Ono Ono Chicken Thighs on the Big Green Egg
“Ono” means “good” in Hawaiian. For emphasis, “ono ono” means “very good.” This is one of my family’s favorite recipes for teriyaki chicken. Once you make chicken like this at home, you may not be able to order teriyaki chicken at any restaurant.
Usually done in the oven, it is even better on the barbecue. The ceramic cooker keeps moisture in and the smoke adds an additional layer of flavor.
You can use any cut of chicken you like. The marinade can be used for chicken, beef or vegetables. I like using it on squash, asparagus or string beans.
Serves 4 to 6 people
Method
Indirect grilling. On the Big Green Egg, the “Platesetter” accessory is needed. Other ceramic cookers have similar accessories to create indirect grilling. On non-ceramic charcoal grills, set up for indirect grilling using a drip pan in the center, and pile the coals all around the outer diameter. On gas grills, place a drip pan in the center (you can add any liquid in there, water or fruit juice works well), heat the grill to “screaming hot” turning all burners fully-on, then shut the center section burners off and you are ready to cook.
Temperature: 350 to 400 degrees
2 Lbs chicken thighs or your favorite parts, I also like breasts. . . .
The Marinade
1/2 cup shoyu (soy sauce), I use Kikkoman low sodium
1/2 cup sugar
1 Tbs sake (Japanese rice wine). You can substitute sherry. (Possibly any other type of booze you like, tequila, whisky, whiskey, beer – but – I have not tried that. An experiment is in order!)
1 Tbs sesame oil – do not substitute. The sesame oil creates a unique flavor.
1 Tbs grated ginger root, to taste
3 cloves chopped garlic, to taste
Instructions
Put all ingredients into a mixing bowl and whisk around until the sugar dissolves. Taste the marinade and adjust to your liking. I always add more garlic and ginger. (I add ginger until it makes my mouth tingle.
Marinate the chicken parts overnight in a zip lock bag, or what-ever method you like.
Because of the oil and sugar in the marinade, it is best to use indirect grilling. Get the fire going, and when the temperature stabilizes, lay the chicken down, skin side up. No need to baste or turn the pieces.
Cook until done, until the chicken reaches an internal temperature of about 170 degrees.
I have not used any smoking wood chips when making this recipe, there’s tons of flavor from the marinade, and the gentle oak smoke from the Royal Oak lump does not over-power the flavors.
Isn’t the color amazing? Cook until the safety zone is reached, about 160 to 170 degrees F.
Mahalo, aloha.
Original source: “Still Many More of Our Favorite Recipes, Island of Maui,” published by Maui Extension Homemakers’ Council, Second Edition, 1974. Note, this is out of print, but used copies are available from Amazon.com and others. The original cover price was $5.99 from the Longs drug store. You might want to find other recipe collections from the same group, this recipe is a classic dish in Hawaii and other places.
Bonus Section – Trimming Fat from Thighs
I decided I wanted to try my hand at trimming the thighs “competition style.” I need more practice, but this is what I did. It took a long time to do all this surgery, but it was worth it, since there is a lot of un-needed fat that you can throw away.
NOTE
If this process bothers you, you may want to think of this as a biology lab session. All this surgery is not for the faint of heart – and stomach.
Thighs from the supermarket had this weird flap of extra skin. Yeah, I do love eating chicken skin, but I decided to trim it off.
After trimming the excess, carefully pull the skin away from the meat, and scrape the pasty fat away.
I used a spoon and a paring knife to scrape the fat from the inside surface of the skin. Keep scraping, but try to avoid tearing the skin.
Once the excess is scraped off, stretch and wrap the skin back on the thigh meat. I removed about a tablespoon or so of this excess stuff from each thigh. This is what it looked like. The thighs should all look the same and look like little pillows, or puffy rounded rectangles.
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Comments
Wayne Yoshida
7 years ago #4
YES! JD is excellent with this recipe , "Paul \ - the best part indeed is the ration for the cook!
Wayne Yoshida
7 years ago #3
@Paul Waters, thanks for your comment. And yes, I suspect chicken in the States could be fatter, as you can see from the picture. I suppose I could start using free range, all natural chickens. But, my inspiration usually comes from what is on sale at the super market!
Wayne Yoshida
7 years ago #2
Thank you for the example from the Kitchen Mason, Catalina \ - In addition to the change from sake to tequila, I wonder how it would be with honey instead of sugar . . .
Wayne Yoshida
7 years ago #1
Yes Dean Owen, mirin is probably better, but sometimes difficult to find. I want to try it with tequila...