1 Tbsp cooking oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Once hot, add the chicken, discarding the remaining used marinade.
- Cook the chicken for about 5-7 minutes on each side or until cooked through and the liquid in the skillet has reduced to a light coating of glaze on the chicken.
- Transfer the chicken to a cutting board and let it rest for about 5 minutes before slicing and serving.
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Nutrition
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How to Make Teriyaki Chicken – Step by Step Photos
Make the marinade first. In a bowl, stir together ¼ cup soy sauce, 3 Tbsp brown sugar, 1 clove of minced garlic, 1 tsp grated fresh ginger, 1 Tbsp water, and 1 Tbsp cooking oil.
Place about 1.75 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken thighs in a wide bowl or dish (or a zip top bag), then pour the marinade over top. Flip the chicken thighs a few times to make sure they’re fully coated in the marinade. Marinate the chicken for 30 minutes or up to a full day (refrigerated). Turn the chicken occasionally as they marinate.
When you’re ready to cook the chicken, heat one tablespoon of cooking oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Once hot, add the marinated chicken. Discard the remaining used marinade.
Cook the chicken thighs in the skillet for 5-7 minutes on each side, or until the chicken is cooked through and the excess liquid in the skillet has reduced into a light coating of glaze on the chicken.
Transfer the cooked teriyaki chicken to a cutting board to rest for about five minutes before slicing and serving.
This teriyaki chicken is so extremely juicy and delicious. You’re going to love it!
Great recipe! I added a couple drops of orange extract and some flour to thicken the sauce. Family loved it ❤️
It was easy, I already had all the ingredients at home, used chicken breasts…was quick….and best of alll it really was DELICIOUS !!
Very easy to make, and very delicious. My partner loved it, and asked for seconds.
Tried this receipt and my husband loved it. The chicken was s tender and moist. I served it over white rice and French string beans
So simple and easy to cook..my family loves it !!
I can’t wait to try this recipe tonight. Looks so delicious 😋 looking forward to more amazing dishes.
This is by far the best (and easiest!) teriyaki chicken I have ever made. Simple ingredients, simple to prepare. 10/10. Won’t ever need or want to order this from takeout again! Thank you so much.
This is the best teriyaki chicken marinade, so easy to make and very flavorful even after only marinating for 30 mins!
Thank you very much for the cooking instructions as I purchased pre-marinated teriyaki chicken at the store with no instructions on how to cook. Also appreciate the ideas for sides to go with the chicken. I will try your recipe as it appears very simple.
Great receive easy tomfollow
Im feeding a family of 5 this fed us all and was so good I served it with white rice a frozen broccoli carrots and cauliflower…
I live in Washington state where we take our teriyaki very seriously 😂 however, the last time we got takeout from our fave teriyaki place, we just couldn’t stomach the price for what we got. This recipe to the rescue! It was super delicious, very easy to throw together and I can now say that teriyaki is 1000x better made at home!
i made the teriayaki chicken but it dod jot form a glaze
My son made this for us and it was delicious! (He omitted ginger since my husband isn’t a fan)
Will definitely make again.
Do you think this will work with drumsticks in the oven?
Hmmm, I think that would work fine! And if you need to you can reference our baked chicken drumsticks for cooking time. Let us know how it goes! https://vitalityholisticwellnessguide.com/baked-chicken-drumsticks/
This recipe came out great! I did add a bit of sesame oil & a little flour slurry to thicken the sauce!
Teriyaki is equal parts Japanese soy(preferably made there), Saki, Mirin, and a bit of evaporated white sugar.
smh
Not everyone has access to those ingredients lol this is EASY teriyaki. Also cheaper. Sorry not everyone can buy saki and mirin.
This site is called “Budget Bytes”. It’s meant to provide cheaper recipes that people can afford. Many people can’t just go out and buy a bunch of new specialty ingredients for a recipe. This recipe uses staples most people have on hand.
Absolutely delicious and quick and easy!
This is an awesome recipe! I always teriyaki chicken was something I had to order out! Thanks for the great recipe.
i’ll cook it soon
This is a GREAT and easy recipe! The chicken was tender and flavorful and this is my favorite teriyaki chicken recipe! I forgot about the chicken marinating in the fridge for two days total….very delicious. I won’t need to go order out for teriyaki chicken again.
2 thumbs up
Delicious main dish!
Oh my gosh, this is one of the best recipes I have ever tried!! It is so delicious! This will definitely be a regular go to meal from now on! It’s easy, and impressively good!
Amazing! So juicy and tasty. Thanks!
Can this be frozen? If so best to cut the chicken before or after freezing?
I actually haven’t tried freezing this one, but if I did, I would probably freeze before cooking (while the chicken is marinating in the sauce). If you give it a try, let me know how it turns out!
I just tried it today and how amazed I was with the aroma and flavor. Easy to follow, easy to make.
How long would you bake in the oven if this marinade was on chicken breasts? Would it also keep its flavor if grilled? Making this recipe this week!
I haven’t tried baking, so I’m not sure, but you definitely won’t get the nice caramelization of the sugars that way. I think it would be great on a grill, though.
Cook to temperature, not time. The recommended USDA cooking temp is 165F. My quick-read thermometer is an indispensable tool. I’d suggest getting one.
This recipe was great as is! It even won over my boyfriend who says he only likes white chicken breast meat!
