Is teriyaki gluten-free? The soy sauce problem

The short answer

Teriyaki — the glossy sweet-savoury glaze on chicken, salmon or yellowtail — is usually not gluten-free. The glaze is a reduction of soy sauce, mirin, sugar and often a little sake, and the wheat comes from the soy sauce: standard Japanese shoyu is brewed from soybeans and wheat in roughly equal parts. So the very thing that defines teriyaki is what makes it unsafe for a coeliac.

What is and isn't the issue

The protein underneath — chicken thigh, a fillet of fish — is naturally gluten-free. The problem is entirely the sauce. Mirin and cooking sake add no gluten (they are rice-based), though they do add alcohol, which matters for halal diners more than gluten-free ones. Bottled supermarket teriyaki and izakaya house glazes are wheat-based unless stated otherwise. This is the same wheat-in-soy-sauce trap behind is sushi gluten-free? and our gluten-free Tokyo guide.

How to get gluten-free teriyaki

In theory it is easy: swap regular soy sauce for tamari, which is brewed with little or no wheat. In practice, few standard restaurants keep tamari behind the counter, so your reliable route is a dedicated gluten-free kitchen that cooks everything wheat-free (our picks below), or making it at home with certified tamari. Naturally safe alternatives in a normal restaurant are grilled fish or chicken ordered shio (salt) rather than tare (sauce).

What to ask

Say "komugi arerugi" and ask if the sauce uses tamari or regular shoyu, or request it shio (salted, no sauce). Recipes vary, so confirm with the venue when it matters.