Spice up your meal with juicy and tender soy sauce chicken with sweet and savory sauce. A flavorful chicken dish infused with spices to serve with rice or noodles.
Get ready for tender, juicy chicken thighs with a sweet and savory sauce.
This recipe for homemade soy sauce chicken will help you come up with a savory, with a hint of sweetness, tender chicken perfect for weeknight meals.
Marinate chicken thighs overnight to get them ready to cook the next day for a flavorful dish to enjoy.
A whole chicken may not be practical for everyone, so here is an alternative with the spice, savory, chickeny flavor you will get from the whole shebang.
Whether you are in the mood for steamed rice or noodles, soy sauce chicken goes well with either.
This dish is inspired by the Chinese soy sauce chicken at dim sum places.
I do not live near any dim sum places so I give recipes a go four or five times with a few tweaks here and there using ingredients available to me.
How often do you try recipes and find yourself personalizing them to your taste?
This soy sauce chicken recipe is no different to my trials and tribulations in the kitchen.
I remember the original recipes I have tried called for rock sugar which I just did not have. The soy sauce I had was Japanese-style and that affected the taste that I was looking for.
Well, in the end, the resulting dish was not far from what I remember having in Chinese restaurants.
A less labor-intensive approach to cooking the Cantonese soy sauce chicken dish at home.
Ingredients and substitutions
Chicken thighs – I used dark chicken thighs for this recipe because they go well with sauces, are easier to cook and are less likely to be overcooked. In addition, they are a more affordable cut and less fiddly to cook than a whole bird.
Light soy sauce – Added for the saltiness, umami (I always hear that) and soy sauce flavor. It is regular soy sauce. For this recipe, I used the Kikkoman brand with less salt.
Dark soy sauce – This is the type of soy sauce that adds sweetness and color to the chicken. I used Lee Kum Kee dark soy sauce for reference.
Shaoxing wine – Adds flavor and tenderizes the meat. Substitute with sake or dry sherry.
Toasted sesame oil – Adds nutty fragrance and flavor.
Sugar – Muscovado, brown or white sugar are more readily available compared to the rock sugar that traditional recipes call for. The flavor of this dish will not be too different when rock sugar is used.
Aromatics – knob ginger, garlic and spring onion – The key aromatics that make the difference.
Spices – Bay leaves, star anise, cinnamon stick and cloves – These are the basic spices commonly used but feel free to add more spices as you go along.
How to make soy sauce chicken thighs
This recipe has two stages, the first is marination and the second is the cooking.
Marinate the soy sauce chicken
Marination is essential for a flavorful chicken.
1. In a small saucepan, combine light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, sesame oil, sugar, aromatics and spices.
2. Turn the heat on to low and heat the marinade until the sugar is dissolved.
3. Let cool.
4. Place the chicken thighs in a zip lock bag and pour the marinade over the chicken. Make sure that the chicken is covered by the marinade.
5. Cover the chicken and place it in the fridge to marinate overnight.
Cook the soy sauce chicken
1. Take the chicken out of the fridge. Let it come to room temperature.
2. In a medium or appropriate size pan, add the chicken with all the marinade.
3. Add enough water to cover the chicken about two-thirds.
4. Turn the heat to medium-high and let it come to a boil.
5. Turn the heat down to low and simmer for 20 to 25 minutes or until the chicken is fork-tender.
6. Put the lid back on.
7. Leave for half an hour or until ready to eat.
Note on the braising liquid:
Thicken the liquid but take the aromatics out first.
Do you like your sauce thick or a little runny?
I like my sauce a bit runny but if you prefer a thicker sauce add a cornstarch slurry.
Let the liquid come up to a simmer, turn it off and add the cornstarch slurry of 1 tablespoon water and 1/2 tablespoon cornstarch.
Stir briskly and check the desired consistency.
Tips and Notes
- Feel free to use chicken wings, drummets, drumsticks or legs. Adjust the cooking time and check for tenderness accordingly.
- It takes around 25 minutes to cook the wings, 35 minutes for drumsticks and 45-50 minutes for legs.
- Thicken the sauce with 1 tablespoon water and 1/2 tablespoon cornstarch slurry if you prefer thick sauce.
- Marinate the chicken overnight for a flavorful chicken.
- Be sure to let the chicken thighs come to room temperature before cooking to not shock the meat with high heat.
How to serve soy sauce chicken
Cantonese restaurants serve this over rice and steamed vegetables.
You can do the same at home.
Slice the chicken into pieces and serve on top of steamed rice or noodles with some vegetables. Serve with the braising liquid which by now has reduced into a sauce.
You can also serve the chicken thighs over rice like we do, eat with vegetables on the side and a drizzle of the braising liquid.
A drizzle of chilli oil would make amp the flavor of the dish.
How to store leftovers
Store leftovers in a container with a tight-fitting lid keep them in the fridge and reheat them properly.
More Chicken Recipes:
Easy Chicken Salad is one recipe to keep in your pocket for a quick side dish or as a light meal.
Chicken in Cream Sauce is a great way to use up leftover chicken.
Filipino Chicken Curry a Filipino-style rich creamy chicken curry.
Chicken Adobo is a popular Filipino chicken dish made by simmering chicken meat in soy sauce and vinegar marinade with lots of garlic.
Laab Gai or Spicy Chicken Salad is a Thai cuisine-inspired meat salad with lots of herbs and fish sauce-lime dressing.
Watch this short cooking video showing how to make soy sauce chicken thighs.
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Let’s get cooking!
Soy Sauce Chicken
Equipment
- 1 saucepan small
- 1 pot/saucepan medium
- 1 spoon
Ingredients
- 400 grams chicken thighs
- 1 cup light soy sauce
- 1 tbsp dark soy sauce
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
- 2 tbsp Shaoxing wine
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1 inch ginger knob, crushed
- 1 clove garlic crushed
- 2-3 spring onions
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 star anise
- 3 inch cinnamon stick
- 1/8 tsp fennel seeds
- 2 cloves
Instructions
- In a small saucepan, combine light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, sesame oil, sugar, aromatics and spices.
- Turn the heat on to low and heat the marinade until the sugar is dissolved. Let cool.
- Place the chicken thighs in a zip-lock bag and pour the marinade over the chicken.
- Close the bag and place it in the fridge to marinate overnight.
- Take the chicken out of the fridge and let it come to room temperature.
- In a medium or appropriate size pan, add the chicken with all the marinade.
- Add enough water to cover the chicken about two-thirds.
- Turn the heat to medium-high and let it come to a boil.
- Turn the heat down to low and simmer for 20 to 25 minutes or until the chicken is fork-tender.
- Put the lid back on for 30 minutes or until ready to serve.
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