Why You'll Love this Recipe

Crispy Chicken Teriyaki Bites are juicy, crunch, and just a hint spicy. Lightly breaded chicken bites are coated in a homemade teriyaki sauce, so good you'll likely be choosing this over take out! Made with whole ingredients, without sacrificing flavor, this recipe can be prepped in stages and then refrigerated until you are ready to fry the chicken.

The chicken bites are juicy and tender, and the sauce can easily be made more or less spicy depending on your preference.

Ingredient Notes

all ingredients for teriyaki chicken bites laid out.

Boneless Skinless Chicken Thighs: Juicy, flavorful, and inexpensive, chicken thighs are just the best. Boneless skinless chicken breasts or chicken tenders can be used as well.
Soy Sauce or Liquid Aminos: Salt and a savory flavor, soy sauce or liquid aminos make up the base of your homemade teriyaki sauce.
Sambal Oelek: A classic spicy chili paste. We always keep a jar on hand for adding flavor and spice to our favorite asian dishes. This adds spice, but not a lot is used, so the dish is not overly spicy. Add more or less depending on your preferences.
Brown Sugar: You can use light brown sugar or dark brown sugar here.
Rice Wine Vinegar: Rice wine vinegar or rice vinegar has a more subtle acidic flavor compared to tradtional white vinegar, but still gives the sauce a nice pop. Mirin can be used as a substitute.
Sesame Oil: Toasted sesame oil or regular, this really gives at home dishes a punch of flavor. It's strong though, so take care when measuring.
Fresh Ginger: I like to buy a huge hand of fresh ginger and then peel and grate for later use. Having frozen ginger on hand already measured out, ensures I use it often! The flavor is so fresh and lemony.
Cornstarch: Adding cornstarch to the flour coating helps it to crisp up.
Spices: The more flavor the better, and paprika and garlic powder season the chicken coating.

See recipe card below for a full list of ingredients.

How to Make Crispy Teriyaki Chicken Bites

Step 1. Begin by preparing your sauce. In a small mixing bowl, combine soy sauce, brown sugar, rice wine vinegar, sambal oelek, garlic, and sesame oil. Stir well to combine and set to the side.

Step 2. Cut chicken thighs into bite sized pieces.

Step 3. Place in a medium sized bowl and cover with ⅓ cup of the prepared sauce mixture. Allow chicken to marinate for at least 30 minutes and up to 24 hours.

Step 4. Once the chicken is marinated, beat one egg and pour over top of chicken. Mix well to coat.

close up of bowl with coating mixture for chicken.

Step 5. In a separate bowl, combine ingredients for crispy coating, including flour, cornstarch, baking powder, paprika, garlic powder, salt, and pepper.

spicy teriyaki chicken before it is cooked.

Step 6. Coat chicken pieces in flour mixture, it will be very sticky.

Step 7. In a deep skillet, add ½ inch of cooking oil over medium high heat. Once oil is hot, begin adding chicken, working in batches. Flip pieces occasionally to ensure even cooking. The chicken is done when it is golden brown all around.

crispy fried chicken pieces on a paper towel.

Step 8. Once cooked, transfer chicken pieces to a paper towel lined plate to drain off excess oil.

teriyaki sauce after being reduced in pan.

Step 9. Pour remaining teriyaki sauce in a small saucepan over low heat and allow to thicken slightly. Pour sauce over cooked chicken and enjoy.

Recipe Tips

You'll want to marinate the chicken bites for at least 30 minutes, but they get even better from a longer marinade. I suggest 12-24 hours.
On that note, this recipe may seem like a lot of steps, but if you prep ahead, it's not bad at all. Prepare the sauce the night before, and pour a portion over top the chicken pieces and place in the fridge to marinate overnight. This will make them taste amazing and half of the work is already down.
You may want to double the sauce. This a great idea if you want the chicken pieces to be extra thoroughly coated or if you want to have extra sauce for your rice or vegetables.
It may seem like there is not enough flour coating for the chicken pieces, but don't fret. It will turn out! Simply shake the chicken bites in the coating as evenly as possible, and watch the hot oil do its magic in frying these up nice and crispy.
Make sure the oil is very hot before adding in the chicken pieces. This will help the chicken brown quickly and help ensure the coating is extra crispy.
Because the chicken pieces are cut relatively small, the chicken cooks through by the time the coating is a rich golden brown. If you are concerned, temp a few of the larger pieces to see if they are cooked through. The internal temperature of chicken should be 165 degrees fahrenheit.
This teriyaki sauce be used with other meats besides chicken thighs. Use this homemade spicy teriyaki sauce with chicken wings, drumsticks, chicken breasts, etc. It would even be great on fish and shrimp.

What to Serve with Teriyaki Chicken

The way I serve this spicy teriyaki chicken is in a sort of chicken bowl situation. With a grain, veggies, and toppings all in one.

Rice: Easy to make and great for enjoying every last drop of the spicy teriyaki sauce. Rice noodles are great as well, or even cauliflower rice.
Veggies: Pair teriyaki chicken with fresh veggies like cucumbers or sauteed vegetables like zucchini, broccoli, or green beans. For even more flavor try roasted broccoli or garlic green beans. Air Fryer Edamame are delicious too.
Toppings: Top with lots of fresh herbs like cilantro and green onions. You can even add additional spice from Thai Cucumber Sauce, chilis, more sambal oelek, or sriracha. Sesame seeds are great as well.