Yakitori
Bite-sized chicken thigh and spring onion skewers grilled over high heat and brushed with a sweet, reduced soy and mirin tare.
Method
- 1
Soak the bamboo skewers in water so they do not burn on the grill.
- 2
Put the soy sauce, mirin, sake and sugar in a small saucepan and bring to the boil.
- 3
Simmer until reduced by about a third and slightly syrupy, then take the tare off the heat.
- 4
Cut the chicken into 3 cm pieces, keeping the skin on, and cut the spring onions into 3 cm lengths.
- 5
Thread the chicken onto the skewers, slipping a piece of spring onion between every second piece, and pack them snugly.
- 6
Heat the grill to high, or light the barbecue and wait until the coals glow under a coat of white ash.
- 7
Grill the skewers, turning every couple of minutes, until the chicken is lightly charred and almost cooked through.
- 8
Brush the skewers all over with tare and grill for a minute on each side so it caramelises.
- 9
Brush and grill twice more, until the chicken is glossy and dark at the edges and the juices run clear.
- 10
Give the skewers a final brush of tare and serve hot, with shichimi for sprinkling.
Notes
- For the salted version, shio, season the skewers with fine salt before grilling and skip the tare.
- Keep the tare you brush on separate from any you serve at the table, since the brush touches raw chicken. Leftover tare keeps for a month in the fridge.
Equipment
12 bamboo skewers, Barbecue or overhead grill, Small saucepan, Pastry brush, Foil-lined baking tray