From Izakaya-style Yakitori chicken to grilled Yakionigiri rice balls, these are some of the best Japanese-style grilling recipes that you will want to try this summer and all year long!
In our mini-series of Japanese Cooking 101 in Kyoto, we are going to different stores from traditional to trendy, and show you a glimpse of the culinary scene of Kyoto in 2023. After we tasted delicious food at stores, we tried to recreate those dishes, not exactly but more in our own way, at home in Kyoto. We hope you enjoy our Japanese Cooking 101 food in a little different setting from our regular videos.
Our final episode is Yakitori Restaurant Yakitori. Yakitori (焼き鳥) is skewered and grilled chicken, as many of you may already know. Sometimes they’re dipped in a Teriyaki-type Yakitori sauce, or simply seasoned with salt at other times. Our original Yakitori recipe calls for chicken thighs because we think it’s the most flavorful part of the chicken for normal Yakitori. But there are also many different chicken parts that are used at Yakitori speciality restaurants in Japan. A few of the most popular parts are chicken skins, hearts, gizzards, and cartilage. Well, that may be beyond what many of us want to deal with at Yakitori shops. But if you are being adventurous, please go ahead and try something new. They are really good, with interesting textures, and that’s why people in Japan love those parts in Yakitori too.
Assorted Yakitori is grilled skewered chicken and various vegetables dipped in a sweet and salty Teriyaki-like sauce or simply served with salt. Yakitori is a very popular appetizer at Yakitori bars and other bar-type restaurants in Japan. It can be a nice dinner as well if there are more vegetables and especially when served with rice and Miso Soup.