Chicken Yakitori Skewers

For me, it's always exciting to learn and try to cook different kind of food. It may come from different country, different culture or using different cooking method.

I opened my old recipe book 'Asian Appetizers', page by page... just for watering my mind with their beautiful food photos, and I stuck on a page where a picture of yakitori looks so tempting. My eyes quickly scrolled down the ingredient list... yes! All of them are available in my fridge and in my kitchen cupboard.
Checking the method... oh, it's pretty similar with making sate.

In the evening, a bunch of chicken yakitori were ready on our dining table.
hmm... not for the appetizer, but as one of our dinner side dish.

I got the recipe from an appetizer recipe book, but I think it's not wrong if we eat it as side dish like normally we serve and eat sate. What do you think?
Then... I managed to find out more about yakitori.

Yakitori (焼き鳥) are grilled chicken skewers made from bite sized pieces of meat from all different parts of the chicken, such as the breasts, thighs, skin, liver and other innards. Usually made to order and cooked over charcoal, yakitori is a popular, inexpensive dish commonly enjoyed together with a glass of beer. The best yakitori is served at specialty restaurants, known as yakitori-ya, but it can also be found at many other types of restaurants across Japan, such as izakaya, and at festival food stands. Source : Japan-Guide

Learning more about yakitori, I found out that actually there are many variants of yakitori, and they're classified by the type of chicken that is used.
The popular one is Negima.

Negima (ねぎま) is one of the most popular types of yakitori and consists of pieces of chicken (usually thigh meat) skewered with pieces of leek in between.

So.. yeahhh... based on that classification, my homemade yakitori can be named as negima.
Other variants are Momo, Tsukene, Torikawa, Tebasaki, Rebo, Nankotsu and also there are some variants of non-chicken or vegetarian yakitori. You can find out more information in the Japan-Guide website.
Trust me, it's very interesting.

...Facts about Yakitori

• Yakitori is an inexpensive and informal food that is easily found at specialized yakitori-ya.
• They are sold by the stick or a set of two sticks, and cost around 100-200 yen per stick. 
• Many restaurants also offer combination plates with multiple types of yakitori (moriawase). 
• When ordering yakitori, you usually can choose whether you want your skewers seasoned with a sweet and savory yakitori sauce (tare) or with salt (shio). 
• Yakitori is meant to be eaten with your hands. You may directly eat them off the skewer or use your chopsticks to remove the meat from the skewer before consuming it. 

Chicken Yakitori Skewers
Ingredients :
1/2 cup (125 ml) soy sauce
1/2 cup (125 ml) sake or dry sherry
2 tsp sugar
1 tbsp grated fresh ginger
2 tbsp snipped chives
1.5 lbs (700gr) boneless chicken breast fillets
12 green onion (scallions), dark green tops removed, cut into lengths
10 bamboo skewers, soaked in water for 10 minutes, then drained
Oil, for brushing
Sesame seeds
Soy sauce, for dipping

1. Place the soy sauce, sake, sugar, ginger and chives in a screw-top jar and shake well to mix.
2. Trim the chicken breasts of any fat and membranes and cut into bite-sized cubes, about 1.5 inches (4 cm). Place the chicken cubes in a shallow glass or ceramic dish, pour the marinade over the cubes, cover and refrigerate for 1 hour.
3. Preheat a broiler (grill) or charcoal grill. Drain the chicken and thread the cubes onto skewers alternately with the green onions. Brush with the olive oil and cook until golden, about 5 minutes per side.