I have tried many other recipes of Beth’s and they are always delicious, not too many ingredients, easy to follow using ingredients that are already in my pantry! Thanks Beth!
I made this with chicken BREASTS and it wasn’t dry, but beyond that it was amazing. I had to swap in ginger and garlic powders because I made it last minute but let it marinate for close to an hour. It was really good!
I love cooking and finding new recipes is like going shopping for my groceries. I’ve tried different kind of teriyaki sauces and your teriyaki sauce is phenomenal. I loved the taste of the ginger on it. I am going to try it on the grill. Thank you.
Delicious
I really liked this recipe. It was a little sweet for my taste, but that’s personal preference. I used chicken tenders, since that’s what I had. I cut the chicken into bite size pieces and marinated overnight. I cooked the chicken, and then cooked the leftover marinade with mushrooms. I added a little soy sauce to the marinade and let it reduce while the mushrooms cooked in it. I ate it all on top of brown jasmine rice. I will be making this again, probably with a little less sugar next time.
Try using honey instead of sugar. It helps and is still delicious.
Chicken was a hit! I only marinated for about 45 min to an hour and it still had so much flavor. Will definitely be making it again.
So easy + delicious!
Holy $hit this is amazing!!! I cook for large groups of children (I run a school lunch program) all the time and this recipe was a hit. Only change I made was using all the marinade when cooking. The garlic and ginger will toast up with the chicken and make for a great finishing sauce but also keep the chicken from drying out if you need to cook in large batches.
Otherwise, you excellent recipe.
I did exactly this and it was amazing! I stretched out the marinade with a 1/2 cup of water and poured the sauce over a rice bed.
I followed the recipe exactly. My dish was restaurant quality and restaurant taste! My husband loved it, as did I. Easy-peazy dish!
Made this and tasted better than any takeout! Only alterations I made were. Used olive to cook since I was out of vegetable oil. I thinly sliced the garlic and ginger and swapped soy sauce for coconut aminos. Marinated overnight then dumped all the marinade and garlic and ginger in to cook with chicken. The caramelized garlic and ginger was so so good so don’t toss it eat it with your rice you won’t regret it!
This is what I’m thinking to do. I like the chicken to be moist not dry.
A good heads up. Thanks Ms Kristina.
Easy and really delicious recipe, this will be going into my week night dinner rotation, follow the steps in the recipe exactly and it will be amazing!
I made this recipe…And my family loved it….Best part no left overs….
Great recipe! My picky husband loved it and he doesn’t usually eat chicken thighs. What he doesn’t know won’t hurt him! Doubled the recipe because I used 2x the thighs. I was surprised at how easy it was to cook with the sauce without it burning. This is a keeper for sure!
We loved this. Thank you for sharing ur recipe! 😊🙃
I made this for dinner tonight and my picky 26y/o daughter loved it. That says a lot. Trust me on that. I served it with mixed vegetables and rice (use chicken broth instead of water. I just tastes better that way. I’ll be making this again and again. Thank you
I followed the recipe and the chicken was too sweet. Suggest reducing the amount of brown sugar by half.
3
Awesome…very easy…I just learned how to boil water last week !!!
Super Simple…. cut into chunks before cooking..easier
Great taste..
over a bed of fresh rice
Lol
How much longer should I marinate and cook, if I only have bone in chicken thighs? Or would I need a new recipe for the marinade so it wouldn’t burn?
You can marinade the same amount of time in the same recipe for the marinade. However, cook the thighs about ten minutes longer, until their internal temperature reaches 160 to 165 degrees.
Can you use olive oil?
You sure can! XOXO
OF COURSE!
This recipe is fantastic! Very easy and fast from start to finish. I have made it 3 times in the past two weeks. I like to cut the chicken in small bite-size pieces before marinating. It cooks fast and serves up like a restaurant quality meal over rice. My family loves it. Plus, the kitchen smells awesome.
Your recipe for chicken adobo please
Hi Mary, you can find the Chicken Adobo recipe here: https://vitalityholisticwellnessguide.com/chicken-adobo/
This was really good! I recommend making a little extra sauce and saving it (before you marinade the chicken) to top the chicken and rice with later. Otherwise, the chicken is great but the rice is a bit dry. Another great recipe. Thank you for all the times you have made dinner happy for my family.
Tried this recipe tonight. It was delicious and very easy. I suspect that the thighs finish cooking while they’re resting, using residual heat. Otherwise, you risk burning the glaze, as another commentator warned. This recipe will be put in rotation for when we’re tired of the same old same old.
This is a winning recipe. Took 2 minutes to throw the marinade together and let the chicken marinate for about 8 hours. Chicken tastes just as good as more complicated chicken teriyaki recipes. Thank you for the great recipes!
Fantastic flavor, easy to put together. I did find that only using 1-tablespoon of oil for the skillet, was not enough. The marinade does have brown sugar, which can burn in the skillet, so just keep an eye on it & add more oil as needed.
This was my first Budget Bytes recipe attempt, and I am very pleased!! Served with coconut rice and wow it was sooo good.
This recipe is actually quite similar to a Filipino recipe called adobo!
Adobo uses whole peppercorns, vinegar, and bay leaves, but this sounds like an amazing recipe too.
this is what i need, a blog that shares how to save money and also have yum meals
Wish i knew all these before when i was a broke student with loans