Flavour Your Meats With Teriyaki Sauce

ABC Cooking Studio, which opened in Singapore in 2015, specialises in teaching people how to prepare Japanese cuisine. In this issue, we find out how to prepare teriyaki sauce.

“Commonly used in Japan, teriyaki sauce has a sweet, appetising taste that is loved by adults and children alike. In Japanese, teri means to add shine, and yaki means to grill. It’s no wonder that teriyaki sauce is best paired with meats. The sauce moistens, flavours, and adds colour to your well-loved meat dishes. This Japanese favourite is versatile too. If you want to mask the odours of fish, simply cook your sauce with garlic and ginger. It can also be used as a marinade to soak your ingredients in before cooking.

We’re sharing our recipe for Hamburg Steak and Teriyaki Salmon as it is simple to make, and shows off the versatility of teriyaki sauce. The sauce can be used before cooking as a marinade, during cooking as a flavour enhancer, or even after cooking to create an aesthetically pleasing, glazed appearance. Diet-conscious folk out there need not worry either: teriyaki sauce contains a low number of calories. But watch out for its high sodium content!

It is important to reduce the alcohol content of sake and mirin by heating the mixture on a pan using low to medium heat. As it boils, alcohol and water from the mixture begins to evaporate, leaving concentrated flavours that will intensify the appetising taste of your sauce. During this, you should only expect gentle, simmering bubbles. Instead, if you see vigorous, brown bubbles appearing, it means the mixture is burnt. This ruins the taste of your teriyaki sauce, and creates an unpleasant, sticky texture.

Also, remember to remove the pan from heat when adding soy sauce. Intense heat breaks down the flavour of soy sauce, and destroys the taste of your finished product. However, don’t fret if you added too much water: simply mix in potato starch to thicken.

(Text Matthew Fam/Recipes ABC Cooking Studio)

Teriyaki Sauce

For convenience, white caster sugar is usually used to make the sauce. But for this recipe, we are using kibisato (Japanese fine cane sugar). Available at most Japanese food stores, this sand-hued sugar will give our sauce a richer taste and colour.

Ingredients (1 serving)
4 teaspoons mirin
4 teaspoons sake
1 tablespoon soy sauce
2 teaspoons sugar
4 teaspoons water

Directions
1. Pour mirin and sake in a pan. Cook using low to medium heat for 1 to 2 minutes until mixture thickens and turns yellowish.
2. Remove pan from stove. Stir in soy sauce and sugar.
3. Place pan back on stove, and add water according to desired thickness.
For ginger or garlic flavoured teriyaki sauce: add sliced ginger or garlic to mask meat odours. Continue with Step 4.
For marinade: remove from pan and cool, then add to meat for marinating.
4. Heat for another 1 to 2 minutes.
5. Remove pan from heat and leave to cool. The sauce should further thicken. If it’s too runny, add a little potato starch and mix until desired consistency.
6. To check for thickness, drop the sauce on the back of a spoon.
If it flows off easily, the sauce is too runny.

Watch how to make Hamburg Steak at OISHII TV on YouTube

Hamburg Steak

Ingredients (2 servings)
150g minced pork and beef
80g onion
½ egg
2 tablespoons breadcrumbs
Pinch of salt, nutmeg, and black pepper
Teriyaki sauce
1 tablespoon oil
Broccoli
Cherry tomato

Preparation
Combine onions with minced pork and beef in mixing bowl until sticky.
Add egg and bread crumbs to mixture. Then, form a patty.
Scoop patty from mixing bowl, and toss back to reduce air pockets.
Add nutmeg, salt, and black pepper.
Shape patty.
Press a dent in centre of patty to prevent it from bloating while cooking.

Directions
1. Heat oil in pan.
2. Place patty in pan with dented side facing up.
3. Fry for one minute before flipping over.
4. To cook with sauce: pour teriyaki sauce in and cover pan with lid. Turn off heat for 2 to 3 minutes while moving pan in sifting motion. Plate patty and serve.
5. To glaze with sauce: plate patty and drizzle teriyaki sauce over.
6. Decorate with broccoli and cherry tomato before serving.

Teriyaki Salmon

Ingredients (2 servings)
2 x 70g salmon fillets
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon oil
Teriyaki sauce
Grated radish

Preparation
Remove excess moisture from salmon with paper towel.
Sprinkle salt on both sides of salmon and leave for 10 minutes.

Directions
1. Heat oil in pan.
2. Fry only one side of salmon for 2 to 3 minutes.
3. Remove salmon from pan. Dab excess oil with paper towel.
4. Pour in portion of teriyaki sauce and boil until it thickens.
5. Put salmon back in pan with the uncooked side facing down. Fry for 2 to 3 minutes.
6. Drizzle remaining teriyaki sauce evenly on top surface of salmon.
7. Plate salmon with grated radish and serve.