Bacon Wrapped Teriyaki Chicken Legs

Teriyaki Drumsticks

That’s right folks, you heard it here first. This is a Bacon Wrapped Teriyaki Chicken Legs recipe and it can be baked or grilled to perfection. I put this together in a way that is absolutely fool proof so, it’s easy and delicious. You can make it from scratch, using my Teriyaki Sauce recipe or you can pick up the bottled marinade that I’m going to recommend down below. Either way, you’re going to love this recipe.

Chicken Legs

One thing I’d like to talk about in this post is the cost of chicken legs. They are ridiculously inexpensive. I purchased the 5 pounds that you see in these pics and video tutorial for just $6.49 and even that, for me, was more expensive than the usual price. Most of the time I can get the same amount of legs for less than $1 per pound, where I shop. That’s 4 Legs for a dollar. It’s the insanely priced chicken wings that have driven the legs price down and I’m thankful for it because the cost of wings are practically $1 each, these days. The first person to open a drumsticks restaurant that offers amazing wing sauce recipes is going to bank!

Mr. Yoshida’s sweet Teriyaki original gourmet sauce.

Teriyaki Chicken Sauce

If you’re a fan of Teriyaki sauce, you are going to love this bottled recipe. I’ve been using it for years because it’s thick and has so much flavor. I have a really good recipe that’s a little different but easily just as good if you’d like to try your hand at making it from scratch but I highly recommend this brand. I’m not affiliated with them in anyway but here’s a link for Yoshida’s on Amazon , if you’re interested in purchasing some for your self. It’s about $3 dollars per bottle. I’ve also seen it on the shelf at Walmart so, you might be able to find it at your local grocery store as well.

On a side note, if you wanted to marinate the wings over night in a puddle of this sauce you’ll achieve better results. You might even want to consider simmering them in the sauce on the stove for 20 minutes before grilling or baking. You’ll be surprised what an amazing difference it will make. Just be sure to adjust the cooking time until the sauce is caramelized.

Other than the obvious, this sauce is great with rice and noodles, too, not just just meats and stir fry’s.

Chopped green onion, Jalapeno and sweet peppers.

Topping

For a little more kick, color and flavor, I like to chop up some fresh green onion, jalapeno and sweet peppers. Half way through the baking I sprinkle them over the top. If I were grilling, I wouldn’t add them until I was completely done cooking the legs and got all of them added to a serving tray, first, before topping.

Bacon Wrapped Teriyaki Chicken Legs Ingredients:

5 lbs Chicken Legs, 12 to 14 piece’s
1 lbs Bacon
1 1/2 cups Teriyaki Sauce Marinade, Mr. Yoshida’s
1 Jalapeno Pepper, chopped
1 Red Sweet Pepper, chopped
1 Green Onion, chopped

Be sure to watch and follow the directions in the Bacon Wrapped Teriyaki Chicken Legs video tutorial and bake at 400° Fahrenheit for 30 minutes, flip and bake for another 20, then serve..

Yakitori Chicken

Easy Yakitori Chicken

One thing I’ve learned about Yakitori Chicken, it isn’t just Shish Kebabs you find at your local Chinese buffet. In fact, it isn’t Chinese at all, it’s Japanese. Much like Sushi, American Chinese restaurants are just adapting adding to their menu’s because of the popularity they’ve gained over the years. Truthfully, both the Sushi and Yakitori aren’t prepared very well and, are generally, “okay” at best. If you’ve decided you like or even hate these recipes from a buffet, understand that your opinion is most likely skewed and based on your lack of experience. The food hasn’t been prepared right. Therefore, most folks wouldn’t know an authentic recipe if it hit them in the face and wiggled. So, since that’s what you’re probably used to, I’m going to help you stomp out a buffet style recipe but with some more pep.

Raw Yakitori Chicken ingredients: liver, hearts and chicken thigh meat.

Traditional Yakitori Chicken

There truly is an art to Yakitori Chicken. One of my favorite things about the Japanese culture is their dedication to perfection. Even famous chefs like Gordon Ramsey are intimidated by sushi and noodle chefs and, I’d be willing to bet, Yakitori chefs are no different. Yakitori Chicken is barbecue that uses the entire bird and doesn’t leave anything to waste. Though I don’t use a whole chicken in this recipe, I’ve picked out a few things that are commonly used for it. Boneless chicken thigh meat, chicken liver and hearts. Each are prepared just a little differently.

