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.
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.
How to Make Teriyaki Sauce
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 OUR OTHER PHENOMENAL HOMEMADE SAUCES!
- SWEET & SOUR SAUCE
- YUM YUM SAUCE
- PLUM SAUCE
- HOISIN SAUCE
- BLACK BEAN SAUCE
- KECAP MANIS
- SWEET CHILI 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
Nichon Wilz says
The sauce is delicious, but I used rice vinegar with a bit of sugar. And the cornstarch slurry is way too much…cut it in half at least…it taste delicious and I cant wait to put it on the chicken pineapple burgers tonight 😋
Kristen says
I followed this recipe exactly except I didn’t have mirrin so I used rice vinegar. It came out insanely salty and barely any sweetness. I’ll try it again in the future but I’ll use light soy sauce instead of Tamari.
Anonymous says
First of all, I think this recipe is probably really amazing. I haven’t tried it yet, but I’m really frustrated that I had to cook it longer than expected because the ratios are not correct. When you change it to double recipe, the corn flour does not change in the double recipe, so I only added 3 teaspoons instead of six and kept heating it up and cooking it trying to get the thickness so anyone making this as a double recipe double your corn starch! That’s where this went wrong for me
Rachel Miller says
Do you know how I could safely can this teriyaki sauce?
Kimberly Killebrew says
Hi Rachel, this sauce hasn’t been tested for canning and so I’m afraid I can’t recommend it for that purpose.
Delphine says
It was easy, quick and excellent, thank you for this beautiful recipe!
Kimberly Killebrew says
Thank you, Delphine, I’m happy you enjoyed it!
AT says
Absolutely amazing recipe!!!!!! I couldn’t believe it’s possible to have such incredible tasting Chinese food at home. But with this recipe it is! And it’s so easy and quick to make! Thanks so much for this recipe!
Kimberly Killebrew says
Yay, I’m so glad, AT, thank you for that feedback!
Heather J. says
This was a hit in our house! I used Hoisin instead of tamari because that’s what I had on hand. It turned out great!
Kimberly Killebrew says
Fantastic, Heather, thank you so much!
Angela Blattner says
Making this saice for a second time, doubled both times as it was just that good! Used dried spices and rice wine vinegar in place of Mirin, excellent recipe!!!
Kimberly Killebrew says
Thank you, Angela, I’m so glad this is becoming a regular!
Mrberam says
Excellent teriyaki sauce! I omitted the honey and only used half the brown sugar and it was still plenty sweet for my taste. Will def be making again!
Chasmon Gatewood says
This was the best teriyaki recipe ive tried. Most recipes I’ve tried never gave the thick sauce I’ve been looking for and this did. A+ rating.. Thank you for sharing. P.S. I did add siracha because I like spicy.
Kimberly Killebrew says
Wonderful, thank you so much, Chasmon!
April says
Boy do I have a story to tell you! My son wanted teriyaki beef stir fry. I used another homemade teriyaki sauce and he ABSOLUTELY HATED it!! Wouldn’t even eat it. He’s not a picky eater. He will normally eat food and then tell me not to make it again. I put the left overs in the fridge anyway, just incase he wanted to try it again. Luckily, before he was hungry, I came across this recipe! I ended up making it, drained and rinsed the meat and added yours. He not only ate it, but came back for seconds! I’m so happy that I didn’t have to throw $32 worth of steak in the trash! Thanks lady for saving my din din!! 👏👏💕
Kimberly Killebrew says
Haha, that is just AWESOME, April! I’m sorry you had to go through the additional effort but so glad that the effort paid off and I really appreciate the feedback and compliment – thank you!!
Anonymous says
Absolutely loved this recipe!
Rae says
This was excellent, exactly what I was looking for, with strong ginger and garlic notes and a perfect sticky texture. I mainly used it with very thinly sliced pork to make a crispy topping for a sesame ginger slaw, but I did have a pork chop night where the sauce ended up drizzled over sticky rice and steamed broccoli. Mmm! The only thing I’ll change next time is to reduce the sugar by about half since I don’t have much of a palate for very sweet things.
Kimberly Killebrew says
That’s fantastic, Rae, I’m so glad you enjoyed it, thank you!
Elizabeth says
Great recipe I was needing to add to my collection. FYI – 3 tsp = 1 Tbsp (water called for is “3 teaspoons”), and you shouldn’t boil sesame oil as it destroys the delicate compounds within. Just add at the end to preserve that lovely aroma. Thanks!
Elissa says
Love this recipe. I am sensitive to salt so only used 1/4 C Tamari but otherwise kept everything else the same. It was perfect. : )
Kimberly Killebrew says
Thanks so much, Elissa!