Teriyaki Chicken Leg is braised chicken legs in Teriyaki sauce. It has been a favorite Christmas dinner in Japan that is made at home or bought from stores.
Many people in Japan eat chicken on Christmas day for some reason. It may be that they thought it would seem like a “western” food and Christmas was a very western holiday. However, it is less common to use a whole bird as a feast, but instead pieces of chicken are usually cooked, probably because it is harder to cook large things in small Japanese ovens. Teriyaki chicken legs were the first choice for Christmas dinner once. Chicken legs with appetizing brown glaze were displayed next to the regular skewered chicken Yakitori in a deli case at chicken meat shops and supermarkets and these displays were a part of the season. After major fast food fried chicken restaurant chains came to Japan, and thanks to huge TV ad campaigns for years, fried chicken has become as popular a choice as, if not more popular than, Teriyaki chicken legs for Christmas dinner.
In addition to chicken, there are also more varieties of food for Christmas in Japan today as Christmas itself has become their own special day for many families and a standard part of the season. From roast beef to sushi to Sukiyaki, it just depends on what a family wants to eat. Still, Christmas Teriyaki Chicken is a good choice, and it is a nostalgic one for our generation when Teriyaki chicken legs were the pinnacle of the season.
It may be harder to find already cut chicken legs, but they are available at some stores especially around the holiday time. If you find them, make Teriyaki Chicken Leg at home (if you can’t find the whole legs, thighs can work well too). It is so much easier to cook with significantly less time than roasting a whole chicken, but it will still look very good for a nice holiday dinner.
Teriyaki Chicken Leg Recipe
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Ingredients
Instructions
- Trim excess fat from chicken legs. Sprinkle salt lightly over chicken, and leave for 10-15 minutes.
- Remove any moisture with paper.
- Heat oil in a heavy frying pan, add chicken skin side down, and cook until browned. Turn over and cook the other side until browned.
- Remove any oil in the pan with a paper towel. Add water, sugar, Soy Sauce, and Sake and stir. Cover and cook for 15-20 minutes. Remove the cover, and add Mirin to the sauce. Reduce until the sauce is thick if not thickened already. Coat the chicken with the sauce well.
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