Homemade Teriyaki Sauce

It’s one of the easiest condiments you can make at home! Our (recently updated!) Homemade Teriyaki Sauce is just as fast and easy to make, and it’ll be your new go-to marinade, glaze, or stir-fry sauce!

You’ll also love our Homemade Hoisin Sauce!

I think one of the best things about making condiments from scratch is when you realize just how easy some of them are! Case in point: Homemade Teriyaki Sauce! Just a few ingredients and 15 minutes is all you need to cut out the bottle and make all of your favorite teriyaki sauce meals from scratch!

What is Teriyaki?

“Teriyaki” is actually a method of cooking in Japanese cuisine. It’s made up of the words “teri,” which means luster or gleam, and “yaki,” which means grilled or broiled. So basically, it’s when foods are cooked with a glaze. And that glaze, known as Teriyaki Sauce, is made up of soy, sake or mirin, and sugar. Teriyaki Sauce, then, of course, is that sweet, tangy, sticky sauce that has a lovely salty umami flavor.

Ingredients Needed

• Soy Sauce – Regular; you could use low sodium if you are watching your sodium levels, but it will greatly adjust the flavor.
• Seasoned Rice Vinegar – While true teriyaki sauce uses Mirin, to eliminate any alcohol (it is a Japanese rice wine), we prefer to use seasoned rice vinegar, but you can use an equal amount of Mirin, too!
• Brown Sugar – To add the right amount of sweetness.
• Sesame Oil – The subtle sesame flavor needed.
• Garlic and Ginger – Key for getting the right flavor. We’ve made this with both fresh and ground and prefer the consistency and texture of using ground.
• Water and Cornstarch – To make the slurry to thicken.

Easy To Make

One of the many reasons why I love this Homemade Teriyaki Sauce is that it’s one of the easiest condiments to make! Just add everything except 2 tablespoons of water and the cornstarch (the slurry) to a pot, stir, bring it to a boil, then let it simmer for 8 minutes. Add the cornstarch and water slurry and let it simmer for another 2 minutes.

Remove from the heat, transfer to a jar, or use immediately. As it cools, it will continue to thicken a bit.

Homemade Teriyaki Sauce from scratch! A fast, easy, and multi-purpose condiment!

Ways to Use Teriyaki Sauce

Use it as a glaze, use it as a marinade, in a stir fry, or with any protein or vegetable. It’s sweet, salty, and delivers on that umami sense – there’s a reason “umami” means a pleasant savory taste in Japanese.

Grill or Broiler: Because of the high sugar content of this sauce, when you’re glazing your meat or vegetables, be sure to add it more toward the end of the cooking process if you’re using a high heat like a broiler or on a grill. This is because the high sugar content means it will burn easily.

Wok: With that said, Teriyaki Sauce can take a high heat and works great in a wok where it’ll become thick and sticky – perfect to coat meat or veggies like in a stir fry.

Oven Baked: This is another great option because that sugar will caramelize beautifully on whatever you’re cooking.

Our Teriyaki Shrimp Salad with Sesame Ginger Dressing is one of my favorite ways to use it!

You Also Might Like

• Homemade Hoisin Sauce
• Homemade Bibimbap Sauce
• Sweet Sriracha Mayonnaise

No matter how you use it, now you can ditch the store-bought bottle and make your own Homemade Teriyaki Sauce in just minutes!

Enjoy! As always, if you make this recipe or any of my others, I love to hear what you think! Leave a comment below, email me, or you can find me on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest!

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