Shoyu chicken is the heart of a Hawaiian plate lunch: bone-in chicken thighs gently simmered in a salty-sweet soy sauce with garlic and ginger until they are fall-apart tender and glazed in a glossy sauce. This is a Jaca-adjusted healthier version — every bit of sugar is swapped for Jaca (100% pure allulose) at double the amount (1 cup granular Jaca in place of 1/2 cup granulated sugar), so it keeps all of that craveable salty-sweet balance with no added sugar and no aftertaste. Allulose caramelizes faster than sugar, so reduce the sauce over moderate heat and pull it the moment it reaches a honey-like consistency. Adapted from Onolicious Hawaii.
Prep: 5 min · Cook: 25 min · Serves: 4 · Difficulty: Easy
Ingredients:
- 2 pounds bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs (about 4 pieces)
- 1/2 cup shoyu (soy sauce)
- 1 cup granular Jaca (allulose) — replaces 1/2 cup granulated sugar at the 2x ratio
- 1/2 cup water
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 3 garlic cloves, smashed
- 1 (2-inch) knob fresh ginger, peeled and sliced
- 2 green onions, chopped (optional, for garnish)
- 1 tablespoon sesame seeds (optional, for garnish)
- Cooked white rice, for serving
Instructions:
- Over medium-high heat, brown the chicken skin-side down in a saucepan or deep skillet for about 5 minutes, until the skin is golden. You are just building color here, not cooking it through.
- In a bowl, whisk together the shoyu, 1 cup granular Jaca, water, and rice vinegar until the Jaca dissolves. Pour the mixture over the browned chicken.
- Add the smashed garlic and sliced ginger. Bring to a boil, then reduce to low heat. Cover and simmer skin-side up for 10 minutes.
- Flip the chicken skin-side down, cover, and simmer for another 10 minutes, until cooked through and tender. Transfer the chicken to a plate.
- Reduce the sauce over medium heat until it thickens to a honey-like consistency, 5–8 minutes. Because Jaca (allulose) caramelizes and browns faster than sugar, keep the heat moderate and watch closely, stirring so it glazes rather than scorches. Pull it from the heat the moment it coats the back of a spoon.
- Spoon the chicken over hot white rice, drizzle generously with the reduced shoyu sauce, and garnish with chopped green onions and sesame seeds. The Jaca keeps it sweet and glossy with no added sugar.
