You may be surprised to learn that beef teriyaki is more popular in the US and other parts of the world than in Japan. Teriyaki is actually a Japanese cooking technique that we commonly use to cook fish and chicken in Japan. We also prepare pork, hamburger steak, and meatballs in this way as well. Today, I’ll show you how to apply the teriyaki cooking method to ribeye steaks in my Beef Teriyaki recipe. It’s a delicious way to prepare beef that’s sure to satisfy the biggest steak lovers!
What is Teriyaki?
In the US, teriyaki is considered a type of sauce. However, teriyaki (照り焼き) in Japanese actually describes a cooking method for how to prepare food. Teri (照り) means luster and yaki (焼き) means grilled, broiled, or pan-fried. So, teriyaki refers to any grilled/broiled/pan-fried food with a shiny glaze. When we prepare food teriyaki-style, we season it with soy sauce, sake, mirin, and sometimes sugar. Today, teriyaki is a wildly popular seasoning in the US and around the world. You’ll find your favorite protein prepared with teriyaki sauce, whether it’s salmon, tofu, chicken wings, burgers, meatballs, or even chicken quesadillas!
How To Make Homemade Teriyaki Sauce
Japanese-style teriyaki seasoning has a delicate flavor. The standard recipe is 2 parts soy sauce, 2 parts sake, 2 parts mirin, and 1 part sugar. Of course, there’s no strict rule, so you’re free to add seasonings as I did here with ginger juice for an extra zing. We don’t use bottled teriyaki sauces in Japan as we make our own seasoning right in the pan. The best teriyaki sauce is homemade like in today’s recipe. It’s as easy as 1-2-3! You can even make a batch of my Homemade Teriyaki Sauce ahead of time so it’s at your fingertips to use for up to 2–3 weeks.
Thin vs. Thick Teriyaki Sauce
Normally in Japan, teriyaki sauce is thin. We reduce the sauce in a pan until it reaches a slightly thicker consistency. We don’t use a cornstarch slurry or honey like non-Japanese versions. On the other hand, Americanized teriyaki sauce is very thick and syrupy. If you prefer a thick sauce, combine ½ tsp potato starch or cornstarch and 1 tsp water and whisk well in a small bowl. Although it’s completely optional, I swirled in some cornstarch slurry this time to demonstrate how to make a thick sauce.
What is Beef Teriyaki?
For beef teriyaki, we start with whole steaks—I like to use thin ribeye steaks. We marinate them briefly in the teriyaki seasoning, then pan-sear them in a hot skillet on the stove. Once they’re seared on both sides and slightly charred, we glaze the beef in the pan with a sweet-savory teriyaki seasoning. We remove the steaks to a plate to rest so the succulent juices redistribute into the meat. It’s common to slice the steak before serving so you can pick up the beef teriyaki slices with chopsticks. It’s delicious served with a bowl of Japanese steamed rice!
Ingredients You’ll Need for Beef Teriyaki
beef ribeye steaks – each ½ inch, 1.25 cm thick neutral oil – to cook the steaks Japanese soy sauce, sake, mirin, sugar, and fresh ginger juice (from grated ginger) – for the sauce and marinade green onion/scallion and toasted white sesame seeds – for the garnish optional potato starch or cornstarch and water – for a slurry to thicken the sauce, if you wish
How To Make Beef Teriyaki
You can make this simple dish in a total time of 1 hour, which includes 15 minutes of prep time, 30 minutes marination, and 15 minutes of cooking.
How To Serve Beef Teriyaki Japanese-style
In Japan, we often serve steak sliced to pick up using chopsticks and eat along with a bowl of hot steamed rice. If you plan to serve it Japanese style, carefully slice the steaks into thin pieces. I sprinkle toasted white sesame seeds and chopped green onion/scallion on top for garnish. Serve the remaining teriyaki sauce at the table to drizzle extra sauce. You can store any leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Hearty and satisfying, this Beef Teriyaki recipe feels extra special compared to your standard weeknight fare, yet it’s quick enough to pull together any night of the week.
Recipes To Serve with Beef Teriyaki
Rice: Garlic Fried Rice, Japanese Brown Rice, Onigiri Rice Balls Soup: Bacon Asparagus Miso Soup, Tomato and Tofu Miso Soup Salad: Arugula Salad with Fennel and Navel Orange, Easy Carrots Salad, green salad with Carrot Ginger Dressing Vegetables: Miso Butter Mushrooms in Foil, Stir Fry Vegetables with snow peas, Broccoli in Sesame Oil, Blistered Shishito Peppers
More Teriyaki Recipes You’ll Love
Teriyaki Salmon Chicken Teriyaki Teriyaki Tofu Teriyaki Burger Teriyaki Chicken Meatballs Teriyaki Wings Homemade Teriyaki Sauce
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