Featured Review
4.8 from 20 reviews

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I made this to go for a dinner for about 10 people. Two of the people that I had made it for one was located in Japan for a while and the other was Hawaiian. Not only was it the best shoyu chicken they had ever had but the mac salad was divine…it just melted in my mouth! I truly enjoy it thank you so much for the recipe.

Trudie
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Braised Local-Style Comfort Food – The Ultimate Easy Chicken Dinner!

Shoyu Chicken is one of my all-time favorite comfort foods and a truly iconic local Hawaii meal. If it’s new-to-you, you’re in for such a treat!

It’s a Japanese-inspired braised chicken dish made with chicken thighs that simmer in a shoyu-based sauce with brown sugar, garlic, and ginger.

The chicken braises on the stovetop until it’s fall-apart tender and has soaked up all of the salty-sweet and rich umami flavor of the sauce.

Shoyu chicken in a black dutch oven atop a white surface. The chicken is garnished with sliced green onions & sesame seeds. The dutch oven is surrounded by a blue linen napkin & serving spoons, & 2 small bowls, one filled with rice & the second with sliced green onions. this Recipe for Later!
Tender braised chicken thighs soak up a savory and sweet shoyu-based sauce. The easiest one-pot chicken dinner!

This particular shoyu chicken recipe comes from my Mom’s kitchen and is so simple!

It’s a one-pot and 6-ingredient chicken dinner that relies on humble bone-in chicken thighs for maximum flavor and a stovetop preparation (with slow cooker and InstantPot directions provided) making it super quick and clean up a breeze.

Serve your shoyu chicken plate lunch-style, alongside light and sticky rice and mac salad – it’s pure local-style comfort food and a true taste of Hawai’i at home!

Ingredient Spotlight

What is Shoyu?

Something important to understand about Hawaii is it’s a melting pot of people, cultures, and traditions from all around the Pacific Rim. This is very much so reflected in Hawaii’s local food scene and the staple ingredients you’ll find on the island.

Shoyu is a perfect example of this – a staple in Hawaii kitchens, and the star ingredient in this easy chicken recipe! In Hawaii, soy sauce is commonly called shoyu, the Japanese word for soy sauce. Aloha Shoyu is my go-to. If you’d like to keep things gluten free, feel free to swap the shoyu for tamari.

Jess’ Hawaii-Style Favorites

How to Make Shoyu Chicken

The thing you’ll love most about this recipe is it’s incredibly easy to make. There’s minimal prep involved, just 6 straightforward ingredients, it’s a one-pot wonder, and the cook time is entirely inactive.

Seriously – the easiest weeknight dinner ever!

Shoyu chicken ingredients on a white surface: brown sugar, green onions, ginger, garlic, water, shoyu, & bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs.
6 simple ingredients bring big bold flavor to this one pot chicken dinner.
Shoyu chicken braising liquid in a small mixing bowl with a whisk. The bowl sits atop a white surface.
Chicken thighs can marinate up to 3 days in the aromatic but balanced shoyu sauce.
1

Mix the shoyu sauce. Whisk together the shoyu, brown sugar, green onions, garlic, and ginger, diluting it a little bit with water. Plain and simple! Meal prep tip ⇢ For even more flavorful shoyu chicken, you can soak the chicken thighs in the shoyu sauce up to 3 days ahead of time.

Shoyu chicken assembled in a black dutch oven before braising. The dutch oven sits atop a white surface.
Chicken thighs simmer away in a Dutch oven for a hands-off process with fall-apart tender results.
Broiled shoyu chicken thighs on a small Nordicware baking sheet, atop a white surface.
Broiling adds texture to an otherwise soft dish. The sugars in the dish will caramelize for extra rich and smoky flavor!
2

Braise the chicken. Add the shoyu sauce to a pot with the chicken thighs, submerging them in the sauce as much as possible. Simmer over low heat for 30-35 minutes. Why? ⇢ A low and slow braise gently cooks the chicken thighs until they’re succulent and fall-apart tender.

