Federico Zanellato’s Chicken Yakitori
Recipe Information
Serves
2
Preparation time
1 hour
Duration
1 hour
Difficulty
Experienced
Ingredients
- Hibatchi Grill
- Bamboo skewers
For the Yaki Tare:
- 100 gr Sake
- 100 gr Mirin
- 150 gr Soy sauce
- 75 gr brown sugar
- Dry Shitake
- 150gr Roasted Chicken bones
For the chicken Yakitori:
- Either 1 whole chicken to break down into the below cuts. (see notes for other alternatives)
- Chicken Breast (mune, むね)
- Chicken Thigh & Scallion (negima, ねぎま)
- Chicken Tender (sasami, ささみ)
- Chicken Skin (kawa, 皮)
- Chicken Wings (tebasaki, 手羽先)
- Chicken Tail (bonjiri, ぼんじり)
- Chicken Cartilage (nankotsu, 軟骨)
- Chicken Heart (hatsu, ハツ)
- Chicken Liver (rebā, レバー)
- Chicken Gizzard (sunagimo, 砂肝)
- Chicken Thigh (momo, もも)
For the Chicken Wing Filling:
- 100 gr Koshikari rice
- 500gr porcini stock or Chicken stock
- 20gr parmesan
- 15 gr Butter
- 50 gr Minced Chicken
Method
To make the Yaki Tare:
- In a small saucepan, add mirin, soy sauce, sake, water, brown sugar, and the green part of 1 scallion and the roasted chicken and bring it to a boil over high heat.
- Once boiling, reduce the heat to low and simmer, uncovered, until the liquid is reduced by half. It will take about 30 minutes. The sauce will thicken with a glossy shine , then strain through a chinoise.
- Let it cool to room temperature before using. Reserve ⅓ of the sauce in a small bowl for final coating (Use this sauce after the chicken is cooked). Note: You can make the sauce ahead of time. Put only the sauce (no green onion) in a mason jar. Store in the refrigerator for up to 2-3 months in the refrigerator.
To make the stuffed chicken wing:
- Debone the first part of the chicken wings only
- Cook the koshikari rice like a risotto by adding a ladle of bone stock one at the time
- Towards the end add the mince chicken and of the heat add parmesan and butter
- Let it cool down completely and put the rice inside a piping bag
- Fill the chicken wings making sure you leave a gap to close the wings on top
- Steam the wings for 30 minutes at 90 degrees
- Cool down
- Grill over charcoal from cold whilst brushing with the Tare until golden
To make the Chicken Yakitori:
- Brush the chicken with the Yaki tare before and while cooking
- Soak the bamboo skewers in water for 30 minutes before threading the ingredients.
- Get the charcoal hot for the hibatchi grill (or you can use a charcoal BBQ)
- Cut all the chicken in 1inch cube
- On the chopping board fold each slice of the chicken at 45 degrees angle and press down on the skewers to pierce trough the center
- Alternate the chicken with big pieces of scallion on skewers, and make sure they are tightly snugged to each other.
Tips and notes from Federico on his Chicken Yakitori recipe:
- If you don’t have a hibatchi grill at home, you can use a charcoal BBQ
- If you don’t want to break down a whole chicken or use all the different cuts, use boneless, skinless chicken thighs. They stay juicy and more flavorful compared to breasts.
- Click here to watch the full episode which shows Federico removing the chicken wing bone