For an absolutely phenomenal homemade Teriyaki Sauce recipe, look no further! Ready in 10 minutes, no junk ingredients, and crazy delicious – you’ll never use store-bought again! It’s simply the BEST!
It happened one too many times. I needed teriyaki sauce for a recipe and thought I had some on hand only to find – after all the other ingredients had already been prepped – that there wasn’t any. No doubt you can relate to this scenario, whether it’s teriyaki sauce or some other condiment like tahini paste, black bean sauce, or hoisin sauce. So I whipped up my own homemade teriyaki sauce…and have never touched store-bought since!
Trust me, after making this teriyaki sauce recipe, you won’t either.
This sauce is popular all around the world with its dark, bold, savory-salty-sweet flavor with lots of umami undertones. Its primary ingredients include soy sauce, brown sugar, garlic, ginger, honey and mirin.
The word teriyaki refers to both a Japanese cooking technique as well as to the sauce. It was developed in the 17th century and has become synonymous with Japanese cuisine, being served all over the world. The term teri in teriyaki refers to the aesthetic shine on the food created by the sugar content in the sauce, while yaki refers to the method of grilling. With its shiny luster and robust flavor, teriyaki sauce is a natural pairing for grilled foods.
How To Use Teriyaki Sauce
Quick and easy to make, this sauce is as versatile as it is delicious. Use it as a sauce or as a marinade (simply omit the cornstarch). You can use it for beef, chicken, fish and seafood, as a glaze, for barbecuing, in Asian salad dressings, in noodle dishes, stir-fries and more.
Teriyaki sauce is a versatile and flavorful Japanese sauce that can be used in various ways to add a sweet and savory taste to your dishes. Here are some common ways to use teriyaki sauce:
- Marinating Meat, Poultry, Seafood or Tofu: Simply omit the cornstarch and use this sauce as a marinade. Place the protein in a ziplock bag, pour in the sauce, and allow it marinate for at least 30 minutes before cooking.
- Grilling: Brush this sauce onto your proteins or veggies to create a delicious caramelized glaze.
- Stir-Fies: This makes an excellent base sauce for stir-fries of all kinds.
- Baked Chicken, Pork, Salmon or Tofu: Slather this on and bake to create a delicious sticky glaze.
- Dipping Sauce: This makes a great dipping sauce for sushi, spring rolls, dumplings, tempura, or other appetizers.
- Bowl or Rice Topping: Drizzle it over your rice bowls with your grilled teriyaki chicken, pork, beef, salmon or tofu and some steamed or stir-fried veggies.
- Glaze for Roasted Vegetables: Brush some of this sauce onto roasted vegetables for a sweet and savory glaze.
- Sandwiches, Wraps or Burgers: This adds a burst of flavor to your favorite sandwiches and burgers.
- Noodles: Add a drizzle of teriyaki sauce to noodle dishes, such as udon or soba, and toss to coat.
- Salad Dressing: Combine the teriyaki sauce with some oil, vinegar or lemon juice, and a little sesame oil for a unique and flavorful salad dressing.
Can I Use It As a Marinade?
Absolutely. Simply omit the cornstarch, let the sauce cool completely, and you’ve got the perfect teriyaki marinade!
Wonderfully versatile, this is a sauce you can whip up quickly in a pinch to boost the flavor of your Asian-inspired dishes.
Teriyaki Sauce Recipe
This is a super quick and easy sauce to make, all you have to do is:
- Combine the soy sauce, brown sugar, ginger, garlic, honey, sesame oil, mirin and water mixed with cornstarch together in a bowl
- Transfer the mixture to a small saucepan and simmer for about 4 minutes until thickened.
- Your sauce is ready!
You can use it right away or store it in the fridge for up to a couple of weeks. And the flavors will get even better over time. Enjoy this fantastic best homemade teriyaki sauce in the dish of your choice!
Ready in less than 10 minutes, thoroughly delicious and free of fillers or junk ingredients, there simply is no good reason to EVER use store-bought again!
Enjoy!
Be sure to try these other fabulous homemade sauces!
- Sweet and Sour Sauce
- Yum Yum Sauce
- Plum Sauce
- Hoisin Sauce
- Eel Sauce
- Black Bean Sauce
- Kecap Manis
- Sweet Chili Sauce
- Char Siu Sauce
- Ponzu Sauce
- Ginger Sauce
- Big Mac Sauce
BEST Teriyaki Sauce
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup tamari , can substitute low sodium soy sauce. Note: tamari has more flavor than soy sauce and significantly less sodium.
