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
Wendy says
Fantastic! We ate the entire batch! My hubby had made a delicious moist pork loin yesterday that he marinated and smoked. We had leftovers with this sauce over jasmine rice and veggies
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Thank you so much, Wendy!
Natalia says
How long does it keep in the fridge?
J. Greathouse says
Best teriyaki recipe I’ve tried! Only change made was 1/3 extra cup of water to thin it down for squirt bottle on the black stone.
Thanks for sharing!!
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
That’s wonderful, J., thanks so much for the feedback!
Meggie Bojanov says
The best sauce so far .I cut the sugar a little bit and I use it the next day and I fried the meat something similar to Mongolian beef.I love it
Janet McDonald says
I have never written a review for a recipe but I HAD to with this AMAZING recipe! I have never found a teriyaki sauce I like so DIDN’T have a lot of hope on this one but figured I’d try it anyway. Wow was I surprised!! It’s absolutely perfect just as written!! Thank you so so much. I will Never try another one!
I would like to know if this recipe could be water bathed canned? I’d love to ALWAYS have this one hand!!!
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Thank you so much, Janet, I really appreciate that! This recipe hasn’t been tested for canning so I’m afraid I can’t recommend it for that purpose.
Elle says
Great recipe! I used it on my wings and just tried it with pork, broccoli, and rice…delicious! I will give a tip if you’re like me looking to be low sugar conscious…if you skimp on the sugar, you have to use low sodium soy sauce otherwise it comes out way too salty.
Mattie Howard says
I bought these frozen cooked sweet teriyaki boneless skinless thighs at Sam’s. I’m hooked and cooking my own fresh. The sauce is kicking. I love it on wings, and stir fry also, Thanks.
Amara says
This recipe was perfect when my bf asked for teriyaki chicken for lunch and we had no teriyaki sauce! We buy most of these ingredients in bulk so I will be making my own from now on!
I used low sodium soy sauce and a low calorie brown sugar and it worked out splendid!(also added 2x garlic cause yum!)
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Awesome, Amara, thank you so much!
Anonymous says
I really enjoyed this recipe. Top notch! I do have a query, though. Is it possible to can this for long time storage?
Anonymous says
It was really salty when I made it as per the recipe, then I added just by eye measurement more of everything but the soy sauce and it turned out good :)
Definitely will use low sodium soy sauce next time :)
Michele S says
How can I cut the sodium? Would coconut secret coconut aminos be used? That would be a big cut vs soy sauce.
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Hi Michele, you can use a low sodium soy sauce.
Anonymous says
Great recipe!
Frank Canonica says
When I first tasted it I was not impressed. But once it cooled and sat in the fridge for several hours it was absolutely the best. I did not have fresh ginger on hand but very good quality powdered ginger worked well.
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Thank you, Frank, I’m so glad you enjoyed it! Yes, it’s the case with many condiments that their flavor improves with time.
Marcia says
Oh my goodness. I used this recipe poured it over some chicken and veggies and jasmine rice. It was the best.
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Thank you so much, Marcia, I’m happy you enjoyed it!
Nick Martin says
Brilliant recipe. I’ve made this a few times now and keep being asked to do it again.!! Goes really well with pork strips cut down into chunks and grilled too. I have started adding a small amount of chili purée to the mix also which gives it a slightly pleasant bite. Best Teriyaki sauce recipe I’ve found thus far.
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Thank you so much, Nick, that’s wonderful and I really appreciate the feedback!
Mari says
Hi! I had the same issue today at lunch, I did exactly the same procedure only with 2 teaspoons of flour instead of cornstarch c: Hope it helps!