8 Best Teriyaki Sauce Substitutes

Teriyaki is one of the most popular Asian sauces in America and can be used for anything from salmon to tofu. If you can't get it, here are some of the best Teriyaki Sauce 照り焼きのたれsubstitutes as well as an easy homemade recipe!

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• Best Substitutes
• Worcestershire Sauce + Sugar
• How to use
• 💬 Comments

Teriyaki sauce 照り焼きのたれ is a cornerstone of Japanese cuisine. The sweet sauce is savory, full of umami, and very flexible: it can be used for anything from stir fry to teriyaki meatballs, shrimp teriyaki stir fry, and pasta!

If you're about to make yourself some teriyaki salmon or chicken skewers, but don't have time to get the sauce from the grocery stores, no worries: here are some of the best teriyaki sauce substitutes, as well as an easy homemade recipe. (Much better and healthier than shop-bought too!)

I've also included options below for those who are celiac/ on a gluten-free diet.

Teriyaki (照り焼き) is actually a Japanese cooking method, and the name describes the glaze of the grilled/ pan fried/ broiled dish. The sugar and the mirin give the dish its lustre and sweet flavor. However, outside of America (and in this article), teriyaki usually refers to a sauce.

Best Substitutes

The best substitute would be something that is:

• savory and umami
• sweet
• thick and sticky

Homemade Teriyaki Sauce Recipe

The best replacement for store-bought teriyaki sauce is a DIY homemade one. And, honestly, it tastes better too!

You only need 4 simple ingredients to make an authentic Japanese sauce. Simmer the ingredients on low or medium heat for 10-15 minutes till thick:

• 1 cup of Japanese soy sauce (as it tastes different to Korean or Chinese soy sauce. However, I'll confess to using Lee Kum Kee or whatever I have on hand!)
• ½ cup of sugar: both brown sugar and white sugar work. Honey and maple syrup are not commonly used in Japan but you can use it if you want. (Don't use raw honey as the heat will destroy the nutrients.)
• 1 cup of mirin
• 1 cup of sake

No other ingredients are added in Japanese cuisine teriyaki. Remember to store the homemade sauce in the fridge in an airtight container.

Use tamari instead of soy sauce if GF. Mirin and sake are naturally gluten-free but check the packaging to make sure the processing facilities are GF too.

However, the sauce can sometimes enhanced with:

• rice vinegar (or apple cider vinegar, lime juice, pineapple juice or orange juice)
• fresh garlic
• ground ginger
• cornstarch slurry (to thicken the sauce/ reduce the amount of sugar you need to use.)
• sesame oil
• sesame seeds

For example, the acidity helps to make teriyaki noodles much more appetising! Similarly, I use cornstarch in teriyaki chicken meatballs so that the savory sauce can better coat the meat.

Note: if you can't get soy sauce, you can use coconut aminos as a replacement.

Soy Sauce + Sugar

If you can't get the Japanese alcohols, sake and mirin, you can just mix 1 Cup of soy sauce and ½ Cup of sugar. (As you can see, we're basically playing around with the basic ingredients.)

Add Shaoxing wine or dry sherry if you have some on hand. If not, omit.

Butter + Soy Sauce + Sugar

If you don't have mirin and sake, you can mix 1 Cup of light soy sauce, butter (to taste), and ½ Cup of sugar (or sweet soy sauce/ kecap manis and butter) to create something similar in flavor.

Click through to this soy sauce mushroom recipe for exact proportions.

Hoisin Sauce

A Japanese person reading this will probably close the tab now but if you're truly desperate you can consider using hoisin sauce. It won't give you an authentic Japanese dish, but this Chinese sauce is similarly sweet, thick, and savory.

Use in a 1:1 replacement ratio, but you'll need to add some liquid to dilute the sauce (as hoisin is thicker.)

Note: some people suggest oyster sauce as a substitute, but it has a seafood flavor that teriyaki doesn't so I'm not including it on this list.

Korean BBQ sauce

Korean barbecue sauce (Korean galbi sauce) has a unique flavor that is also sweet and deep.

Use in a 1:1 replacement ratio- you'll need some liquid to dilute the sauce as it's thicker.

Worcestershire Sauce + Sugar

Worcestershire sauce is tangy and savory, like teriyaki sauce that has had rice vinegar/ fruit juice added to it (as is common in the US.)

Simmer 2 portions of Worcestershire sauce and 1 portion of sugar to thicken it. (You can increase to a 1:1 ratio if you prefer a sweeter flavor.) Alternatively, if you want to skip heating the sauce, mix the Worcestershire sauce with something thicker like honey or maple syrup.

Use in a 1:1 ratio to replace Teriyaki.

How to use

Any questions about what to use in place of teriyaki sauce? et me know in the comments!