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 & mac salad. Baked, slow cooker & Instant Pot instructions provided in the Recipe Notes.
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
- for serving, as desired: rice, Hawaiian mac salad, sautéed cabbage or bok choy, etc.
Instructions
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- Serve the shoyu chicken immediately alongside rice and mac salad. Spoon the thickened shoyu sauce over the chicken and garnish with thinly sliced green onion as desired. Enjoy!
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, and finish the shoyu chicken as directed in Steps 3-4.