Easy homemade teriyaki sauce is just 6 simple on-hand ingredients and 10 minutes to make. It’s rich, flavorful and perfect for any recipe that calls for teriyaki sauce.
We've had a fun week of flag football (my 7-year-old son is loving every minute of it), outside playing in this gorgeous spring weather and a bit of prep for a camping weekend we have coming up.
I've been doing lots of spring cleaning projects the last few weeks, too, and it just makes everything feel so much fresher, cleaner and more organized. I'm a total type A, so I love that.
Alright, on to the food.
Previously I’ve shared this slow cooker teriyaki chicken and these teriyaki chicken pineapple kabobs that are a summer favorite.
Today though, we’re breaking things down and getting back to the basics.
Homemade teriyaki sauce is incredibly easy to make yourself. It’s just 6 ingredients and ready in about 10 minutes.
We’re also using on-hand ingredients. No mirin or saki needed. (I don’t know about you, but I don’t usually have those in my pantry.)
You don’t even need orange juice, which some recipes call for.
So this is simple enough to whip up anytime you want to make some teriyaki dishes.
(If you're looking for a killer sauce to drizzle over your meat, or to use as a marinade, check out this chimichurri recipe.
And yes, sure, store-bought teriyaki sauce is convenient, but this recipe is really quick and easy and you get to control the ingredients.
And it comes out so delicious! You’ve got the sweetness from the brown sugar and honey, a background of mild garlic flavor, a slight spice from the ginger and the unmistakable umami flavor of the soy sauce.
A simple cornstarch slurry helps it thicken up so that it’s ready to coat your chicken, tofu, kabobs, whatever you need it for!
OK, let’s get cooking.
Now, I’ve got some notes and substitutions coming up below on how to make homemade teriyaki sauce. Just tryin’ to be helpful.
If you want to jump on down to the recipe, simply scroll right on through the rest of the text. The recipe card is near the bottom of the page, above the comments section.
Notes on making homemade teriyaki sauce:
- I recommend low-sodium soy sauce to control the sodium in this sauce. You can also use a soy sauce substitute such as tamari or coconut aminos, depending on your needs.
- The recipe calls for both light brown sugar and honey. However, you can skip the honey and just add some extra brown sugar if needed.
- Fresh ginger is great, but you can substitute ground ginger if that’s all you have on hand.
- You could add some red pepper flakes to this sauce if you want to make a spicy teriyaki sauce with a bit of heat to it.
Otherwise, you just need to heat everything up, whisk in the cornstarch slurry to help thicken the sauce, and it’s ready to go.
So stinkin' easy!
Mostly, I make this when I need to use it the same day.
However, you can prep this ahead and/or save any extra sauce for another night.
How to store homemade teriyaki sauce:
- The sauce will keep, covered, in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
- Heat in a small saucepan or add to a skillet and warm through for the recipe you’re making.
Note: The sauce does thicken as it sits and cools. You can leave it a little more loose when you make it, before storing, or you can add some extra water to thin it back out later, if needed.
Ta-da! You can have all the teriyaki things all the time!
Oh, and stay tuned because I have a recipe coming up tomorrow that uses this sauce. (Update: Check out this quick and easy teriyaki chicken, ready in just 15 minutes!)
You can sign up for my free e-newsletter to get all of my new recipes delivered straight to your inbox so you never miss a thing. I’ll even send you my free e-cookbook, Healthy Weeknight Dinners, as a thank you!
Enjoy!
XO,
Kathryn
Easy Homemade Teriyaki Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 cup water
- ¼ cup low-sodium soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons light brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon honey (or more brown sugar)
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger (or sub ¼ teaspoon ground ginger)
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- ¼ cup cold water
Instructions
- In a small saucepan over medium heat, add the water, soy sauce, sugar, honey, garlic and ginger. Bring to a low simmer and whisk until sugar is combined, about 1 minute.
- Meanwhile, combine the cornstarch and water in a small bowl. Add to the pan, whisking to combine. Heat the sauce over medium until the sauce is thickened to desired consistency, about 5-6 minutes.
- Use immediately or store, covered, in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. (Note: The sauce will thicken more as it sits, so you may want to remove from heat early if you are making the sauce ahead and plan to store it.)
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