The Best Keto Teriyaki Sauce (Sugar Free, Low Carb)
by The Best Keto Teriyaki Sauce! Look no further. Only 2 net carbs, ready in 5 minutes, sugar free, low carb, and crazy delicious! This low carb sugar-free teriyaki sauce tastes savory, salty, tangy, and little sweet…just like what you get in Japan Izakaya restaurants.
Use it as a marinade or glaze for Air fryer salmon teriyaki, chicken yakitori skewers, or Tsukune (Japanese grilled meatballs). One bottle, multiple uses. The possibilities are endless!
Keto Teriyaki Sauce (sugar-free, 2 grams of net carb!)
This Keto teriyaki sauce is simple, easy, and absolutely delicious and today I share a low carb and keto version. There’s a reason why this sauce is popular around the world. The savory, salty, and sweet flavor packs with loads of umami deliciousness. You can use it as a marinade or a glaze. Super versatile!
In Japan, people rarely buy teriyaki sauce because it’s super easy to make and there’s no reason to spend money to purchase a bottle. The homemade version always tastes better and healthier and I almost always prefer making the sauce my own. My homemade Asian “peanut” sauce and vegetarian oyster sauce are two wonderful examples.
What Is Teriyaki
Teriyaki (照り焼き) in Japanese actually describes a type of cooking method. It means grilled, broiled, or pan fried. Teri (照り) refers to the shin and luster on the food and Yaki (焼き) means the method of grilling. So teriyaki means a cooking method with food that has a shining glaze and it’s not a sauce.
Sugar Free Keto Teriyaki Sauce Ingredients
The ingredients for traditional Japanese teriyaki sauce usually consists of soy sauce, mirin, sugar, sake, and corn or potato starch. To make it keto, low carb, sugar free, and soy free, I use coconut aminos, Lakanto golden monk fruit sweetener, and xanthan gum, and with apple cider vinegar, grated ginger and garlic for extra flavor.
Coconut aminos is made from coconut nectar and sea salt. It tastes sweeter and lighter than soy sauce. They are low in sugar (about 1 gram of sugar per teaspoon). Coconut aminos is a must-have for Paleo Asian-inspired dishes! It’s soy, gluten, and wheat-free. See a video below I made about coconut aminos and subscribe to my youtube channel!
Coconut aminos is pricier than gluten-free tamari. If you are okay with soy, you can still make this sugar free teriyaki sauce with tamari. Please note: Bragg’s liquid amino is NOT the same as Coconut Aminos. It does not taste the same and the ingredients are not the same. If you use liquid aminos, you will be changing my recipe and I cannot guarantee what it will taste like. Just an FYI. 🙂
How To Use Keto Teriyaki Sauce
What I love about this teriyaki sauce is that it’s super versatile. You can use it as a marinade or a glaze.
Use it as a marinade:
Simply don’t add the thickening agent – xanthan gum. Simmer the sauce for about 3 minutes and let it cool completely, and use it as a marinade for chicken, beef, salmon, or shrimp!
Use it as a glaze:
After you bring the sauce to a simmer (about 3 minutes), gradually sprinkle a tiny amount of xanthan gum to the sauce while whisking at the same time and your sauce will be thickened!
It’s perfect for making Teriyaki chicken, Chicken yakitori skewers, Tsukune (Japanese grilled chicken meatballs), Baked gyoza meatballs, and Teriyaki salmon.
How To Make The Best Keto Teriyaki Sauce
- Add the coconut aminos, apple cider vinegar, Lakanto Golden, which is a “brown sugar” erythritol/monk fruit blend, and grated ginger and garlic to a small pot.
- Bring it to a gentle simmer over medium-low heat, about 3 minutes.
- Slowly and gradually sprinkle about ½ tsp xanthan gum to the sauce while whisky at the same time so it won’t clump.
- The sauce will be thickened pretty quickly. Let it cool and you have a pot of shiny sweet and savory Japanese keto teriyaki sauce!
Recipe Variation
If you don’t have all the keto ingredients, here are some alternatives.
- If you use tamari, you can follow the same recipe quantity. The sauce will be saltier than coconut aminos so balance it with a bit more keto sweetener.
- If you use tapioca or arrowroot starch, the carb count will be slightly higher but not that much. My Whole30 and Paleo Teriyaki Sauce uses arrowroot starch.
