Is Authentic Beef Teriyaki Really Better?

You may really love beef teriyaki, and still be completely disappointed with this recipe. I know I'm usually a little more optimistic in my intros, but this is one of those recipes that I know will bring a few emails with messages like, "Thanks for making me waste a good piece of top sirloin - what the hell was that?"

The reason for this is real teriyaki sauce is quite a bit different than most food court aficionados are used to. Outside of your better Japanese restaurants, what's usually served as teriyaki is a very thick, very sweet, very salty, very one-dimensional sauce.

"Real" teriyaki sauce is fairly thin, and gets its signature taste from a heady combination of soy sauce, Sake, and Mirin, a sweet rice wine condiment. It's an extremely simple sauce, yet the flavors are much more complex that the familiar Americanized version; often made with just soy, brown sugar, and cornstarch.

But just because this recipe is more authentic, and contains classic Japanese ingredients, doesn't necessarily mean you will enjoy it anymore than the thick sweet goo they splash on your meat at Tugboat Tommy's Teriyaki Terrace.

I really hope you give it a try and I'm very anxious to hear what you think. By the way, assuming you do like it, this same sauce can be used on virtually anything with equally delicious results. Enjoy!

Note: this beef teriyaki video recipe was produced for About.com and can't be played on the blog. When you click on the video a new window will open and the recipe will begin.