Here is a 15- minute quick recipe for flaky and juicy pan-fried teriyaki salmon. It’s pan-fried to crispy perfection and basted with a delicious homemade teriyaki sauce, made right there in the same pan. The buttery fried salmon pairs perfectly with the sweet and tangy sauce. This is a great recipe for a busy or lazy weeknight.

green onion brown sugar soy sauce rice vinegar roasted sesame seeds — Green onion, brown sugar, soy sauce, rice vinegar, and roasted sesame seeds

How to Make Teriyaki Sauce

There are many brands of teriyaki sauce that you can pick up at the grocery store. But if you cook Asian food regularly, it’s most likely that you have all the ingredients in your pantry. Instead of grabbing that commercial bottle that you may or may not like, put together some simple ingredients to make your own teriyaki sauce at home. Plus, you can adjust the saltiness and sweetness exactly to your preference.

To make your own teriyaki sauce, you’ll need:

Soy sauce: I’m using Kikkoman low-sodium soy sauce. If you are using regular soy sauce, use a bit less or mix with a small amount of water to counter the additional saltiness.
Brown sugar: To balance out the salty umami flavor of the soy sauce, you need a sweetener. Some recipes use honey or a combination of honey and sugar. For this recipe, I’m keeping it simple with just brown sugar.
Ginger: Freshly grated ginger adds a special Asian zing to the sauce.
Garlic: You can’t have ginger without garlic. These two go hand-in-hand in most recipes. Plus, it smells amazing when fried with a bit of oil.
Rice vinegar: This adds the perfect acidity to bring all the flavors together. Traditional teriyaki sauce uses mirin, a sweetened Japanese rice wine. Mirin can be difficult to find in stores. Rice vinegar is a more widely available substitute.
Cornstarch slurry: 1 teaspoon cornstarch + 1/4 cup water. This thickens up the sauce quickly.

Corn starch + cold water = corn starch slurry
Traditional teriyaki sauce doesn’t require this slurry because soy sauce and sugar will reduce into a glaze. But if you want to quickly thicken up a sauce, this is the way to go. If you don’t have corn starch, you can substitute it with tapioca or potato starch.

For this recipe, there's no need to marinate the salmon beforehand. Simply pan-fry the fillets with a bit of oil until golden brown. Heat up a nonstick skillet with oil and place salmon skin-side down. Pan fry for about 5 minutes on medium-low heat until you get a nice crust. Cooking time may vary depending on the thickness of your salmon. Flip and repeat on the other side. Remove the fried fillets from the pan and set aside.

Time to make the quick teriyaki sauce. To the same pan that was used to fry the fillets, add ginger and garlic. Sauté the aromatics until fragrant (about a few seconds). Add soy sauce, brown sugar, and rice vinegar. Give the slurry a quick mix to break up any settled corn starch then add the slurry to the rest of the ingredients in the pan. The sauce should thicken up in a matter of seconds. Once it reaches a glaze consistency, turn off the heat. Teriyaki sauce is now done.

Transfer the salmon back to the pan and brush the sauce onto the salmon. For a beautiful presentation, garnish with toasted white sesame seeds and sliced green onions.

What to Serve with Teriyaki Salmon?

Steamed rice
Fried rice
Chow mien noodles
Steamed vegetables
Fresh vegetables such as sliced cucumbers, lettuce and tomatoes
Stir-fried vegetables

Easy Pan-Fried Teriyaki Salmon Recipe

How to Make Teriyaki Sauce

What to Serve with Teriyaki Salmon?