Skewed Yakitori Chicken thighs, liver and hearts, ready for the oven.

Yakitori Chicken Skewers

I like to use disposable wooden skewers for the Yakitori Chicken, instead of metal, because they stay cool and make it easier to flip back and forth. The Chicken thighs are cut into bite size pieces and marinated. I like to use my Teriyaki Sauce recipe because it’s practically the same thing as basic Yakitori sauce. The main difference is just the quantities of each ingredient vary but this is a really great and simple alternative to make this recipes easy. I brush olive oil on the hearts and liver portions to keep them moist. There’s also a splash of liquid smoke but if you’re going to grill, you won’t need it but you should salt and pepper to taste.

Yakitori Chicken Ingredients:

4 Boneless Chicken Thighs
1 lbs Chicken Liver
1 lbs Chicken Hearts
1/3 cup Teriyaki Sauce
2 tbsp Olive Oil
1/2 tsp Liquid Smoke
Salt and Pepper to taste

I use Himalayan Salt and White Pepper. You’ll also need about a dozen Skewers to make this Yakitori Chicken on the Grill or baked in the oven at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for 30 minutes.

Teriyaki Beef Sticks

Easy Homemade Beef Sticks

I’ve recently discovered my love for these Teriyaki Beef Sticks. I started purchasing some 5″ sticks at the front counter register of one of my local gas station. 2 for $1 sounded like a good deal to me and before I knew it, I was hooked. I started buying them buy the tens. I quickly discovered, however, that I didn’t like the other brands when I purchased them at the grocery store. Plus the price, for some reason, was much higher, which is crazy to me because convenient store prices are usually way higher than grocery stores. So, I got obsessed with making my own and I began searching for a recipe that was consistently delicious and up to my specific tastes.

Over 3.5 lbs Beef Tenderloin on sale for less than $20.

How to make Snack Beef Sticks

It doesn’t matter if you like a more traditional Beef Sticks recipe or one that’s spicier than this Teriyaki recipe. I’ve got ingredients you can add for both. Even though I use my Teriyaki Sauce recipe for this recipe, it can tend to be expensive to put together. So, instead, I highly recommend using Veri Veri Teriyaki Sauce. I already tried it out for you and I think the results were amazing.

What’s really important is that you know to use a Beef Tenderloin instead of just ground hamburger. It is a tad bit more expensive but at my local grocery it was less than $1 dollar more per pound. Interestingly enough, however, a Beef Tenderloin this size, at a different grocer, was $50 bucks. From what I understand, it was more expensive there because the cut was consistently portioned and the same size; which is great for a Beef Wellington but notice how my tenderloin is tapered. That’s where I’m saving money and it’s about a 60% difference in savings. Another 5 to 10 dollars in ingredients and I can make about $60 worth of Snack Sticks.

I’ve seen 12″ Beef Sticks sell for $2.50 a piece at most convenient stores and that’s just where I live. I’m sure they’re twice that much back east in places like New York, where the inflation is hiked way up, but my video tutorial is going to show you exactly how I was able to make these at home. You should know that they last 3-6 days in the refrigerator. If they are vacuum sealed, 2-3 weeks. Don’t place them in closed zip lock bags unless you’re planning to eat them the same day; it creates moisture and they will go bad faster. Vac seal and freeze for 8-12 months.

How to make Beef Sticks from Scratch video tutorial from PMGK.

Teriyaki Beef Sticks Ingredients:

3 lbs Beef Tenderloin, ground
1 cup Veri Veri Teriyaki Sauce
2 tsp Salt
2 tsp Black Pepper
1 tbsp Hoisin Sauce
1 tsp Sesame oil
4 oz Pepper Jack Cheese

Great Additions
1 Jalapeno Pepper, minced
2 tsp Mustard seed
2 tsp liquid Smoke, if you’re not using a smoker
1 tbsp Worcestershire

Follow the instructions in the video tutorial and be sure to smoke, dehydrate or oven bake your Beef Sticks for 1 1/2 to 2 hours at 220 degrees Fahrenheit.