Featured Comment:
“Great recipe. I never buy store sauces anymore. Much easier to make them. Thank you.”
– Garry (from Facebook)
What is Yakiniku Sauce in Japan?
Yakiniku sauce, also known as Yakiniku no Tare (焼き肉のタレ) in Japan, is a dipping sauce that is used for barbecued (grilled) meat. It is primarily made with soy sauce and flavored with spices and aromatics like garlic and chili peppers. It’s sweet taste through the addition of sweeteners such as sugar, fruit juices and sometimes honey.
In Japan, store-bought sauces are often used because achieving the unique flavor at home requires a variety of ingredients. Nonetheless, with some creativity, you can recreate that taste at home. Try it as one of the sauces you use in your everyday barbecue!
How I Developed This Recipe
To be honest, I lost count of how many times I experimented with this recipe before I was 100% satisfied. My goal was to create an authentic Yakiniku sauce with the distinctive sweet, fruity, and slightly spicy flavor commonly found in Japan.
I used Moranbong’s “Jan (ジャン)” sauce as a benchmark since I considered it the best on the store-bought market. I worked hard to improve upon it using my creativity to the maximum.
The end result is a truly simple yet delicious sauce that is better than store-bought! I hope you enjoy this sauce for your next BBQ!
Key Ingredients & Substitution Ideas
- Soy Sauce: It is an important element of the base of the sauce. Please see our guide to soy sauce article to learn more about how to choose soy sauce in Japanese cuisine.
- Sake: To achieve the best flavor in your cooking, I recommend drinking-grade, salt-free sake, as it lacks the added salt found in most cooking sake. If sake is unavailable, I recommend white wine or dry sherry as good substitutes. Learn more about sake in cooking in our Sake 101 article.
- Mirin: Hon Mirin (本みりん) is the preferred choice for adding authentic Japanese flavor. To better understand the nuances between hon mirin and other types, along with recommendations for brands, see my mirin guide.
- Apple: I recommend a sweeter variety to add a subtle, natural sweetness to achieve a distinctive flavor profile.
- Chili Powder: A less spicy variety is ideal for yakiniku sauce as it shouldn’t be too spicy or hot. I used cayenne pepper powder for this.
- Other ingredients: Garlic, ginger, onion, lemon juice, honey, white pepper powder, sesame oil, sesame seeds, and ketchup add authentic flavor and complexity to the sauce.
How to Store
To properly store homemade yakiniku barbecue sauce, I recommend to pour it into a clean storage jar that has been sterilized by boiling water, and store it in the refrigerator. It is best to store it at the back of the refrigerator where the temperature is constant.
The shelf life is about 5 days. If you can’t use it up in that time frame, you can divide it into smaller portions and freeze them for 1-2 months.
More Japanese Sauce Recipes
Homemade Yakiniku BBQ Sauce
Ingredients
- 3 tbsp soy sauce
- 3 tbsp sake
- 3 tbsp mirin
- 1 ½ tbsp tomato ketchup
- 1 tbsp honey
- ¼ tsp lemon juice
- 1 tsp ginger root grated
- 1 clove garlic grated
- ¼ yellow onion grated
- 1 tbsp grated apple
- ½ tsp chili powder I used cayenne pepper powder
- ⅛ tsp white pepper powder
- ½ tbsp toasted sesame oil
- ½ tbsp white sesame seeds
Instructions
- Measure out all of the ingredients into a small saucepan. Place the pan on the stove and heat on low-medium/low.
- Simmer for 2-3 minutes while stirring continuously, then remove from the heat.
- Serve and enjoy!
Leave a rating and a comment