Chicken Teriyaki Bento

One thing I've learned as the host of NHK World's Bento Expo is that dishes that taste good hot don't always work in a Japanese lunch box (typically eaten at room temperature). Chicken teriyaki is a prime example. Traditionally, teriyaki chicken is made with boneless chicken thighs. This cut of chicken can be flavorful and juicy when warm, but it tends to get tough as it cools. I've used chicken breast for this chicken teriyaki bento recipe, along with a few easy tricks to ensure it ends up tender and moist. I also share my top tips for packing a colorful and nutritionally balanced teriyaki chicken bento.

Why This Recipe Works

• Chicken breast meat works better for bento because it does not get tough when served at room temperature. 
• Cutting the breast meat against the grain and marinating it with ginger provides mechanical and enzymatic tenderization benefits.
• The potato starch in the marinade helps lock in the juices while allowing the teriyaki glaze to adhere to the chicken. 
• Packing the bento with a variety of colors not only makes it look nice but also ensures you get a wide variety of nutrients.

Ingredients

• Chicken Breast - I generally advocate for using chicken thigh meat for teriyaki, but bento are eaten at room temperature, and skinless boneless chicken breast is ideal for packing into bento boxes because it remains tender even when cooled. You could also pack this same bento using my tender and juicy Teriyaki Chicken Meatballs.
• Sake - This Japanese rice wine adds a subtle sweetness and depth to the teriyaki sauce and the marinade. Sake naturally contains a high concentration of amino acids such as glutamate, which gives the teriyaki the taste of umami. The alcohol burns off as you cook it, but if you're concerned, you can substitute water with a pinch of MSG to add to the umami taste. Some sites suggest using rice vinegar as a substitute, but this is a terrible idea as teriyaki sauce should not be sour.
• Ginger - Beyond adding a fresh, zesty kick, ginger also contains an proteolytic enzyme called zingibain, which helps tenderize the meat. 
• Salt - A small amount of salt in the marinade helps ensure the chicken is seasoned to its core.  
• Potato Starch - Adding starch to the marinade helps seal the chicken juices into the meat, ensuring it stays moist. It also allows the teriyaki sauce stick to the chicken's surface. You can substitute tapioca starch or corn starch in a pinch.
• Soy Sauce - Traditional teriyaki sauce is made with just a few basic ingredients: soy sauce, sake, sugar, and sometimes mirin. The soy sauce provides the salty component of this homemade sauce. Tamari can be substituted for a gluten-free option.
• Sugar - Balances the saltiness of the soy sauce, adding a necessary sweetness that's a defining feature of teriyaki sauce. I like using evaporated cane sugar (a.k.a. raw cane sugar) but brown sugar, honey, or maple syrup will work. 
• Rice—Sticky and slightly sweet, Japanese short-grain rice perfectly complements this teriyaki chicken bento. To make your lunch box more nutritious, you can substitute brown rice for white rice.
• Side Dishes - Low moisture salads such as potato salad or kinpira gobo make great side dishes for bentos. Egg dishes like boiled eggs or tamagoyaki are another great option. If you plan to make bento a part of your lunch routine, the key is to keep your fridge stocked with a few leftover dishes from the night before. I usually like to add at least two colorful side dishes or simple salads in addition to the main dish and rice. You can check out a list of popular bento dishes for quick side dish ideas. 
• Leafy Greens - Leafy greens such as various kinds of lettuce, cabbage, kale, and chicory make for great edible partitions for your bento box, allowing you to keep each dish separate while adding a pop of color. 
• Garnishes - Colorful fresh vegetables, such as cherry tomatoes, crunchy sugar snap peas, or carrots cut into the shape of flowers, can make great garnishes. For my teriyaki chicken bento, I used umeboshi (pickled plums) and toasted sesame seeds. 

How to Cut Chicken Breast

Because teriyaki chicken bento is eaten at room temperature, how you slice the chicken makes a big difference in its tenderness. Breast meat is composed of long muscle fibers that can become tough as the meat cools. When you cut chicken breast "against the grain," you slice through these fibers, shortening them. Shorter fibers are easier to chew, leading to a more tender bite.

1. Identify the grain. Start by locating the direction in which the muscle fibers are aligned. If you look closely, you can see these fibers running through the meat.
2. Split the breast. Each chicken breast should have a line running through the center. Divide the chicken down this line first. 
3. Split the larger piece. If you look at the larger piece of chicken, you'll see that the grain changes direction towards the thicker end. At this junction, split the chicken again. 
4. Slice the chicken. Orient the chicken pieces so the meat fibers run perpendicular to your knife, then slice it into ⅓-inch thick medallions.

How to Make Teriyaki Chicken Breast

Add the chicken meat to a bowl with the sake, grated ginger, and salt. Mix to combine. Add the potato starch to the seasoned chicken and work it in to distribute evenly. 

