Unagi Sauce is a sweet and savory Japanese sauce that goes well with so many dishes and comes together in just 10 minutes. While it is traditionally served with unagi, it also tastes delicious with beef, chicken, fish, tofu, eggplant, and more!
Drizzle unagi sauce on unagi, as seen in our popular Unagi Hand Roll and Unagi Don, or drizzle it on cooked fish, beef, chicken, tofu, and veggies. When cooked, the thick and syrupy sauce caramelizes beautifully and adds a unique bbq flavor. We recommend making a batch and keeping it in your fridge or freezing it for whenever you want to add it to your favorite meals.
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About Unagi Sauce
- Taste - The combination of ingredients create a rich umami flavored sauce.
- Texture - The sauce is like a thick and stickier teriyaki sauce.
- Effort - All you need to do is whisk and simmer the ingredients.
- Time - It takes less than 10 minutes to mix and simmer the ingredients.
Ingredients
- Mirin - Mirin is a Japanese sweet rice wine that adds umami flavor and is the base of many Japanese sauces and marinades.
- Granulated sugar - Sugar adds sweetness to the sauce.
- Sake - Sake adds savoriness.
- Soy sauce - Soy sauce, or shoyu in Japanese, is an essential condiment in Japanese cooking. It adds rich savory and umami flavors to the sauce.
See recipe card for quantities.
Instructions
- Mix ingredients - Add mirin, sugar, and sake to a sauce pan over medium heat. Whisk the ingredients. Once the mixture reaches a boil, turn down the heat to low and add the soy sauce and whisk. Simmer for 10 minutes and occasionally stir.
- Cool and store - Once the sauce thickens to the desired consistency, remove it from heat. If it's too thick, mix in an extra tablespoon of soy sauce and mirin to thin the sauce. Allow to cool then transfer to a container and refrigerate.
Hint: Keep an eye on the sauce to ensure the sugar doesn't burn. If it bubbles too long, remove the pan from the heat and whisk to cool.
What to Serve with Unagi Sauce
Unagi sauce is a multifaceted sauce that can enhance the flavor of a wide variety of dishes, especially bbq dishes. Here are our favorite ways to enjoy it:
- A sauce for cooked meat or fish or anything barbecued. All you need to do is coat the meat in the sauce. For example, we like to cook salmon in the oven for about 10 minutes and 5 minutes in we will drizzle the salmon in unagi sauce.
- Drizzled over other types of sushi or steamed Japanese rice.
- Dipping sauce for broccoli, roasted asparagus, and other vegetables. If you want to make this unagi sauce for veggies, combine ½ cup of kewpie mayo and 1 tablespoon of unagi sauce
Substitutions
- Teriyaki sauce - Substitute homemade eel sauce with teriyaki sauce if you prefer a slightly sweeter sauce with a more molasses like flavor.
- Yuzu ponzu sauce - Yuzu Ponzu is a smoky and citrusy sauce that makes a delicious marinade or dipping sauce. It is also thinner and more savory than unaig sauce.
- Store-bought unagi sauce - If you don't feel like making the sauce yourself, you can buy premade unagi sauce.
FAQ
The ingredients are usually available at Japanese markets, like Mitsuwa or Nijiya, or some common chain grocery stores. You can also buy some of the ingredients online.
No, this sauce is just called unagi sauce because it is commonly served with unagi sushi rolls.
No, this sauce has no ingredients that make it spicy. It has a sweet umami flavor similar to teriyaki.
No, soy sauce has gluten. If you want to make this recipe gluten-free, replace soy sauce with tamari.
While the ingredients in this sauce are not particularly healthy, they are fine in moderation. In order to reduce the amount of sodium, you can replace soy sauce with low sodium soy sauce.
It should be fine since there is no raw fish and only a very small amount of sake. In order to be safe, replace sake with mirin, rice vinegar, or water. If you are going to eat it with sake, we recommend consulting your doctor first.
Equipment
This easy eel sauce recipe calls for just a few common kitchen essentials, including measuring spoons, a small saucepan, whisk, and a jar or container to store.
Storage
Store homemade eel sauce in the refrigerator in an air-tight container or lidded jar for up to 2 weeks. Before using it again, stir it softly until it reaches its original consistency. You can also freeze it for a few months. Just be sure to store it in the correct container (not a lidded glass jar, which can break in the freezer).
Top tips
- Use a baking spatula to scrape all of the sauce from the bowl and eliminate food waste.
- To use homemade unagi sushi sauce as a sauce for meat or fish, drizzle the sauce on the meat while cooking. Be careful not to cook the sauce too long or it will burn.
- For fresh sauce, do not leave the sauce out at room temperature for an extended period of time.
Did You Like this Recipe?
If you loved this unagi sauce recipe, please rate and comment on the recipe below! If you want to make other delicious sauces and condiments, check these out:
- Spicy Kewpie Mayo (Sauce for Poke, Sushi, and More)
- Yuzu Ponzu Sauce
- Spicy Chipotle Mayo Sauce
- Healthy Ranch Dressing with Greek Yogurt
How to Make Unagi Sauce
Ingredients
- 6 tablespoon mirin
- 3 tablespoon granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoon sake
- 6 tablespoon soy sauce
Instructions
- Mix ingredients - Add mirin, sugar, and sake to a sauce pan on medium heat. Whisk the ingredients. Once the mixture reaches a boil, turn down the heat to low and add the soy sauce and whisk. Simmer for 10 minutes and occasionally stir.6 tablespoon mirin, 3 tablespoon granulated sugar, 2 tablespoon sake, 6 tablespoon soy sauce
- Cool and store - Once the sauce thickens to the desired consistency, remove from heat. If it's too thick, mix in an extra tablespoon of soy sauce and mirin to thin the sauce. Allow to cool then transfer to a container and refrigerate.
Notes
Storage
Store homemade unagi sauce in the refrigerator in an air-tight container or lidded jar for up to 2 weeks. Before using it again, stir it softly until it reaches its original consistency. You can also freeze it for a few months. Just be sure to store it in the correct container (not a lidded glass jar, which can break in the freezer).Top tips
- Use a baking spatula to scrape all of the sauce from the bowl and eliminate food waste.
- To use homemade unagi sauce as a sauce for meat or fish, drizzle the sauce on the meat while cooking. Be careful not to cook the sauce too long or it will burn.
- For fresh sauce, do not leave the sauce out at room temperature for an extended period of time.
Nutrition
Food safety
- Cook to a minimum temperature of 165 °F (74 °C)
- Do not use the same utensils on cooked food, that previously touched raw meat
- Wash hands after touching raw meat
- Don't leave food sitting out at room temperature for extended periods
- Never leave cooking food unattended
- Use oils with high smoking point to avoid harmful compounds
- Always have good ventilation when using a gas stove
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