teriyaki chicken sandwich

teriyaki chicken sandwich

I’ve got a treat for you, and it’s not just this amazing chicken sandwich.

I’m part of an elite, top-secret baking team hand-picked by Stefanie of The Cupcake Project. Together, we are testing what may just be the world’s ultimate chocolate cupcake recipe. I can’t tell you much, just that I CAN’T WAIT to tell you ALL ABOUT them!!! But I can’t do that yet…
I CAN tell you all about Stefanie’s “Ultimate Vanilla Cupcake” recipe, which I plan to make today as well. The chocolate ones, though… those ones you will have to wait for. Assuming, of course, that it is deemed the “ultimate chocolate cupcake recipe.”
These sandwiches, though. These are another thing entirely. BF said he wanted “chicken sandwiches” for lunch one day, and then I came home and made these. I’m not sure if they are exactly what he had in mind, but they have quickly become one of our favorite meals.
It’s grilled teriyaki chicken breast with avocado, tomato, lettuce, onion, and spicy sriracha mayo sandwiched between a crisp and toasty ciabatta bun. You need to make these. Like now. When I tried to complain to BF about posting it, because I didn’t have any “amazing pictures” he said “WHO CARES!? IT’S SO GOOD!” … so you have him to thank for this post. 🙂 He was very concerned about you being able to enjoy these sandwiches.
Oh, and let’s not forget our virtual picnic on pinterest! If I don’t respond to your tag (Pinterest can be a little wonky sometimes), feel free to send an e-mail requesting to be a contributor to me at wee.eats@gmail.com or you can just comment on this post with a link to your pinterest account. 🙂
Teriyaki Chicken Sandwiches
1 lb boneless skinless chicken breast
Your favorite teriyaki marinade (I think I just used a bottled one – Lawry’s or something)
1 avocado, sliced
4 scallions, sliced
1 tomato, sliced
Lettuce of your choice (Romaine is ok, but I think arugula would be great)
Cilantro (optional)
4 ciabatta buns, split
Sriracha Mayo
1/4 cup mayo
1 Tablespoon sriracha
Drizzle olive oil (about a teaspoon)
1. Marinate chicken according to marinade directions. I marinate it for about 45 minutes.
2. While chicken is marinating, make the sriracha mayo and slice the toppings.
To make the mayo – Mix the sriracha, mayo, and oil. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.
Other flavorful (optional) mix-ins include sambal olek (chili-garlic paste), splash of lime, scallions, or cilantro.
3. Preheat grill and cook chicken until done. Tent loosely with foil.
4. Spread sriaracha mayo on ciabatta buns and grill, mayo side down, until toasted.
5. When ready to assemble sandwiches, cut chicken breasts int strips at a 45 degree angle. Assemble sandwiches – I like to sprinkle scallions on the bottom bun, top with the avocado, then tomato, then chicken (3 to 4 strips, depending on how big of strips you cut), and lettuce on top.

Teriyaki Chicken with Momofuku’s Ginger-Scallion Noodles

teriyaki chicken noodles

“Teriyaki” hails from Japan and is just a general term that applies to pretty much any type of sweetened soy sauce mixture. The sweetener can be anything from honey, to pineapple juice, to plain old sugar (which is what this recipe uses). Feel free to experiment and find what you like.

While teriyaki is extremely popular in the US, I’m not sure how “authentic” it is to asian cuisine. Nevertheless, it shows up on menus nationwide for us to enjoy at asian and non-asian restaurants alike (even ‘Jack in the Box’ has a teriyaki bowl). Once you see how simple it is to make, you’ll understand why.

I made Momofuku’s ginger-scallion noodles with quick-pickled cucumbers to accompany our chicken tonight, which I was fortunate enough to experience in person on my NYC trip last year at Momofuku Noodle Bar. I received the cookbook from mom this past Christmas and had yet to actually make anything from it.

Despite sounding fancy, the sauce comes together rather quickly, and ends up looking like a pile of wet scallions. The noodles are very ginger-y, so if you’re not big on ginger, you may want to scale it back a bit. You could also use Megkat’s noodle recipe (at the end of this post), which is super tasty as well.

Teriyaki Chicken – Adapted from Megkat

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  • 2 large boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into thin strips
  • 1 Tbsp cornstarch
  • 1 Tbsp water
  • 1/3 C soy sauce
  • 1/3 C sugar (I’m sure you could substitute honey, agave nectar, or pineapple juice to taste)
  • ÂĽ  C cider vinegar
  • ½  tsp garlic powder
  • ½  tsp powdered ginger (There was plenty of ginger in the noodles, so I left it out of the sauce this time)
  • ÂĽ tsp ground pepper (couple grinds)
  • ÂĽ – ½ tsp red pepper flakes (optional)
  1. Preheat oven to 425F and line a 9×13 baking pan with aluminum foil (this will make clean up much easier). Place chicken strips in pan.
  2. Mix water and cornstarch into slurry and add to saucepan over medium heat. Whisk in remaining ingredients and simmer until thickened, whisking to avoid burning.
  3. Once sauce is thick and syrup-y, pour over chicken and toss to coat. Bake in preheated oven 20-25 minutes, stirring about halfway through.

*Alternatively, I think it might taste even better if you saute the chicken in a pan and pour the thickened sauce over it, toss and serve, since baking the chicken results in a different texture than sauteeing does. Just be sure not to over-crowd the pan, saute in batches if you have to.

Ginger-Scallion Noodles –From Momofuku Cookbook

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  • 6 oz cooked noodles (ramen, yakisoba, or in a pinch- thin spaghetti)
  • 6 Tbs ginger scallion sauce (recipe follows)
     

ginger-scallion noodles with quick-pickled cucumbers

Ginger Scallion Sauce –Makes about 3 cups

  • 2 1/2 C thinly sliced scallions, greens and whites (1 to 2 bunches)
  • 1/2 C finely minced peeled fresh ginger
  • 1/4 C grapeseed or other neutral oil
  • 1 1/2 tsp usukuchi (light soy sauce)
  • 3/4 tsp sherry vinegar
  • 3/4 tsp kosher salt, or more to taste

Mix together. Good from the time its made for 2 days. (It will look like a bowl of wet scallions)

Quick-Pickled Cucumbers

  • 1 large seedless (“English”) cucumber
  • 1 Tbsp Sugar
  • 1 tsp salt

Slice cucumber thinly (I used my mandolin), toss with sugar/salt and let sit for 20 minutes. Serve with ginger-scallion noodles

Garlic NoodlesAdapted from Megkat

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1 lb cooked noodles
4 TBS butter
6 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 C green onions, chopped (more for garnish, if desired)
2 1/2 tsp fish sauce (her’s calls for Tbsp, but that seems a bit much)
2 Tbs soy sauce
1 Tbs brown sugar

1. Melt 2 Tbs butter in large skillet. In small bowl, mix fish sauce, soy sauce, and brown sugar.

2. Add garlic and green onions, saute until fragrant. Add soy sauce mixture to pan, along with 2 more Tbs butter, melt while stirring. Once sugar is dissolved and butter is melted, toss with pasta & serve.