Teriyaki Sauce Recipe

4.50 from 186 votes

Sweet and sticky homemade teriyaki sauce is our go-to sauce for marinades and stir fry recipes. Homemade teriyaki tastes so much better than store bought and you can make it yourself with easy ingredients!

teriyaki sauce in a jar
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This Homemade Teriyaki Sauce Recipe is so delicious!

Teriyaki sauce is such a delicious simple recipe to make at home.

This sauce is great for marinades or any of your favorite homemade stir fry recipes like Teriyaki Vegetables, Teriyaki Noodles, Teriyaki Cauliflower, and Teriyaki Tofu.

It’s perfect for making tasty takeout style recipes at home just like our stir fry sauce, and orange sauce recipes.

Making your own teriyaki sauce is quick, easy, and so flavorful!

What is teriyaki sauce?

Teriyaki sauce is a popular Japanese sauce that is commonly used in cooking or as a condiment or marinade.

What does teriyaki taste like?

Teriyaki sauce has a distinct flavor that combines sweet, savory, and tangy. The sweetness helps to balance out the salty and savory flavor of the sauce.

teriyaki sauce being poured onto ramen noodles

Homemade Teriyaki Sauce ingredients

  • Soy sauce
  • Orange juice
  • Brown sugar
  • Rice Vinegar
  • Garlic
  • Ginger
  • Corn starch
  • Cold water
teriyaki sauce ingredients lined up together

For this recipe, we use orange juice along with fresh garlic and minced ginger to really make the flavor pop.

Fresh squeezed orange juice would be even more delicious if you have it on hand.

You can also substitute pineapple juice in place of the orange juice.

I do not recommend using garlic powder or powdered ginger because the flavor is not the same.

wooden spoon dripping teriyaki sauce

The fresh ingredients are what really give it the great flavor!

This sauce is far better than anything you can buy in the store.

Teriyaki Sauce Recipe substitutions

You can use pineapple juice in place of orange juice in this recipe for a fun twist!

To make this sauce gluten free, substitute gluten free soy sauce or tamari for the regular soy sauce.

The only thing I do not recommend is to use powdered garlic or ginger like I said previously.

That fresh minced ginger and garlic is what gives the sauce that authentic flavor!

5 glass bowls filled with orange juice, garlic, ginger, brown sugar, and soy sauce

How to make Teriyaki Sauce

This sauce comes together in less than 15 minutes making it perfect for a quick dinner or marinade!

It is so simple to throw together and made with only 8 ingredients.

collage image showing how to make teriyaki sauce

Step 1: In a sauce pan, combine the soy sauce, orange juice, water, brown sugar, fresh ginger, and minced garlic.

Step 2: Heat the sauce until the brown sugar dissolves, around 5 minutes.

teriyaki sauce in a mason jar

How to thicken teriyaki sauce

Step 3: In a bowl, mix together the corn starch and cold water to make the slurry.

This is what helps get the sauce to the desired thickness.

It make the sauce that perfect sticky thick texture just like a store bought sauce.

Your sauce will start out thin. The slurry will thicken it up quickly!

Step 4: Add the corn starch slurry to the teriyaki sauce and whisk or stir for 3 – 5 minutes, as the sauce thickens.

up close image of homemade teriyaki sauce

Once the teriyaki sauce is finished, use it as marinade or pour it on your favorite stir fry recipe.

teriyaki sauce in a jar

This sauce is so delicious and really so quick to throw together.

If you have never made teriyaki before, you will really be surprised at how simple it is!

Your family will love this sauce.

grabbing a serving of teriyaki noodles

How to use Easy Teriyaki Sauce

I love mine poured over teriyaki noodles or for homemade teriyaki tofu.

It really is very versatile and would be lovely in just about any stir fry recipe.

If you do not use it all, you can store it in the fridge for a few days and use it again for another recipe!

teriyaki tofu triangles over white rice in a bowl

Teriyaki Sauce Recipe storage

This sauce can easily be made ahead and used for dinner later that day.

Just make the recipe, and place in a mason jar with a lid to seal it.

Pop it in the fridge and use it when you are ready!

teriyaki sauce from an overhead view

Teriyaki Sauce Recipe Easy FAQs

Is teriyaki sweet or salty?

Homemade teriyaki sauce has a unique flavor that is both sweet and salty.

What is the difference between teriyaki marinade and sauce?

The difference between teriyaki marinade in sauce is in the way that they are cooked.
· Teriyaki marinade is used to infuse a protein or vegetable with flavor prior to cooking.
· Teriyaki sauce is used as a condiment or finishing sauce to enhance the flavor of cooked dishes.

chopsticks taking a bite of cauliflower from the container
spoon dripping teriyaki sauce over a ramekin
teriyaki sauce in a jar
4.50 from 186 votes

Homemade Teriyaki Sauce

By: Joy Shull
This sticky and sweet homemade teriyaki sauce is easy to make. The perfect sauce for marinades and stir fry recipes!
Prep: 5 minutes
Cook: 10 minutes
Total: 15 minutes
Servings: 6

Ingredients 

  • â…“ cup soy sauce
  • ¾ cup orange juice
  • â…“ cup brown sugar
  • 1 teaspoon rice vinegar
  • 3 cloves minced garlic
  • 1 teaspoon minced ginger

For the corn starch slurry

  • 2 tablespoons corn starch
  • ¼ cup cold water

Instructions 

  • Add soy sauce, orange juice, brown sugar, rice vinegar, minced garlic, and minced ginger to a sauce pan
  • Heat over medium for around 5 minutes, until brown sugar dissolves
  • In a bowl, whisk together the ingredients for the corn starch slurry
  • Add the slurry to the sauce, and continue to cook an additional 3 – 5 minutes, whisking or stirring often, until thick
  • Use this teriyaki sauce for marinades or any stir fry recipe!

Video

Notes

To make this teriyaki sauce gluten free

To make this gluten free, use a gluten free soy sauce or tamari

Can I substitute pineapple juice?

Yes, you can substitute pineapple juice for the orange juice

Nutrition

Calories: 81kcal, Carbohydrates: 19g, Protein: 2g, Fat: 0.1g, Saturated Fat: 0.01g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.02g, Monounsaturated Fat: 0.01g, Sodium: 725mg, Potassium: 113mg, Fiber: 0.2g, Sugar: 15g, Vitamin A: 62IU, Vitamin C: 16mg, Calcium: 19mg, Iron: 0.5mg
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46 Comments

    1. @Joy Shull, HI, sorry. Never replied b4 on here, but, I just read your reply about using pineapple juice instead of orange juice. So, was was just wondering how that turned out. Because I like the sweetness of pineapple juice. Thank you

  1. This sauce was amazing. So much better than store bought. What I liked most was it didn’t have the saltiness of soy sauce but the flavor was there. My go to sauce from now on.
    Thanks for sharing!

  2. I was making jerky and missed that I needed teriyaki sauce. I didn’t have any so went on pinterest and found your recipe. It was quick and very easy, although I used pineapple juice instead of orange juice cause that’s all I had. Very nice, great tasting sauce! I had enough left over and used it for supper that night with chicken. OMGoodness! We enjoyed it so much that I made another batch x 6 minus the water and cornstarch. I divided it into 6 equal portions, put in sour cream containers with a note on each to add 1/4 cup water and 2 Tbsps cornstarch and froze them! Next time we wanted teriyaki, I just went to the freezer. Turned out beautifully!
    Thank you for sharing your recipe!!