Teriyaki is a cooking technique used in Japanese cuisine. The word teri refers to the glossy lustre the sugar creates and yaki means it’s grilled or broiled.
The Japanese began using this teriyaki method of cooking in the Edo period (between 1603 and 1868). It became popular in America when the Japanese settled in Hawaii in the 1960s.
If you’re reading this, you’ve probably tried teriyaki chicken in Japanese restaurants and now you want to make it at home. Traditionally, only three ingredients are used: soy sauce, mirin and sugar. But I prefer my recipe below. It’s not as sugary and sweet as the bottled teriyaki sauces you can buy in supermarkets, thanks to the added garlic and ginger.
You can marinade chicken wings or thighs in this teriyaki sauce overnight or you can add it straight to a stir-fry.
Ingredients
1 tablespoon of grated ginger
4 cloves of garlic finely chopped
1/2 cup of soy sauce
2 tablespoons of mirin
2 tablespoons of honey
2 tablespoons of sesame oil
2 tablespoons of brown sugar or demerara sugar
1 heaped tablespoon of cornstarch
3 tablespoons of water
Method
Add the chopped garlic, grated ginger, soy sauce, mirin, honey, sesame oil, and brown sugar to a saucepan at medium heat.
In a small bowl, combine the cornstarch with water and stir until smooth. Add this cornstarch mixture to the teriyaki sauce in the saucepan. Keep stirring until boiling point then remove from the heat.
Pour the teriyaki sauce onto your stir-fry and use tongs to mix it through the noodles and vegetables until everything is completely coated. Keep stirring for an extra five minutes before serving. Alternatively, take it off the heat and pour the teriyaki sauce into a bowl with chicken wings or thighs, making sure they’re completely covered with the sauce. Marinade overnight in the fridge for grilling the next day.
If you want a thicker and glossier teriyaki sauce, bring the sauce to the boil in the saucepan. Turn down the heat and stir while it simmers for about 10 minutes until you’ve reduced the sauce by half.
Enjoy!