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- see brown sugar alternative (for low sugar option)
- 1 1/2 teaspoons fresh ginger ,minced
- 1 teaspoon garlic ,minced
- 1 tablespoon honey (Vegans: use agave nectar or sweetener of choice)
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 3 tablespoons mirin (see note)
- 1/4 cup water mixed with 3 teaspoons cornstarch
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients in a small saucepan, bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for about 4 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool.
- Store in the fridge for up to a week. Makes about 1 1/4 cups teriyaki sauce.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Originally published on The Daring Gourmet May 27, 2013
South says
This is the best! I literally make this every Sunday to use all week. We put it on everything, and I like to mix in a little Sriracha to give it a little kick. My family thinks I’m a teriyaki chicken God! Thank you for sharing this.
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Lol, that’s wonderful, South, thank you! I’m thrilled to hear it’s a family favorite and congrats and your no doubt fully-deserved status as teriyaki chicken God! :)
Desiree says
I am amazed… I used this sauce tonight to make teriyaki chicken and not only did all five of my kids plus one of the neighbor kids eat their portions but they all absolutely loved it??? They are SO picky, this literally never happens. I made a bunch of extra sauce to put in the freezer but it looks like they’ll be wanting me to make it again soon enough that I won’t need to freeze it! I didn’t have mirin so I had to substitute with rice vinegar.
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
What a win, Desiree! I’m so happy this was a family + neighbor kid hit, thank you! :)
JEANNINE CLONEY says
This blew away the sauce from the store. Will never go back. Homemade sauces are always so much better. Thanks!
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Yay! Thank you, Jeannine, I’m so happy you enjoyed it!
Mike S. says
Surprisingly not too sweet. Thought it would be, but it’s very well balanced. Had every ingredient on hand except for Tamari. I used Kikkoman Soy Sauce imported from Japan. By the way, there is an error in the recipe: I made a double batch, and noticed the mixture was quite thin. When doubling or tripling in this page, the cornstarch measurement remains at 3 tsp. Didn’t catch the error in time, but later thickened the mixture. For me, 4 tsp for the double batch is perfect.
K says
I’m happy to hear you’re enjoying your version of wonderful home-made teriyaki sauce. That said, Japanese teriyaki never calls for corn starch, garlic or ginger. Just simple soy sauce and sugar, maybe a touch of mirin. Any other addition would make it a teriyaki-‘like’ sauce. And also note as many people know, Japanese teriyaki is usually far less sweet.
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
K, this recipe is for the Western teriyaki sauce that most everyone outside of Japan associates with “teriyaki sauce”.
Mindy says
How long does it last refrigerated?
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Hi Mindy, for about a week.
Tanner says
This was perfection and beats any other recipe I’ve tried and certainly anything I’ve ever bought from the store.
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Thank you so much, Tanner, I’m happy you enjoyed it!
Rkimmitchell says
Can this be frozen.
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Hi, yes it can but cornstarch has tendency to break down when thawed so you may need to re-thicken it.
Ashley says
Hi! I’ve been using this recipe for years, and it always comes out great! Except when I want to a triple batch and hit the “3x” button! It is always too thin, and I just realized why: All the ingredients are tripled, except for the amount of corn starch. It needs to say 9 teaspoons (or 3 tablespoons). Anyway, hoot that helps other people make a triple batch! I like to make a big batch and save it for a stir fry the next week.
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Hi Ashley, I’m thrilled that this has been a regular in your home, thank you! Thanks for letting me know about the glitch in the triple feature, I’ll see if that’s something we can get fixed!
Heidi says
This is delicious. Used arrowroot instead of corn starch and coconut sugar, just half – I doubled the recipe. I love the taste of fresh ginger. The sauce became jelly like consistency after it cooled. Is there any way to thin it a bit for when I use it next? Thank you for the recipe.
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Thank you, Heidi, I’m so glad you enjoyed it! Yes, to thin it simply reheat it and add a little bit of water.
Kelly says
I made the full recipe without adding cornstarch and only heated it enough to dissolve the sugar. I used half for the marinade and then returned the rest to the heat and added a cornstarch slurry and cooked until thickened. This is the best sauce/marinade that I have had outside of a restaurant. It’s absolutely delicious.
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Yay, I’m so glad you enjoyed it, Kelly, thanks so much for the feedback!