This easy chicken teriyaki stir fry includes high protein chicken breast with a flavourful homemade teriyaki sauce. Once ready, simply serve with broccoli and rice for a complete meal any night of the week.
What is Teriyaki?
While many in the Western world tend to think of teriyaki as a sauce, it really references a Japanese cooking technique, where meat becomes cooked while being glazed in a tasty soy-based sauce. The type of protein can differ including chicken, beef, pork, squid, or even meatballs.
Typically, the sauce will include soy sauce, mirin, and some kind of sweetener like sugar or honey, although green onions and ginger may be added as well. The sauce usually cooks on the stove until thick and glossy, but my version includes cornstarch which gives it the traditionally glossy appearance without the time. Reducing a sauce can concentrate the salt in the soy sauce, which isn't always ideal. As a result, I like cornstarch to make the preparation of this homemade teriyaki sauce for my teriyaki chicken stir fry delicious and convenient.
Making the Sides for this Chicken Teriyaki Stir Fry
This chicken teriyaki stir fry recipe moves fast so you will want to start with your sides first. I recommend getting your rice on the go using your favourite cooking method before you start making the teriyaki chicken stir fry itself. A rice cooker or pressure cooker works well for this, but cooking on the stovetop is fine too.
Next, you can cook your broccoli according to your preferred method, blanching or steaming. If blanching the broccoli, you will only need a total time of 4 minutes until the broccoli florets turn bright green and tender, although the timing may vary depending on the size of your florets. Once done, simply strain and place in a bowl of ice water to prevent the broccoli from cooking further.
How to Make Chicken Teriyaki Stir Fry
Before cooking the chicken teriyaki stir fry, it is best to start by mixing the sauce. To do this, you whisk low-sodium soy sauce with honey, rice vinegar, sesame oil (if using), garlic, ginger, water, and cornstarch.
If you eat a gluten-free diet, you can easily replace the soy sauce in the teriyaki chicken stir fry. Tamari or coconut aminos are both great options that will give you that intriguing umami flavour minus the addition of wheat. Just be sure to look at the packaging labels to make sure those products weren't produced in a facility where they might have come in contact with gluten.
You will need a large skillet to cook your chicken teriyaki stir fry. To start cooking, heat half of the oil in the skillet before adding half of the chicken. At this point, you are looking for the chicken to cook through completely and turn a golden brown, which should only take a total time of 2 to 3 minutes. Once you have removed the chicken from the skillet and set it aside, it is time to do the same with the remaining half of the oil and chicken.
To complete the chicken stir fry recipe, return all of the chicken to the skillet along with the sauce. The mixture will simmer and bubble until the teriyaki sauce thickens and adequately coats the chicken cubes. A sprinkling of sesame seeds (a mixture of white and black look very attractive!) for garnish and the chicken will be ready to serve with your brown or white rice and broccoli. Of course, if you prefer, you could toss in the broccoli to coat it before spooning over the rice.
Can I Substitute Chicken Thighs for Chicken Breasts?
Chicken breasts are generally considered healthy because of their high protein content and lower cholesterol in comparison to darker cuts of chicken. However, boneless skinless chicken thighs would be an easy substitute for the chicken breasts in this teriyaki chicken recipe.
Utilizing chicken thighs will result in juicy, succulent meat that is no less delicious than the original. A bonus of cooking with chicken thighs instead of chicken breasts is that you can cook them longer without them drying out and they also reheat a little better. However, if you are looking for a higher protein, lower fat cut of chicken, chicken breast is the way to go.
What to Do with Chicken Teriyaki Stir Fry Leftovers
While this chicken stir fry recipe serves between 4 and 5 people, you may find that you have some leftovers on hand if you are serving it to a smaller group. Due to this dish's saucy nature, it reheats very well in the microwave if you would like to enjoy it as is.
Otherwise, if you feel like you would enjoy something different from the stir fry over rice, you could toss the chicken and broccoli in a skillet with cooked spaghetti and a little broth until saucy and delicious. This would also be a great place to add in leftover vegetables like thinly sliced bell peppers, sliced green onions, cooked mushrooms, steamed bok choy, and more.
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Recipe
Chicken Teriyaki Stir Fry
Ingredients
- 1 pound chicken breast cubed
- 1 tablespoon oil olive or avocado
- ½ - 1 pound broccoli florets
- 1.5 cups rice
Teriyaki Sauce Ingredients
- ⅓ cup low-sodium soy sauce Tamari or liquid/coconut aminos
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil optional
- 2 garlic cloves minced or pressed
- 1 tablespoon fresh grated ginger
- ¼ cup water
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch or 1 tablespoon tapioca starch
- 1 teaspoon sesame seeds
Instructions
- Set the rice to cook in a rice cooker or pressure cooker. Keep warm.
- Steam the broccoli florets until bright green and turning tender. Or blanch the broccoli by boiling it for 4 minutes, then transfer to bowl with ice and water to stop the cooking process.
- In a small bowl, stir together all ingredients for the teriyaki sauce (soy sauce, water, honey, rice vinegar, sesame oil, garlic, ginger, cornstarch) until combined and set aside.
- Heat a large skillet. Add half of the oil and half of the chicken cubes. Cook the chicken for 2-3 minutes on each side until browned and cooked through. Remove and set aside. Repeat the process with the remaining chicken.
- Then add all the chicken to the skillet. Stir in the teriyaki sauce mix and simmer on low until the sauce thickens. Sprinkle with sesame seeds.
- You can stir in the steamed/blanched broccoli at this point. Personally I prefer adding the sauce over the broccoli while serving.
- Serve the teriyaki chicken stir fry and broccoli over steamed rice. Sprinkle with more sesame if desired.
Nutrition
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Random Questions
Teriyaki sauce can be a component of stir fry sauce, but they're not identical. Teriyaki involves a specific cooking technique and often includes soy sauce, mirin, and a sweetener, while stir fry sauce varies widely in ingredients.
Teriyaki sauce is typically applied during cooking. It's used as a glaze, cooking with the meat to create a flavorful coating. However, additional sauce can be added after cooking for extra flavor.
To thicken teriyaki stir fry, use ingredients like cornstarch. Mix it with water before adding to the sauce. Simmer the sauce, stirring consistently, until it reaches the desired thickness.
Teriyaki sauce commonly includes soy sauce, mirin (or sake), and a sweetener like sugar or honey. Additional ingredients may include garlic, ginger, and cornstarch for thickening. Adjustments can be made based on personal taste and dietary preferences.
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