Teriyaki Sauce and Marinade

Where do I start? Truth be told, there are multiple motives behind preparing this. I think teriyaki sauce can easily be taken for granted because it?s so accessible. I use store-bought teriyaki frequently as a marinade for grilling but was getting bored with it. Also, when I looked at the ingredient list on the back label of the Kikkoman container, I noticed high fructose corn syrup listed. (I don?t think that was an original ingredient when it was first made in Japan.) Then, one evening when I was watching the fifth season of The Next Food Network Star, I remember contestant Jamika Pessoa complaining about having to buy store-bought teriyaki while she was getting ingredients at the local supermarket to use in a challenge and how she wasn?t able to control the taste. It never ocured to me to make a teriyaki sauce from scratch.

I?ve also looked into several culinary schools. One commonality I?ve noticed between them in their course curriculum has been where they start with fundamentals: sauces. This has started to make sense because, in my own experiences in writing this blog, I?ve noticed that the sauce is often the star of the dish. (See Pork Chops with Spiced Apples and Raisins, Chicken Adobo, Honey-Mustard Glazed Ribs among others.)

Recipe

I took the recipe from Easy and Tasty Food.

Notes

Fortunately, the cooking method for this recipe couldn’t be simpler. It is for that reason that there isn’t much to discuss here.

1. Ingredients. I used freshly minced ginger. Also, when I added the corn starch mixture, it not only thickened the sauce, it lightened the color. I wonder if it would be necessary if the teriyaki was intended to be used as a marinade.

Ingredients Sans the Water

Corn Starch Mixture

Final Thoughts

In most of my other posts, I’ve included a picture of the final product at the top. In this case, this recipe really cannot be consumed by itself. In fact, I used this batch of teriyaki sauce in another recipe I will write about in a future post. Until then, I will leave you with

Teriyaki Sauce Simmering

To be continued…