You can also try chia seeds. They are often used as a thickening/binding agent in low carb cooking. For example: my Keto Scallion Pancakes, low carb oatmeal, or Instant Pot Strawberry compote. I haven’t tried the recipe with chia seeds yet so if you do and find success, please share it in the comment below!
Summary & Important Tips
- Use it as a marinade – you can use the keto teriyaki sauce as a marinade, simply leave out the xanthan gum.
- Use it as a glaze – once the sauce is thickened. Brush it over chicken, beef, or seafood for teriyaki salmon!
- Bring the sauce to simmer – please do not cook down the sauce. It will turn too salty and bitter. As soon as the sauce is simmering, add the thickening agent.
- Don’t turn it into jelly – a small & tiny amount of xanthan gum is all you need. A little goes a long way.
- Smooth shiny sauce – don’t dump the xanthan gum into the pot at once. It will clump. Sprinkle a tiny amount little-by-little while whisking the sauce at the same time.
Other keto sauce/dressing you might like
- Thai peanut sauce
- Vietnamese dipping sauce (nuoc cham)
- Thai dipping sauce (nam jim jaew)
- Chinese peanut sauce (made with almond butter)
- Ranch yogurt dressing
- More Paleo Salad Dressings
What dishes can you make with Keto teriyaki sauce
Brush it on chicken to make air fryer chicken teriyaki, beef, or salmon, use it as a stir-fry sauce for hibachi vegetables and hibachi noodles, or Japanese Tsukune – grilled chicken meatballs. I can’t wait to see your lovely creations!
This keto, low carb, and sugar-free teriyaki sauce is super versatile and you can whip up quickly in a pinch! That salty, sticky, and little sweet flavor is seriously addictive! With only 6 simple ingredients, it’s so easy that you will want to keep it on hand at all times! If you are following paleo or Whole30, check out my paleo teriyaki sauce!
Keto Teriyaki Sauce (Sugar Free, Low Carb, Easy)
Ingredients
- 1.25 cup coconut aminos, or gluten-free and low sodium tamari. See notes.
- 3 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 3 tsp grated ginger
- 3 tsp grated garlic
- 3 tsp Lakanto golden monk fruit sweetener
- 0.5 tsp xanthan gum
Instructions
- In a small to medium size pot, add ingredients from the coconut amino to the sweetener.
- Give it a stir and cover the pot with a lid. Bring it to a gentle simmer over medium-low heat, about 3 minutes.
- Slowly and gradually sprinkle in the xanthan gum little-by-little while whisking the hot simmering sauce at the same time. The sauce will thicken pretty quickly.
- Off heat. Let it cool to room temperature before packing it to a mason jar. Store it in the fridge and best use it in 2-3 weeks.
Notes
- If you use tamari, you can follow the same recipe instructions BUT please reduce the quantity. Tamari or gf soy sauce is much saltier than coconut aminos and is not as sweet. You’ll need to balance it with more sweetener.
- Please also note that if you are used to store bought teriyaki sauce, you’ll notice that this homemade version is NOT AS SWEET. Feel free to add more sweetener to your own liking.
- If you use tapioca or arrowroot starch, the carb count will be slightly higher but not that much. My Whole30 and Paleo Teriyaki Sauce uses arrowroot starch.
- If you use this sauce as a marinade, simply leave out the xanthan gum.
- Bring the sauce to simmer – please do not cook down the sauce. It will turn too salty and bitter. As soon as the sauce is simmering, add the thickening agent.
- Don’t turn it into jelly – a small & tiny amount of xanthan gum is all you need. A little goes a long way.
- Use my keto teriyaki sauce for Tsukune (Japanese grilled chicken meatballs), Chicken Yakitori, Teriyaki chicken, grilled beef, and air fryer teriyaki salmon!
- If use low sodium gluten-free tamari, the net carb is 1.
- Please note: Bragg’s liquid amino is NOT the same as Coconut Aminos. It does not taste the same and the ingredients are not the same. If you use liquid aminos, you will be changing my recipe and I cannot guarantee what it will taste like. Just an FYI. 🙂
Nutrition
I love this sauce! Has anyone tried freezing it? It’s been 2 years since the question was asked. I’m hoping there’s an update?
Hello Andrea, thank you. You can freeze the sauce I recommend using ice cube trays but the flavor might not be as fragrant as the ginger really pops when it’s fresh.
Is it 9 tbsp or tsp of ACV?
