Chicken Shogayaki (Ginger-Soy Chicken)
鶏肉の生姜焼き · Toriniku no Shogayaki
By Aoi, licensed nutritionist · From a Japanese preschool lunch menu
Shogayaki, or "ginger-fried," is a Japanese home-cooking staple usually made with thin slices of pork. This version swaps in bite-sized pieces of chicken thigh, which stay juicy and are easy for small hands and mouths to manage. The marinade is just ginger, soy sauce and mirin - the mirin adds a gentle sweetness that softens the ginger, so even children who are wary of strong flavors tend to enjoy it. Baking on a tray instead of pan-frying keeps things hands-off and is how we handle big batches in the preschool kitchen.
Wheat-free, but uses soy sauce (made with wheat). Japanese school-lunch allergy menus usually allow it, so check with your doctor. How to read the labels
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Ingredients
Amounts for 1 child (1 serving). An adult counts as 2 servings.
One serving here is 1.5× the portion served to a child in a Japanese preschool, sized for Western appetites. An adult counts as two servings. Tap an ingredient to check it off.
Ingredients
- 75 gchicken thigh
Seasonings
- 0.3 gginger paste (tube)Grated ginger sold ready to use in a squeeze tube, a staple in Japanese kitchens. Japanese school lunch kitchens grate fresh ginger for its aroma, but for cooking at home Aoi says the tube works just fine. Tube pastes often contain added salt, oil and other ingredients, so check the label. Substitute: Use freshly grated ginger in the same amount. 1 teaspoon of paste is about 5 g.
- 2.7 gsoy sauce
- 2.7 gmirinMirin is a sweet Japanese rice seasoning that adds gentle sweetness and a glossy finish. Hon-mirin (true mirin) contains about 14% alcohol; "mirin-style seasoning" has little or no alcohol. Some alcohol can remain after short cooking. If you prefer no alcohol for children, use the substitute. Substitute: For each tablespoon of mirin, use 1 tablespoon water plus 1 to 2 teaspoons sugar.
About the Japanese ingredients in this recipe
- ginger paste (tube) (しょうがチューブ)
- Grated ginger sold ready to use in a squeeze tube, a staple in Japanese kitchens. Japanese school lunch kitchens grate fresh ginger for its aroma, but for cooking at home Aoi says the tube works just fine. Tube pastes often contain added salt, oil and other ingredients, so check the label. Substitute: Use freshly grated ginger in the same amount. 1 teaspoon of paste is about 5 g.
- mirin (みりん)
- Mirin is a sweet Japanese rice seasoning that adds gentle sweetness and a glossy finish. Hon-mirin (true mirin) contains about 14% alcohol; "mirin-style seasoning" has little or no alcohol. Some alcohol can remain after short cooking. If you prefer no alcohol for children, use the substitute. Substitute: For each tablespoon of mirin, use 1 tablespoon water plus 1 to 2 teaspoons sugar.
Directions
- 1
Cut the chicken into pieces of about 20 g each.
- 2
Combine the ginger, soy sauce and mirin, add the chicken and rub the marinade in well, then marinate in the refrigerator for at least 15 minutes.
- 3
Arrange the chicken on a baking tray and bake in a toaster oven (or an oven preheated to 200°C / 400°F) for about 15 minutes.
Nutrition
| Per | 1 serving | 1 adult serving | Your total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Energy | 150 kcal | 300 kcal | 150 kcal |
| Protein | 12.6 g | 25.2 g | 12.6 g |
| Fat | 10.6 g | 21.3 g | 10.6 g |
| Carbohydrates | 1.4 g | 2.7 g | 1.4 g |
| Fiber | 0 g | 0 g | 0 g |
| Salt equivalent | 0.6 g | 1.2 g | 0.6 g |
| Calcium | 6 mg | 12 mg | 6 mg |
| Iron | 0.5 mg | 0.9 mg | 0.5 mg |
| Potassium | 228 mg | 456 mg | 228 mg |
| Energy | Protein | Fat | Carbs | Fiber | Salt equiv. | Calcium | Iron | Potassium | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 serving | 150 kcal | 12.6 g | 10.6 g | 1.4 g | 0 g | 0.6 g | 6 mg | 0.5 mg | 228 mg |
| 1 adult serving | 300 kcal | 25.2 g | 21.3 g | 2.7 g | 0 g | 1.2 g | 12 mg | 0.9 mg | 456 mg |
Values are per serving (1.5× the Japanese preschool portion); an adult serving is double. They were calculated by a licensed Japanese nutritionist using the Standard Tables of Food Composition in Japan. "Salt equivalent" is sodium × 2.54, the standard Japanese measure. Allergen flags cover egg, milk and wheat only and come from the nutritionist's records. Soy sauce and miso are made with wheat but are usually allowed on Japanese wheat-free school menus, so check with your doctor.
