The Japanese dish of skewered and grilled chicken, often seasoned with tare sauce or salt, is yakitori. Small pieces of chicken are threaded onto skewers and traditionally cooked over charcoal, which provides intense heat and a distinctive smoky aroma.
Yakitori can use many parts of the chicken, including thigh, breast, wings, skin, liver, cartilage, and meatballs called tsukune. This variety reflects the dish’s origins as an economical way to use different cuts. Restaurants and street stalls commonly grill the skewers to order, while convenience stores and supermarkets also sell prepared versions.
The two principal seasonings are shio, meaning salt, and tare, a sweet-savory glaze usually made with soy sauce, mirin, sake, and sugar. Yakitori is often confused with kushiyaki, a broader term for grilled foods on skewers. Yakiniku, by contrast, generally refers to bite-sized meat grilled at the table rather than chicken skewers cooked by a vendor or chef.