Sugar Free Teriyaki Sauce

This sugar free teriyaki sauce is so easy to make! It’s paleo, AIP friendly, and Whole30 compliant. Who needs takeout when you can make sauce this good?

This sugar free teriyaki sauce is damned delicious.

When I was making it, I wanted to add more ginger, but I wasn’t sure if it would be a mistake. I took a gamble, and it paid off. The balance of sweet and tangy is perfect.

If you know me, you know I’m big on sauces. Some of my reader favorites are my Homemade Ranch Dressing, Garlic Cream Sauce, Sundried Tomato Cream Sauce, and Dairy Free Cheese Sauce.

I’ve been on an asian kick recently, and made this Korean Bulgogi Sauce to go with my Bulgogi Bowls. In sticking with the asian theme, I decided to try my hand at teriyaki.

What is teriyaki sauce

Teriyaki sauce is a traditional Japanese sauce or marinade. It’s used as a marinade when it’s thinner; here, we are going to reduce and thicken it to use it as a sauce.

What goes in teriyaki sauce

Traditional teriyaki sauce is made up of four main ingredients:

• Soy sauce
• sake
• sugar
• ginger

Since the ginger is the only thing that fits on paleo or Whole30, I decided to venture out and make a sugar free teriyaki sauce that I could use at home!

What goes in sugar free teriyaki sauce

This teriyaki sauce is not only sugar free, it’s Whole30 and AIP friendly. Winning! I’ve replaced the soy sauce with coconut aminos, the sugar with applesauce and pineapple juice, and the sake with, well, nothing – other ingredients!

The end result is a perfectly thick and sticky teriyaki sauce. All of the flavor, none of the guilt.

What you can use this sugar free teriyaki sauce with

Honestly, anything.

I’d recommend a stir fry with some chicken to start. You could put it on any vegetables you like. Think of it as a boost of flavor to an otherwise boring meal! If you need a recipe idea, try my Weeknight Stir-Fry, and instead of using the sauce recipe in the post, use this teriyaki sauce!

(Yes, I know it says it’s Chinese stir-fry. Without the sauce, it’s just meat and vegetables. Just trust me, and use it!)

Using this as a marinade

If you’re going to use this as a teriyaki marinade, I would omit the tapioca starch. That is there to thicken the sauce as it heats. As a marinade, you don’t want it to thicken.

For a marinade, eliminate tapioca and do not heat it up. There’s not a reason to heat it, as you don’t need to thicken it. Just blend it up so the flavors have an opportunity to come together, then marinate your meat or vegetables.

Yes, you can marinate vegetables!