Teriyaki Chicken Thigh Rice Bowls
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Last updated
- Prep
- 15 min
- Bath
- 2 hours
- Total
- 2 hr 25 min
- Yield
- 4 servings
Main Coursechickenteriyakirice
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 lb plain boneless, skinless chicken thighs
- Salt and black pepper
- 1/4 cup Japanese soy sauce
- 1/4 cup mirin
- 2 tbsp water
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 2 thin slices fresh ginger
- 1 tbsp neutral oil
- 4 cups cooked rice, freshly prepared for serving
- 2 scallions, thinly sliced
- 2 tsp toasted sesame seeds
Method
Prepare
- Keep the thighs whole and verify the preparation conditions below. Season with salt and pepper and seal flat without overlap.
- Keep all glaze ingredients and oil outside the pouch.
Cook
- Set the water bath to 165°F.
- For the thigh option, use whole boneless, skinless chicken thighs, fully thawed and refrigerator-cold. The source does not give a weight or thickness limit; every piece must be large enough for a reliable thermometer reading. Keep thighs whole until they pass the check. Use plain thighs without injection, added solution, curing, or marinade. Season with salt and pepper and seal flat in one layer without overlap. Keep sauce, oil, vegetables, and coating ingredients outside the pouch. Fully submerge each sealed pouch in a verified, preheated circulating bath, leaving water space around every bag. Start timing at immersion and complete the full listed time without interruption. The listed time covers the bath stage. The thermometer check, any additional cooking needed to pass it, and the finish are separate. Insert the thermometer from the side into the thickest center of every piece, keeping its full sensing area inside the meat; check uneven areas and avoid bone and fat. Every measured spot must reach 165°F before cutting or finishing. Cook any cooler piece further in a skillet or oven and recheck it. Bath time, color, texture, and browning do not replace this check. Use clean utensils, discard all pouch liquid, and keep cooked food away from raw-food juices, used bags, and utensils that touched raw meat. Dry and brown the whole pieces briefly in a hot oiled skillet. Brush with a separately cooked teriyaki glaze at the end, then slice and serve immediately. Prolonged searing or simmering in glaze firms the center. These methods cover immediate service only. Frozen starts, chilling, storage, reheating, and holding need separate methods. Bone-in or skin-on thighs, pre-cut pieces, stuffed, rolled, or unmeasurable chicken need another method. Do not use the breast schedule for thighs.
- Cook for 2 hours if you are cooking whole boneless, skinless chicken thighs, fully thawed and refrigerator-cold, flat in one layer without overlap, with every piece measurable using a food thermometer.
- Near serving time, combine the soy sauce, mirin, water, sugar, and ginger in a small saucepan. Simmer until the glaze lightly coats a spoon, then remove the ginger. Prepare the rice and garnishes.
Check before finishing
- At the end of the bath, open the pouch and transfer each piece intact to a clean surface with clean utensils. Discard the pouch liquid and any sauce that touched raw food.
- Use a clean food thermometer. Insert the thermometer from the side into the thickest center of every piece, keeping its full sensing area inside the meat; check uneven areas and avoid bone and fat.
- Every spot you check must reach 165°F. If any reading is lower, keep cooking with a method hot enough to reach this temperature and check each cooler spot again. Complete this check before finishing.
Finish
- After every whole thigh passes the temperature check, discard the pouch liquid and pat the chicken dry.
- Brown the whole thighs briefly in a hot skillet with the oil. Brush with the finished glaze at the end, without simmering the chicken in it.
Serve
- Slice with a clean knife and arrange over the rice. Spoon on a little more glaze and add scallions and sesame seeds. Serve immediately.
Want another texture or thickness?
The complete guide has all reviewed settings, safety context, and finishing options.