Chicken (We used a grill pack filled with different cuts of chicken)
BRINE
2 cups water
1 cup light brown sugar (We used regular)
½ head garlic, unpeeled
4 slices fresh ginger root, gently bashed to open up. (We ended up using jarred ginger, because we didn’t have fresh)
2 tablespoons kosher salt
8 sprigs fresh thyme
GLAZE
2 cups teriyaki sauce
¼ cup honey
1 large (1-inch) piece fresh ginger root, sliced and bashed to open up (We ended up using jarred ginger, because we didn’t have fresh)
1 head garlic, halved crosswise
1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil, plus ½ cup
Freshly ground black pepper
Scallion threads, for garnish
Toasted sesame seeds, for garnish
Instructions
Make your brine. Combine water, brown sugar, garlic, ginger, salt and thyme in a large resealable bag and mix to dissolve your sugar. We ended up using a glass cake pan with a lid.
Rinse your chicken, pat dry with paper towels. Add to brine for a couple hours in the refrigerator. You can shake it up every once in awhile to really coat the chicken.
When you’re ready – preheat your grill on low-medium heat – not too hot!
Make your teriyaki glaze in a small saucepan, over medium-heat. Combine teriyaki sauce, honey, ginger, garlic, and one teaspoon of sesame oil. Simmer until rich and slightly reduced.
Remove chicken from brine and pat it dry. Toss the brine, you won’t use it again. Add chicken to large bowl, drizzle with ¼ cup toasted sesame oil and season with fresh ground black pepper.
Toss to coat and grill on low-medium heat for up 17-20 minutes per side until cooked through. You are going to baste with the teriyaki glaze only the last 5-7 minutes of cooking. This is a key to cooking with sugary glazes – cook the meat slow and low and then only baste toward the ends – otherwise the sugars easily burn on high heat.
You can garnish with scallions and toasted sesame seeds. If you cut the scallions on a bias and soak in ice water they curl up all artsy.