Homemade Teriyaki Sauce is one of our go-to sauce recipes. We love using it to make teriyaki pork, teriyaki chicken, teriyaki salmon, or even on chicken wings!
Teriyaki sauce is easily bought at the store, but it tastes SO much better homemade. It lasts about 3 weeks in the fridge, so I like to whip it up along with some balsamic vinaigrette for salads, and even some Italian dressing. Everything uses basic ingredients!
What Is Teriyaki Sauce
Teriyaki sauce is a sauce that is rich, thick, and filled with umami flavors. Teriyaki sauce ingredients include:
- Base: Soy sauce and water. I usually substitute half of the water for orange juice (or even pineapple juice) for added flavor. While I often use low sodium teriyaki sauce, I prefer this recipe with regular teriyaki sauce.
- Aromatics: Garlic and ginger add great flavor to this sauce. I freeze ginger and break a piece off when I need it or even grate it right from frozen for Stir Fry.
- Sweetness: I use brown sugar but you can add a bit of white sugar or even honey if it’s all you have on hand.
Sesame seeds, green (or minced white) onions, and citrus zest all add great flavor to this teriyaki marinade too!
How To Make Teriyaki Sauce
Once you make homemade teriyaki sauce, you will not want to buy it at the store again! I thicken it to make sauce but I don’t bother thickening if I’m making a teriyaki marinade.
- Combine Ingredients: Combine soy sauce, water (or orange juice), garlic, ginger, and brown sugar in a saucepan.
- Simmer to blend flavors: Bring to a simmer and continue to simmer for a couple minutes or until all of the brown sugar is dissolved
- How Do You Thicken Teriyaki Sauce? Thickening teriyaki sauce is optional. If you’re using it as a marinate, simply boil and cool completely. I like to make it a little thicker if I am using it as a sauce or baste. Create a slurry with cornstarch and water and pour it into the boiling teriyaki sauce while whisking until you reach desired consistency.
What Is The Difference Between Teriyaki Sauce and Soy Sauce
Well, both have different flavors. Soy sauce is the main component in teriyaki sauce, but the saltiness is cut with brown sugar and other ingredients like ginger.
Teriyaki is also very thick, where as soy sauce is a thin watery addition to dishes like fried rice.
Can I substitute Teriyaki Sauce For Soy Sauce
Both sauces have vastly different flavor profiles and consistencies, so soy sauce wouldn’t work well as a substitute. In a pinch just whip up this easy teriyaki sauce recipe!
To thicken teriyaki sauce:
- Create a slurry by mixing equal parts water and cornstarch until no lumps remain
- Pour the slurry into the teriyaki sauce bit by bit while whisking, until the desired thickness is reached.
It’s super easy, and makes the best homemade sauce ever!
More Stir Fry Recipes
- Cashew Chicken Stir Fry – better than take out
- Easy Pepper Chicken Stir Fry
- Pineapple Teriyaki Chicken – fresh and delicious
- How to Cook Rice – So fluffy!
- Pineapple Teriyaki Shrimp Foil Packets – great in the summer!
- Teriyaki Chicken– Favorite!
Teriyaki Sauce
Ingredients
- ⅓ cup soy sauce
- 1 cup water or use half orange juice
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 teaspoon ginger minced
- 3 tablespoons brown sugar
Slurry
- 2 tablespoons cold water
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
Instructions
- Combine soy sauce, 1 cup liquid, garlic, ginger and brown sugar in a small saucepan.
- Simmer 2 minutes or until brown sugar is dissolved.
Slurry
- Combine the water and cornstarch to create a slurry. Pour into the boiling sauce a little at a time to reach desired consistency.
Notes
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Dip
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Amazing recipe! I have been making it for my family and I don’t know how to cool lol. Has impressed many, including my 6 year old that requests it time and time again!
This is some wonderful tasting sauce! So easy to make, will never go back to store bought! Y’all must try this, you won’t be disappointed ❤
your teriyaki sauce is the absolute BEST!!!! my son and i love stir fry at home and i have tried many different sauce recipes always having to change or adjust recipe. we like them but i knew there was a better recipe out there….somewhere. Hallelujah!!! i found yours…WE LOVE IT and only change i make is to double the recipe so have leftovers.
thanks i will be back to your site forsure
sincerely
“Laura Loves to Cook”
I am so happy to hear you and your son loved this recipe Laura!
Can you use ground ginger instead of minced?
And if so .. how much?
Hi Bob, we have only made this recipe as listed. But if you want to sub in ground ginger it is more potent than fresh so I would start with a pinch (generally you will use ¼ teaspoon of dried ginger for every tablespoon of fresh) and then add more to taste. Enjoy!
My teriyaki sauce was a rich caramel color but after marinating it turn to a tan color and didn’t caramelize like picture.
I hope it still tasted delicious Charnell! Did you thicken the sauce using a cornstarch slurry and allow it to simmer? Did you make any changes or substitutions to the recipe?
This is a recipe that I followed closely (made the orange juice version). It was wonderful.
I had left over Medium Rare steak that I sliced, so I didn’t marinate my meat.
I stir fried thinnly sliced Green Peppers and Sweet Onion and Julianned Carrots, then added the thinnly sliced steak and poured on the Sauce.
It was so good.
I did have a little left over sauce to which I added some sliced Thai Peppers. WOW, HOT, but it was a fun addition, but not for everyone.
Yum, that sounds delicious George! Thanks for sharing.
I made this tonight and served it over vegetables and rice. It was delicious! I was out of orange juice, so I made it with pineapple juice and added a little more brown sugar after tasting it. This is a definite keeper and I look forward to trying it with orange juice next time.
Oh yum! That sounds delicious, Lorna. Thanks for sharing your substitutions.
Thank you for this recipe. This is now a staple in our household. I have made it many many times and my kids love it. Only question if I make it extra how do I store it and for how long is it good?
So happy you love this teriyaki sauce as much as we do! I would store it in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.
This is what you are looking for!! I used water but I can see why the orange juice would be perfect for this, I added a tbsp honey since they kikoman soysauce saltiness was still showing through a tad to much, added roasted sesame seeds. Added onion powder and onion garlic lol onion powder was because I thought it was the garlic powder, still perfect. Added some chili flakes for a lil kick <3
This was super easy!
What’s are the storing instructions?
Hi Denise, I would store this sauce in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.
Excellent! I have finally found my go to recipe for stir fry sauce. I used pineapple juice instead of OJ, as suggested. Delicious! Thank you!
Yum, great substitution Kate! That would be delicious.
This was amazing! I added more orange juice than water because I let it cook down a bit too much. Also I used 1/4 cup brown sugar. I only had powdered ginger so I tasted as I cooked it. My truly extra addition was a few shakes of red pepper flakes and chili powder to give it some extra kick. My daughter loved this and wants me to make it frequently. Thanks for a great recipe.
You’re welcome Shelley! So happy to hear how much your daughter loves this sauce!
Do I need to mince the garlic, or leave the garlic cloves whole?
I would mince the garlic, Dominic.
Made it exactly as it says on the recipe. It’s delicious. Used half orange juice and half water. Used it to marinate my chicken for shish kebabs. Thank you for this. Love it!
We love this sauce, I was out of orange juice the last time I made it so I used some pineapple instead. It was a huge hit!