Negima yakitori
This is a popular Japanese yakitori dish. There it is made with a vegetable called negi, a kind of Japanese long onion. Here, fat spring onions are the things to use. Togarashi is a hot, citrussy Japanese spice blend. Waitrose now sell an own-label version, or you can easily get it online.
If you’re using wooden skewers, soak them in water for 30 minutes so that they don’t burn.
Ingrediënten
FOR THE YAKITORI SAUCE
- 250 ml 9fl oz soy sauce
- 125 ml 4fl oz sake or dry sherry
- 125 ml 4fl oz mirin
- 3 tbsp soft light brown sugar
- 4 garlic cloves crushed
- 3 cm 1¼in root ginger, peeled and grated
FOR THE SKEWERS
- 900 g 2lb skinless boneless chicken thighs
- 16 spring onions
- salt and pepper
- flavourless vegetable oil optional
- togarashi and sesame seeds to sprinkle
Instructies
- Put all the ingredients for the sauce into a saucepan and gently bring to the boil, stirring a little to help the sugar dissolve.
- Reduce the heat and simmer for eight to 10 minutes.
- The mixture should look syrupy and will thicken more as it cools.
- Leave to cool.
- Cut the chicken with the grain into 5 x 2cm (2 x ¾in) slices.
- Remove the softer green bits from the spring onions and trim the tufty base.
- You need the small bulb and the firmer bits of green for this.
- Cut the spring onions into 6cm (2½in) lengths.
- Fold each piece of chicken in half and thread on to wooden or metal skewers, alternating with a piece of spring onion.
- When they are ready, gently press with the heel of your hand to compact the chicken and neaten the whole skewer.
- If cooking on a barbecue, just season the skewers.
- If cooking on a griddle pan, heat until it’s really hot, brush the skewers with oil, then sprinkle with salt.
- Cook, turning every minute or so, for about seven minutes.
- Move them around so they cook evenly and adjust the heat as needed.
- Now brush the skewers with the sauce and cook for another two or three minutes, turning the skewers every 30 seconds or so and brushing them with sauce.
- You need to control the heat so the sauce doesn’t burn (though a bit of caramelization is good) and the chicken cooks through (check for doneness by cutting into a larger piece).
- When the chicken is cooked, brush with more teriyaki and sprinkle with togarashi and sesame seeds.
- Serve with boiled rice, or just salad (the vegetable bit of the Japanese salad is good).
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