3

Optional! Broil for texture. Pop the chicken under the broiler for 4-5 minutes. Meanwhile, thicken the shoyu sauce by boiling for 5-10 minutes, until reduced as desired. Why? ⇢ I picked up on this trick a few years back from Alana Kysar’s Aloha Kitchen. It’s not traditional, but broiling gets the chicken skin gloriously crispy and caramelized!

Shoyu chicken fills a large cast iron dutch oven pot that sits atop a white textured surface. A small bowl of rice and a pinch bowl filled with sliced green onions rest alongside the pot at center.
This one-pot dinner is easy enough for weeknights but special enough for dinner with friends or a fun date night at home!

That’s it! Seriously simple, right? You’ll be serving the most insanely flavorful comforting local Hawaii meal less than 1 hour later…and there will only be 1 pot to wash! 🙌🏼

Alternate Cooking Methods

I love braising this shoyu chicken in the oven, but you can also prepare this recipe in a slow cooker or Crockpot, or an electric pressure cooker like the Instant Pot. Check the Recipe Notes, below, for step-by-step guidance!

Serving Suggestions

Once the shoyu chicken is tender, simply serve plate lunch-style, alongside light and sticky Calrose rice and Mom’s mac salad. You can also serve with your favorite stir-fried veggies like cabbage or Simple Sautéed Baby Bok Choy (pictured!).

It’s pure local-style comfort food and a true taste of Hawai’i at home!

Close up of shoyu chicken plated in a floral-patterened blue dish over rice with bok choy. The chicken is garnished with sliced green onions & sesame seeds. The bowl sits atop a white surface, next to a blue linen napkin & gold flatware.
Serve shoyu chicken over rice, with a side of sautéed veggies, or with a scoop of Mom’s mac salad for the ultimate local-style meal!
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Shoyu chicken plated in a floral-patterened blue dish over rice with bok choy. The chicken is garnished with sliced green onions & sesame seeds. The bowl sits atop a white surface, next to a blue linen napkin, gold flatware, a small bowl of sliced green onion, & a second bowl of shoyu chicken.

Fall-Apart Tender Shoyu Chicken (Hawaiian Family Recipe)

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 4.8 from 20 reviews
  • Author: Jess Larson
  • Prep Time: 10 minutes
  • Cook Time: 45 minutes
  • Total Time: 55 minutes
  • Yield: serves 4-6 1x
  • Category: Main Dish, Chicken Recipe
  • Method: Stovetop, Braised
  • Cuisine: Hawaiian
Print Recipe

Description

Hawaiian Shoyu Chicken is pure local-style comfort food! Chicken thighs slowly simmer in a garlicky, gingery shoyu sauce until fall-apart tender.

Savory-sweet goodness, best served with a scoop of rice and mac salad. Baked, slow cooker and Instant Pot instructions provided in the Recipe Notes.

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Ingredients

Scale
  • 6 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs (about 2–3 pounds)
  • 1 cup water
  • ⅔ cup shoyu
  • ⅔ cup dark brown sugar
  • 4 green onions, thinly sliced
  • 5 cloves garlic, finely chopped or grated
  • 3-inch piece ginger, finely chopped or grated
  • optional: cornstarch slurry