It’s 3 tbsp (9 tsp) thank you!
Can I use powdered garlic and powdered ginger I don’t have fresh and I’m wondering how much I should use?
Yes you can. The flavor might be stronger for the powdered version so start with 1/4 tsp garlic and 1/8 tsp ginger powder first and you can taste and adjust!
Has anyone tried using red boat fish sauce in place of coconut aminos? I LOVE That fish sauce and dislike coco aminos intensely. I don’t like coconut flavor really. I’ve heard mixing fish sauce with coco aminos even out flavor and masks the coconut. Any thoughts?
Hello April, I would not recommend it – at least not altering this recipe for fish sauce. You can try Ocean’s Halo soy-free soy sauce. Coconut aminos doesn’t taste coconut to me though. Also Bragg’s liquid amino is not the same as coconut aminos just want to make sure. I use Big Tree Farm coconut aminos. It tastes similar to dark sweet soy sauce flavor to me. 🙂 I haven’t tried Ocean’s Halo yet but if you want, grab a bottle and see if you like the flavor!
Can you add the ingredients to a slow cooker and add raw chicken and cook on Low for 8hrs?
Hello Alyson, theoretically it should work. Now I don’t know how much liquid you need to add to the slow cooker in proportion to the chicken in a slow cooker though. Also you probably also don’t need to thicken the sauce until after the chicken is cooked in a slow cooker.
LOVE THIS!! Added a tsp of toasted sesame oil at the end.
AWESOME!
I used honey for the sweetener and didn’t end up using a thickener (mainly because I didn’t have any on hand!) and it turned out so good! This recipe with chicken rice and broccoli is so good!
Hi,
I just made this teriyaki and I added honey for the sweetener and arrowroot to thicken. I had it over Salmon. Outstanding! Thank you!
Debra
how long will this keep and will it crystalize when it cools?
thank you, I look forward to trying it!
Hi Glenn, I haven’t noticed mine turning crystalize if I store it in the fridge. 🙂
Hi, I followed the recipe and it’s really salty. I put more sweetener but it didn’t help. Is it supposed to to be that salty?
Hey Trixie, no it shouldn’t be. What type of salt did you use? For example fine salt is way saltier than coarse sea salt, if measuring the same quantity. The flavor profile should be balanced – savory, little sweet, and tart. 🙂
The recipe calls for 9TBSP of vinegar is that correct? The reason I ask is the other measurements are in TSP and that seems like a lot of vinegar, but I could be wrong just thought I would ask. Thanks
Hey Matt, I replied your question in an email already but just in case – The sauce makes it 1 CUP after simmered.
To make the sauce 1 cup, it’s 9 tbsp apple cider vinegar. 🙂
Ooh, I’m going to make this and use it on allllll the things.
I used liquid aminos and this came out so salty! I added extra Monk fruit and some honey in an attempt to balance it out and it didn’t work at all 😞 We just couldn’t use it unfortunately. Did I do something wrong?
Liquid Aminos is NOT the same as Coconut Aminos. I don’t recommend using liquid aminos as the ingredient components are not that good for you. Based on what I’ve heard, liquid aminos tastes terrible. I cannot not vouch if people decide to use a different bottle of seasonings. I use coconut aminos from Big Tree Farms. Thank you!
Made this tonight. Sooooooooo good!!!!
Lovely!
Love teriyaki sauce and I tend to make a large batch and keep it too! Low this low carb version. More reasons to have more teriyaki style food!
I can’t wait to try this sauce on chicken! I love teriyaki!
Ah, this sauce is so delicious! So much better than store bought! I can enjoy teriyaki dishes on keto! Thank you!
can I sub stevia for the monk fruit sweetener?
Yes! Please adjust the sweetener quantity to your liking. 🙂
Im wondering if your sauces and be put in freezer so its fast and easy to have on hand
Hi Tracy! Great question. I haven’t tried it in the freezer. I think it should keep well in the freezer but I don’t know the texture after it’s defrosted. You might need to try it around a bit. I think the flavor should still be great just need some tweak on the texture. Another thought is maybe don’t add the starch (the thickener) if you want to freeze the sauce for later. And add the thickener when you need to use the sauce. How does that sound? XOXO
This is seriously the best keto teriyaki sauce we’ve made. Very easy to make and comes together quickly! The other day I used it for teriyaki salmon and it was sweet and savory delicious!
Thanks so much. So happy to hear!