Yakitori chicken and vegetable skewers

 

In honour of the 2021 Olympics I have taken inspiration from our friends in Japan for this tasty recipe. These simple and delicious yakitori skewers are fun to prepare and very tasty too!

 


Yakitori is essentially skewered chicken basted with sauce during the cooking process. I’ve added baby marrows and cherry tomatoes for extra goodness and flavour, as well as a Japanese inspired sauce which is rich and flavourful. You could cook these under the grill but they are delicious on the braai too. Enjoy!

 

 

YAKITORI CHICKEN AND VEGETABLE SKEWERS

For the sauce:

  • 125ml (½ cup) soy sauce
  • 80ml (⅓ cup) rice vinegar
  • 45ml (3 tbsp) dry sherry
  • 30ml (2 tbsp) honey
  • 5ml (1 tsp) garlic paste
  • 5ml (1 tsp) crushed ginger

To assemble:

  • 6 bamboo skewers, soaked in cold water for at least 30 minutes
  • 2 free range chicken breast fillets, cut into bite sized chunks
  • 2 baby marrows, sliced
  • 12 cherry tomatoes
  • 5ml (1 tsp) white sesame seeds
  • 5ml (1 tsp) black sesame seeds

1.) To make the sauce place the soy sauce, rice vinegar, dry sherry, honey, garlic paste and crushed ginger in a small saucepan. Stir and bring to the boil, then lower the heat and simmer gently for 15 minutes until the sauce has reduced and thickened. Reserve two tablespoons for drizzling and dipping.

2.) Turn on your grill and place a lightly oiled rack over a foil lined baking tray. Skewer the chicken, baby marrows and tomatoes onto the soaked bamboo sticks.

3.) Arrange the skewers on the tray. Pop under the grill for 4-5 minutes until the chicken is starting to brown on one side. Remove the tray and brush the sauce over the skewers on the cooked side, then turn them over and grill for a further 4 minutes. Remove, brush and turn again.

4.) Cook for a further 3-4 minutes per side brushing each time you turn, until the chicken is cooked through.

5.) Arrange  the skewers on a platter. Use a different, clean pastry brush to brush the reserved sauce on the skewers. Sprinkle with the white and black sesame seeds. Serve immediately.

 

4 thoughts on “Yakitori chicken and vegetable skewers

    1. Hi, I haven’t tested this with anything other than soy sauce, but you could try Worcestershire sauce or oyster sauce (or a combination of the two). Let me know how it goes!

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