Instructions

  1. Mix the shoyu braising liquid: Add the water, shoyu, brown sugar, green onions, garlic, and ginger to a bowl. Whisk to combine. Set aside or store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. Shoyu chicken braising liquid in a small mixing bowl with a whisk. The bowl sits atop a white surface.
  2. Braise the shoyu chicken: Pour the braising liquid into a heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven with a lid. Nestle the chicken thighs in the pot, submerging them in the shoyu braising liquid as much as possible. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce to low. Cover and simmer for 30-35 minutes, until the chicken is fall-apart tender and cooked through. Shoyu chicken assembled in a black dutch oven before braising. The dutch oven sits atop a white surface.
  3. Optional: Broil for texture: Preheat your oven’s broiler to its highest setting, ensuring an oven rack is positioned about 6 inches below the broiler. Transfer the chicken thighs to a small baking sheet. Place under the broiler for 4-5 minutes, rotating the baking sheet halfway through, until the chicken skin is crispy and caramelized. As the chicken broils, you can also thicken the braising liquid. Increase the heat under the pot to high. Boil 5-10 minutes, until reduced as desired. Broiled shoyu chicken thighs on a small Nordicware baking sheet, atop a white surface.
  4. Serve the shoyu chicken immediately alongside Calrose rice, sautéed bok choy and mac salad. Spoon the thickened shoyu sauce over the chicken and garnish with thinly sliced green onion as desired. Enjoy! Shoyu chicken in a black dutch oven atop a white surface. The chicken is garnished with sliced green onions & sesame seeds. The dutch oven is surrounded by a blue linen napkin & serving spoons, & 2 small bowls, one filled with rice & the second with sliced green onions.

Equipment

Notes

  • Shoyu: In Hawaii, soy sauce is most commonly called shoyu, the Japanese word for soy sauce. It’s a staple ingredient in Hawaiian kitchens. Aloha Shoyu is my go-to. Feel free to swap it out with tamari for a gluten-free dish.
  • Storage and reheating: Shoyu chicken stores incredibly well – it’s the type of recipe that gets even more flavorful as it sits! Transfer cooled shoyu chicken to an airtight container and store in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. Easily reheat on the stovetop or in the microwave until warmed through.
  • 10-Minute Meal Prep: You can eliminate all of the active work involved in this shoyu chicken recipe by prepping the shoyu braising liquid in advance. To meal prep, complete the following tasks, and at dinnertime, all you have to do is get the shoyu chicken on the stove – easy!
    • Mix the shoyu braising liquid according to Step 1 of Recipe Directions. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. (10 minutes active prep)
    • Optional: Marinate the chicken thighs: For even more flavorful shoyu chicken, you can let the chicken thighs soak in the shoyu sauce. Pour your prepped shoyu braising liquid over the chicken thighs and store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. At dinnertime, simply transfer to a pot and cook as directed in Steps 2-4 of Recipe Directions. Easy! (10 minutes active prep)
  • Alternate Cooking Methods:
    • OVEN-BRAISED SHOYU CHICKEN: Prep the recipe according to Steps 1-2, above. Rather than cooking on the stovetop, transfer the covered pot to a 350 degree F oven. Braise in the oven for 45 minutes – 1 hour, until the chicken is fall-apart tender. Complete the recipe according to Steps 3-4, above, and serve.
    • SLOW COOKER SHOYU CHICKEN: Prep the recipe according to Steps 1-2, above, assembling the shoyu chicken in your slow cooker. Slow cook on high for 3-4 hours or on low for 5-6 hours until the chicken is fall-apart tender. Finish as directed in Steps 3-4. If your slow cooker has a searing/browning feature, you can use it to thicken the braising liquid in the slow cooker as described in Step 3.
    • INSTANT POT SHOYU CHICKEN: Prep the recipe according to Steps 1-2, above, assembling the shoyu chicken in your Instant Pot. Cover and seal the Instant Pot. Cook the shoyu chicken on manual high pressure for 15 minutes. Carefully quick release by flicking the valve to its “venting” position. Switch the Instant Pot to its “Sauté” setting to thicken the sauce, and finish the chicken itself under the broiler as directed in Steps 3-4.

Nutrition

  • Serving Size:
  • Calories: 375
  • Sugar: 21.8 g
  • Sodium: 1125.4 mg
  • Fat: 6.1 g
  • Saturated Fat: 1.3 g
  • Trans Fat: 0 g
  • Carbohydrates: 24.5 g
  • Fiber: 0.4 g
  • Protein: 53.8 g
  • Cholesterol: 165.5 mg
Shoyu chicken plated in a floral-patterened blue dish over rice with bok choy. The chicken is garnished with sliced green onions & sesame seeds. The bowl sits atop a white surface, next to a blue linen napkin, gold flatware, a small bowl of sliced green onion, & a second bowl of shoyu chicken.

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