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Torijaga (Simmered Chicken and Potatoes)
Serves 2–3 · About 40 min (10 min of this is just letting it sit with the heat off)
Chicken thigh, potatoes, onion and carrot simmered in a sweet-salty soy sauce and sugar broth. A home-style dish like nikujaga, made with chicken.
① Cut the vegetables→② Cut the chicken→③ Cook the chicken→④ Stir-fry the vegetables→⑤ Add seasonings and simmer→⑥ Turn off the heat and let sit
What to buy
Meat
Vegetables
Seasonings & dry goods
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How to make it
1
Cut the vegetables
- Peel the potatoes and cut each into 4. If there are sprouts (eyes), dig them out with the corner of the knife. Where the skin is green, peel thickly until you can't see any green (sprouts and green skin can make you sick if you eat them)
- Soak the cut potatoes in a bowl of water for 5 minutes, then drain in a colander
- Cut the onion in half lengthwise, then cut each half into 4 wedges (8 in total)
- Peel the carrot and cut it diagonally into 2–3 cm pieces, turning it as you cut
How to tell it's doneAll the vegetables are cut, and the potatoes are drained.
Be carefulCut the vegetables first. Don't cut vegetables on the cutting board you used for raw chicken.
2
Cut the chicken
- Cut off the yellowish, squishy fat on the edges of the chicken
- Cut into pieces about 4 cm in size (about 8–10 pieces from 1 thigh)
- After cutting, wash your hands, knife and cutting board with dish soap
How to tell it's doneYou have chunks that are all about the same size.
Be carefulChicken is soft and slippery. Put it skin side down and cut by moving the knife back and forth in long strokes.
3
Cook the chicken
- Heat 1/2 tbsp vegetable oil in a pot over medium heat
- Lay the chicken skin side down and cook for about 2 minutes
- Flip and cook for about 1 minute more
How to tell it's doneThe skin is light golden, and the whole surface of the meat has turned whitish. The inside can still be raw (it will cook through when simmered later).
Be carefulFat splatters from the chicken skin. Keep your face away.
4
Add the vegetables and stir-fry
- Add all the potatoes, carrot and onion
- Mix with a spatula, turning from the bottom, to coat everything in oil
How to tell it's doneThe potatoes are coated in oil and look glossy, and the corners are becoming a little see-through.
5
Add seasonings and simmer
- Add 300 ml water, 1/2 tsp dashi granules, 1 1/2 tbsp sugar, 2 tbsp sake and 2 tbsp mirin
- Bring to a boil over medium heat. Scoop out the brownish foam (scum) that comes up with a ladle and throw it away
- Add 2 1/2 tbsp soy sauce
- Cut foil into a circle a little smaller than the pot and put it directly on top of the ingredients (a drop lid). Simmer about 15 min on medium-low heat
How to tell it's doneA bamboo skewer (or a chopstick) goes easily into the biggest potato. Cut the biggest piece of chicken: it's white inside, not pink, and the juice is clear.
Be carefulLift the foil now and then to check. If the broth has almost run out, add 50 ml water. If you leave it, the bottom will burn.
Be carefulBoiling broth is very hot. Use cooking chopsticks to lift the foil, and don't hold your hand over the pot.
6
Turn off the heat and let sit
- Turn off the heat, take off the foil, put the pot lid on and leave for 10 minutes (the flavor soaks in as it cools)
- Taste it. If the flavor is weak, add soy sauce 1 tsp at a time and warm again over low heat for 1 minute
ReadyThe potatoes have turned light brown, and a little broth is left at the bottom of the pot. Serve in bowls with the broth.
Be carefulFor leftovers, once they cool a little (within 1 hour), move them to a container with a lid and put them in the fridge. Don't leave them out in the pot at room temperature for long. Eat within 2 days, and reheat until the center of the chicken is hot.
📚 Learn more about this dish
🥬 Ingredient guide
🔪 Cutting & cooking tips
If it didn't work out
The potatoes fell apart and turned mushyIt kept boiling hard on high heat in step 5. Next time lower to medium-low heat once it boils. You can also choose long, oval potatoes (May Queen), which hold their shape better.
The potatoes are hardIt didn't simmer long enough. Simmer 5 more minutes at a time until a bamboo skewer goes in easily.
The chicken is tough and dryIt cooked on high heat too long. Next time turn to medium-low heat once it boils. Use thigh, not breast.
The chicken is pink insideThe pieces were too big, or it didn't simmer long enough. If pink is left, put the foil back, simmer on medium-low heat for 3–5 minutes more, and cut again to check.
The flavor is weakIt didn't sit long enough in step 6, or it needs more soy sauce. Add 1 tsp at a time, tasting each time.
The bottom burnedThe broth ran out. Don't scrape the burnt part; move only the food on top to the bowls. Next time check the amount of broth partway through.
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