Hibachi Chicken and Shrimp

I’m reposting this recipe that was originally on my food-wasting blog, as it’s been probably the most popular thing I ever posted there!  Apparently there is a great demand on Google for Hibachi recipes.  It’s not really an authentic Hibachi recipe, as I think that would only use soy sauce and maybe some oil with the meat and vegetables. Regardless, it’s pretty delicious, and it tastes a lot like the Hibachi dishes we’ve eaten out. I have to apologize for the vagueness of the directions, though. I kind of made this up after eating Hibachi in a restaurant, so the directions are in my own words, not the lovely clear words of a cookbook author.

I use sweet onions and fresh zucchini when I make this, but a lot of other vegetables would work too(clean our your veggie drawer and avoid some food waste!). And I generally use chicken breasts and shrimp, but you could use other meats or seafood, and you can use boneless chicken thighs instead of breasts.

Hibachi Chicken and Shrimp

1 pound chicken breasts(or thighs), cut into 1 inch chunks
1/4-1/2 pound of shrimp, peeled
1 medium sweet onion, cut into chunks
2 small zucchini, cut into chunks

2 cups cooked brown rice(you could use white, but we like brown better)

Marinade/Sauce

1/2 cup soy sauce
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup water
2 tablespoons sesame seeds
1 tablespoon sugar
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon ground ginger
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Mix all marinade ingredients together and pour half over chicken(don’t marinate the shrimp, if you’re using them). Let marinate in the refrigerator at least one hour or overnight. Reserve the other half of marinade to use as sauce.

In a large frying pan, heat 1 tablespoon of oil and add chicken and onions. Saute until onions is tender and chicken is nearly cooked. Add zucchini(and shrimp, if using) and cook, stirring often, until zucchini is tender-crisp and shrimp is pink. Pour about 1/4 cup of reserved sauce into the pan and cook and stir until all ingredients are coated. Remaining sauce may be stirred into rice if desired. Serve the rice onto dinner plates and top with chicken, shrimp and vegetables.

I actually grill my chicken and then cut it into chunks before I add it to the pan just because I like the texture of grilled chicken. Cooking the chicken on a gas grill is hardly authentic Hibachi, but hey, so is marinating it and so is using a sauce that has 9 ingredients. I’m obviously not terribly concerned about authenticity!