Teriyaki Chicken Sandwiches with Wasabi Mayonnaise

We had an out of town visitor over the weekend.  Liz's cousin Pam stopped by during her road trip vacation.  She had run a marathon the day before, which is pretty darn impressive.  I wish I had that type of endurance.  The only thing I can do for three to four hours is sit at the all you can eat sushi bar.  

So since it's the last weekend of summer and we wanted to keep grilling while the weather's good, we opted for a family favorite and a large group staple, our Teriyaki Chicken Sandwiches.   The preparation is very similar to our Teriyaki Chicken that we're prepared before.  Now yes, we are using a store-bought sauce as a base for our marinade.  Use whatever brand you love.  Our favorite is the Yoshida's sauce, but I've also used Seal Sama and one the Kikkoman sauces with some success.  If you wish to build your own teriyaki sauce, by all means do it.  But the reason we use this recipe for our large gatherings is for speed.  Making the marinades by enhancing an existing sauce is extremely fast and extremely good. 

They are perfect for a large group.  With a little preparation and a basic marinade, you can do all the work ahead of time.  You basically throw them on the grill when everyone arrives and have dinner ready in less than 30 minutes.  Just make one batch of marinade for every 5-6 chicken breasts. Then add a few summer side dishes ahead of time, like our summer pasta salad or a basic green salad.  Maybe make the Fruit-cupine as an appetizer beforehand as well and you can feed the masses without spending a ton of time away from your guests at partytime.  Just ask then to congregate around the barbecue while you grill the chicken and watch their mouths water.

Teriyaki Chicken Sandwiches with Wasabi Mayonnaise

Teriyaki Chicken Breasts
5-6 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 cup teriyaki sauce (your favorite, we use Yoshida's)
1 1/2 teaspoons ginger
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
1 tablespoon soy sauce

Wasabi Mayonnaise
2 teaspoons wasabi powder
1/3 cup mayonnaise (regular or light, your choice)

Combine the teriyaki sauce ginger, garlic, rice wine vinegar and soy sauce in a large ziploc bag,  Squish the bag to thoroughly mix the ingredients.  Add the chicken breasts into the bag and move them around until they're coated.  Place in another ziploc bag or a bowl to prevent leaks, then place it in the fridge for anywhere between 2 and 24 hours.

You can cook them any way you want.  You can barbecue them over medium heat for 5 minutes each side.  You could bake them in the oven for 30-40 minutes until the digital thermometer that you've inserted into the largest breast reaches 165 degrees.  You would also place them in a skillet over medium heat until they are thoroughly cooked.  Just make sure you coat the pan with cooking spray to avoid having the teriyaki glaze from scorching the pan.

To create the mayonnaise, just combine the mayonnaise and wasabi powder and whip with a fork for about 30 seconds.  Spread generously on the top and bottom of a bun.

Finish by melting some swiss cheese over the top.  You can also garnish with lettuce, a slice of pineapple that has been grilled on the barbecue along with the chicken breasts, or some sauted onions that have had a splash of teriyaki glaze added at the last moment.

So the next time you're grilling for out of town guests, make a batch of these sandwiches and enjoy the food and the company.