For the teriyaki sauce, stir the soy sauce, sake, and sugar together until the sugar is completely dissolved. 

Heat a skillet over medium-high heat and add the vegetable oil. Lay the chicken pieces in a single layer, starting with the larger pieces and working from one side of the pan to the other. By the time you're done adding the chicken, the bigger pieces should be ready to flip, so start turning them over. 

When the chicken is nearly cooked, use a paper towel to soak up any excess oil in the pan, and then pour the teriyaki sauce ingredients into the pan. Repeatedly flip the teriyaki chicken over to coat it with the sauce.

What is a Bento Box?

A bento box is a traditional Japanese lunch box that holds a variety of colorful dishes in a reusable container. Traditional bento boxes typically don't have separate dish compartments and can be made from various materials, including wood, lacquerware, metal, or plastic. If you don't have a bento box, you can use relatively flat plastic containers with lids. I generally don't recommend using glass containers because they are heavy and fragile.

How to Pack a Bento Box

1. Start by packing the rice. I usually make my bento with 30-40% rice. Sloping the rice down towards the empty side of your bento box will allow you to use it to prop up your other bento items. If you are using a deeper bento box, you may want to consider packing this as a teriyaki chicken don (rice bowl), with the rice at the bottom and the chicken on top.
2. Pack your bento box from back to front. I usually add side dishes like salads to the back of the box. In this case, I've packed my Shredded Carrot and Tuna Salad in the back. My mom's Japanese Potato Salad would also make a great choice.
3. Use leafy greens as partitions. Single leaves can be used as partitions to keep flavors separate while adding a pop of color and texture to your bento. I don't recommend adding leaf salads to bento boxes, though, because they tend to compress, allowing your other bento items to shift around. If you do add a green salad, pack the salad dressing in a separate container, or your bento will get watery.
4. Pack the teriyaki chicken. I usually pack the main dish towards the front of the box. This chicken teriyaki is slippery, so filling the rest of the space before packing it can help keep it in place.
5. Fill in the remaining space. Use smaller vegetables or fruit to fill in any remaining gaps in your bento box. This prevents the contents from shifting about as you transport them. Long foods like my Japanese Pickles, asparagus, or, in this case, my Sesame Snap Peas work great for this.
6. Garnish. When you're done packing the bento box, you can add garnishes like umeboshi, sesame seeds, green onion, or furikake.

📖 Recipe

Chicken Teriyaki Bento Box

By: Marc Matsumoto

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Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 10 minutes mins

Total Time 25 minutes mins

Yield 2 bentos

Equipment

1 Medium Glass Bowl

1 12-inch Non-stick Frying Pan

1 Large Glass Bowl

Units

Grams + US CupsUS Standard

Ingredients 

1x2x3x

• 400 grams boneless skinless chicken breast (1 piece)
• 1 tablespoon sake
• ½ teaspoon grated ginger
• ⅛ teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons potato starch
• 2 tablespoons sake
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1 batch cooked Japanese short-grain rice

Instructions

Step PhotosNo Photos

• Find the line running down the middle of the 400 grams boneless skinless chicken breast and separate it into two pieces.
  
• Look for how the meat fibers run through the large piece of breast and cut it where the fibers change direction.
  
• Now, you can cut each piece against the grain into ⅓-inch thick slices.
  
• Add the chicken to a bowl with 1 tablespoon sake, ½ teaspoon grated ginger, and ⅛ teaspoon salt. Mix to combine. Add 2 teaspoons potato starch and work it in so each piece has an even coating of starch.
  
• To make the teriyaki sauce, add 2 tablespoons sake, 1 tablespoon soy sauce, and 1 tablespoon sugar to a bowl and mix until the sugar has dissolved.
  
• Heat a large frying pan over medium-high heat until hot. Add 1 tablespoon vegetable oil and chicken in a single layer, starting with the larger pieces.
  
• When you're done adding the chicken, start flipping them over, starting with the pieces you added first.
  
• When the chicken is mostly cooked (it doesn't need to be fully cooked), wipe out any excess oil with a paper towel and then add the teriyaki sauce.
  
• Flip the teriyaki chicken pieces repeatedly until they're coated in a thick glaze.
  
• Pack the teriyaki chicken into a bento box along with 1 batch cooked Japanese short-grain rice, and some side dishes.

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Nutrition Facts

Calories • 614kcalCarbohydrates • 67gProtein • 48gFat • 12gSaturated Fat • 2gPolyunsaturated Fat • 5gMonounsaturated Fat • 3gTrans Fat • 0.1gCholesterol • 128mgSodium • 882mgPotassium • 839mgFiber • 0.2gSugar • 6gVitamin A • 60IUVitamin C • 3mgCalcium • 16mgIron • 4mg