Teriyaki Chicken and Egg Rice Bowl

If I could, I would use chicken fillets with skin-on for all my dishes. However, the chicken fillets sold here usually come skinless, and I think it's a shame that they discard the skin. The skin provides texture, flavour, some fat as well as protect the meat from drying out. It's also fantastic when it's caramelized properly which not only gives it a lovely chewiness, and sometimes crunchiness, but it also helps it to absorb the sauce better (if sauce is used in the dish). Well, that's my opinion anyway.

And so, I made one of our favourite chicken dishes, teriyaki chicken, with skin on of course. I'm not a fan of deboning chicken thighs, so I got G to help me do it. Then I made some teriyaki sauce (homemade is better than the bottled ones I reckon!) and used it to marinate the chicken, which I then grilled in the oven until nicely browned and caramelized. I served the chicken on top of some steamed rice and added a soft-boiled egg to it. The egg with its runny yolk and creamy white adds an element of richness when mixed together with the rice and chicken, and balances out some of the sweetness from the teriyaki sauce.

Teriyaki Chicken and Egg Rice Bowl

Ingredients

5 chicken thighs with skin-on, deboned

4 eggs, soft-boiled

4 servings of cooked short-grained sushi rice

Chopped spring onions for garnish

Teriyaki sauce:

1/2 cup Kikkoman soy sauce

1/2 cup sake

2/3 cup mirin

3 tbsp sugar

Method

Place ingredients for sauce in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Stir to dissolve the sugar and simmer for 10-15 minutes or until the sauce is reduced to less than half. Transfer to a bowl and let it cool. It will continue to thicken a little during cooling.

Season chicken thigh fillets with black pepper and pour about 4 tbsp of the teriyaki sauce onto the chicken. Mix well and leave in the fridge to marinate for 1 hour. Reserve the rest for later.

Preheat oven to 210C (400F). Place the chicken in a baking dish or a tray lined with foil. Bake on the upper rack of the oven for 25-30 minutes, turning the chicken once halfway and baste with remaining marinade. When cooked, remove and transfer to a chopping board. Slice into 3/4 inch strips.

To serve, place rice in individual serving bowls. Arrange chicken over the top and place soft boiled egg in the centre. Drizzle the reserved teriyaki sauce over the chicken and garnish with chopped spring onions. Serve immediately.

Note: Alternatively, instead of baking the chicken in the oven, you can grill/fry it in a pan. To do this, simply prick a few holes in the chicken skin, then grill or pan-fry on high heat until browned and just cooked. Pour teriyaki sauce over the chicken in the pan and simmer until the sauce is thickened. Turn the chicken occasionally to coat it in the sauce. Then, remove the chicken and slice before serving with the sauce from the pan.