Easy Japanese Eel Sauce - Unagi Sauce

Easy Japanese Eel Sauce - Unagi Sauce

Make this easy sweet and savoury unagi sauce with just 4 ingredients - tamari, sake, sugar and mirin. Also known as Japanese eel sauce, it's perfect for drizzling over homemade sushi, noodles and more!

Course Basics, Condiment

Cuisine Japanese

Prep Time 2

Cook Time 15

Total Time 17

Servings Small Jar

Calories 237kcal

Author Wandercooks

Cost $5

Equipment

1 Small saucepan

Ingredients

3 tbsp tamari sub soy sauce
3 tbsp mirin
3 tbsp sake
1 ½ tbsp sugar

Instructions

Place sake, mirin and sugar in a small saucepan over medium high heat. Bring to a boil and cook for 2-3 minutes to cook off the alcohol.
3 tbsp mirin, 3 tbsp sake, 1 ½ tbsp sugar
Add tamari, then continue to simmer over a medium high heat for around 5-10 minutes or until the sauce reduces by at least half. If you want an extra thick sauce, you can reduce this further, down to a third or more.
3 tbsp tamari
Use unagi sauce for more than just basting eel. This is a nice alternative sauce for yakitori, teriyaki or tsukune chicken. You can even slather it over your onigiri!

Notes

Double the Recipe - If you know you’ll use it up, make a double batch and store it in a squeezy bottle for extra convenience.
Don’t Over-Cook - Cooking the sauce for too long or over too high heat can burn the sauce around the edges of the pan and result in a bitter flavour.
Extra Thick - If the sauce isn’t quite as thick as you’d like, stir in a simple cornstarch slurry (1 tsp cornstarch dissolved in 2 tsp water) to thicken it up even more.
Storage - This sauce is best used within 1-2 months. Store in an airtight glass bottle or jar in the fridge.
Adjust Sweetness - You can double or halve the sugar according to your own tastes. If you double it, just note the sauce will reduce quicker so adjust your cooking time and keep an eye on it as you reduce it.
Add Nuttiness - Try it with a splash of sesame oil or a sprinkling of ground toasted sesame seeds.
Make it Spicy - Stir in a sprinkling of sansho (Japanese pepper), regular black pepper, shichimi togarashi or cayenne pepper.
Even More Umami - Add half a cup of dashi stock and cook the sauce down for longer to bring even more savoury flavour to the sauce.

Nutrition