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–+ servings

Homemade Unagi Sauce (Sweet Eel Sauce)

Cook Time15 minutes
Total Time15 minutes
Author Yuto Omura
Servings 3 portions

Ingredients 
 

Instructions 

  • Add 3 tbsp turbinado sugar and 1 tsp dark brown sugar to a small saucepan and heat on medium.
    turbinado sugar and dark brown sugar in a pan to make unagi sauce
  • Once it starts to melt, add 5 tbsp sake and 5 tbsp mirin. Stir occasionally while it comes to a gentle boil.
    melted sugar, mirin and sake in a sauce pan to make unagi sauce
  • Let it bubble for 1-2 minutes and then turn the heat down to low, then add 5 tbsp Japanese soy sauce (koikuchi shoyu) and simmer for 10 minutes or until thickened.
    adding soy sauce to pan to make unagi sauce
  • Once thickened to a thin syrup-like consistency, remove from the heat and scoop out any excess foam. Leave to cool to finish thickening.
    thickening unagi sauce in a saucepan
  • Enjoy with eel or brushed over rice!
    Yuto Omura brushing the skin side of grilled unagi with homemade kabayaki sauce

Notes

Judge doneness cold, not hot: The hot pan reads thinner than the real result, so pull the sauce while it still looks too loose. Reduce until it looks right hot and it sets to candy when cool.
Add liquid the moment the sugar starts melting: Do not wait for full caramel. The sugar should look wet and just moving, not amber. A few seconds too long and it scorches, and burnt sugar cannot be saved.
Thicken by reduction, never cornstarch: Tare sets as it cools, so keep it at a low simmer a few minutes longer if needed. Reaching for cornstarch leaves a gluey texture and is not how this sauce is made.