These Big Kahuna Chicken Teriyaki Sandwiches are better than most because they are loaded with sliced ham, grilled pineapple, and Pepper Jack cheese.
We made these chicken sandwiches the other night and my husband wanted the privilege of naming them. He kept calling them “Big Kahuna Sandwiches” while he was grilling them and insisted that be the official name. So that is what we are calling them – Big Kahuna Chicken Teriyaki Sandwiches. We wanted to spice up our usual chicken teriyaki sandwiches by adding some deli ham and Pepper Jack cheese. I don’t think we will ever go back to making them the old way again. These were a huge hit!
Additions and Substitutions:
You can easily make these into “Big Kahuna” burgers by marinating beef patties in the teriyaki sauce rather than chicken. We have made them as burgers before and woah, mama they are GOOD. If you really want to give the burgers a Hawaiian spin, add a fried egg to the top. Holy calories, but seriously so good. Save up your “calorie points” or whatever you do and give it a try.
Tips for Grilling the Chicken:
- Meat thickness: The key to getting perfect grilled chicken is making sure the thickness of the meat is as even as possible. You don’t want one end of the chicken to be thick and the other end to be thin (how it comes naturally). Use a meat pounder and flatten out that thick part to match the thinner part (or close to it).
- Grill Temperature: You want to make sure you have the right grill temperature. You want to aim for around 375-degrees and 450-degrees. This makes it so you don’t have a charred outside and raw inside, which happens when you cook at too high of a temperature.
- Digital Read Meat Thermometer: Using a digital-read meat thermometer is also very helpful. When the internal temperature reaches 150-155 degrees (should only take a few minutes on each side) take it off the grill and allow to rest for a few minutes. Wrap the chicken in foil and the chicken will continue cooking to reach 165-degrees. You will have perfectly juicy chicken.
Side Dish Ideas:
Here are some great side dish ideas that will go PERFECTLY with these chicken teriyaki sandwiches:
- Hawaiian Macaroni Salad: Hawaiian Mac Salad is a staple side dish for any Hawaiian meal. This is an AUTHENTIC Hawaiian recipe, straight from the islands!
- Fresh Mango Avocado Cole Slaw: You have got to try this cole slaw with a fun island twist! Goes GREAT alongside these grilled chicken teriyaki sandwiches!
- Sweet Potato Fries: Chicken sandwiches and sweet potato fries are a winning combination. Every. Time. You can’t go wrong!
Big Kahuna Chicken Teriyaki Sandwiches:
Big Kahuna Chicken Teriyaki Sandwiches
INGREDIENTS
- 4 chicken breasts
- 1 bottle Teriyaki sauce we used Lawry's brand
- 3/4 c. brown sugar
- 4 slices deli ham
- 1 can sliced pineapple or you can use fresh which would be even better
- 4 slices Pepper Jack cheese
- 4 large hamburger buns
INSTRUCTIONS
- Pound chicken breasts until they are about 1/4" thick all around. Place in a large Ziploc bag. Combine Teriyaki sauce and brown sugar until sugar dissolves. Add 1/2 of the mixture to the bag with the chicken and seal tightly. Place bag in refrigerator for at least 4-5 hours. Separate remaining Teriyaki mixture into 2 separate bowls (to prevent cross contamination use 2 separate brushes too)-- one for the pineapple, one for the chicken. Open pineapple can and save a little of the juice in a bowl. Place chicken and pineapple on the grill (medium heat).
- Brush with Teriyaki sauce every few minutes until chicken and pineapple are done-- try to only flip the chicken and pineapple once. Either on the grill or in a frying pan, cook ham with a little of the pineapple juice until it becomes nice and hot. Slice open hamburger buns and place a piece of cooked chicken on each bottom bun. Top with cheese, ham, grilled pineapple, and bun top. Serve immediately with remaining grilled pineapple.
Kerilee Law says
April 22, 2010 at 7:16 pmI'm so excited to try this, I think I just peed a little. 😉
Julie says
April 23, 2010 at 4:27 amThese look just amazing! I didn't quite pee, but I love it just the same!
Brooke Trogdon says
April 23, 2010 at 6:19 amThank you for sharing all of these recipes! I am going to make this Saturday for company! Keep up the good work you are inspiring a not so good cook. You make me look good!
Chandani says
April 27, 2010 at 6:57 pmMouthwatering and yummy.
The Christensen's says
June 10, 2010 at 10:10 pmI just made these for dinner tonight and my husband and I agreed they were fabulous! Thanks for the recipe. I've tried a couple of times to copy and paste your recipes in to a word document so I can have the recipe in the kitchen when I cook and it always gives me an error. Do you know why this would be? It hasn't happened on any other food blogs that I have tried. Thanks again for the great recipe!
Erica says
June 10, 2010 at 11:24 pm@ Christensens:
I haven't had any other complaints about the words not being able to copy over. I know my family copies and pastes into Word and they haven't had issues. I will look into it more and let you know if I find anything out
The Christensen's says
June 11, 2010 at 4:13 pmIt's probably just my stupid computer – don't worry about it. Thanks!
Ryan & Sydne says
November 9, 2010 at 8:56 pmAny suggestions for sides to serve these with?
Ryan & Sydne says
November 9, 2010 at 8:56 pmAny suggestions for sides to serve these with?
Erica says
November 9, 2010 at 10:04 pmI would say sweet potato fries or if you want to make it truly Hawaiian, serve with plain rice!
Cathy says
June 25, 2014 at 8:10 pmLike it
Stephanie says
June 26, 2014 at 5:16 pmMade this tonight for supper but with bacon instead of ham and no bread. It was delicious!! Thanks for the recipe.
Lindsey Bryant says
January 14, 2015 at 11:37 pmMade this a few nights ago and it was amazing! But I used Hawaiian sweet hamburger buns and added added little Dijon mustard. It really was incredible.
Linda Hansen says
June 8, 2015 at 1:07 pmOMG these were wonderful!!
bonnie says
June 28, 2015 at 8:24 pmCan’t wait to try this !!!
lori says
August 1, 2015 at 2:57 pmTrying these tonight. Sounds so yummy. Can’t wait. 🙂
Dani says
February 21, 2016 at 5:11 pmWe just made these for dinner. Oh my goodness! So delicious. I’m so happy to have found this recipe! Thank you so much for sharing. I followed the directions exactly, the only thing I did differently was to throw these puppies onto King’s Sweet Hawaiin buns. Can’t wait to make them over and over and over again, and knock the socks off any person who happens to be lucky enough to come over when we make them.
Erica says
February 22, 2016 at 5:13 pmSo glad that you liked them! Thank you for taking the time to comment 😀
lori says
April 23, 2016 at 10:12 amHave made these several times already. Making again tonight. These sandwiches are roll around in on the floor yummy! I make my own teriyaki sauce and don’t even use ham. Sooo good. Thanks for sharing. <3
Eloina says
September 9, 2016 at 2:46 amThese sandwiches made me and my man a hit at our bbq! So delicious! We used Kikoman garlic and green onion teriyaki sauce…delicious!
Hailey says
January 17, 2018 at 9:54 amLooks so yummy! I want this for dinner tonight. Thank you for sharing.