Teriyaki Sauce with White Rice

Rice: what a comfort food to us! Something I never feel bad for eating too much of (nor can I since it seems to be so filling.) Then to add teriyaki sauce makes it even more of a comfort food.

Making teriyaki sauce is so easy...if you use the cornstarch correctly. The first time I made teriyaki sauce, the recipe called for cornstarch and I followed as directed but the sauce was still just as runny as water. That left me puzzled with one question; why? After I "googled" some information on how to cook with cornstarch, I soon realized that it's a delicate ingredient to work with. I read; if it's too hot or cold it won't thicken properly, wait to put it in until the last few minutes of what ever you're putting into, it thickens 3 times more than flour, you need to put it in cold water before you add it to the recipe...etc etc. So, with all this in mind, I tried it once more. And it worked!

Perfectly Cooked Rice

Ingredients
2 cups white rice
2 cups water

Directions
In the pan of your rice cooker or a medium sauce pan, wash rice under cool water until water runs clear (about 2-3 times.) Place in rice cooker and press cook. If you are using a regular pan, cover and bring to boil. Once it comes to a boil reduce heat to a simmer (low-medium) and cook for about 20 minutes. Do not lift lid because it uses steam too cook. Start the teriyaki sauce while the rice is cooking, so it is warm when you serve it. After 20 minutes, you can check the rice to feel its texture, if it feels soft enough, turn off heat and serve while still warm.

Teriyaki Sauce
Ingredients
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 cup water
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp garlic powder (or 2 minced cloves)
5 tablespoons brown sugar
1-2 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 cup cold water

Directions
In a small sauce pan, combine all ingredients, except the cornstarch and cold water. Begin heating over medium heat. Meanwhile, measure out the cornstarch into a small bowl and add the cold water to it (I just used tap water and ran the cold water a bit to get it real cold.) Mix the cornstarch mixture well, and add to the teriyaki sauce mixture. Now raise the heat to medium and let it come to a boil (you will see little dark brown specks appear as it heats but don't worry! This is supposed to happen.) Boil until it comes to a consistency that you like. If it has become too thick, simply add some more water. Then serve over warm cooked rice (or whatever dish you have made.)

Store any left over sauce in an air tight container in the fridge. Note: the sauce becomes very thick after it has been refrigerated, I found adding water helps when I want to reserve the teriyaki sauce. But that is up to you.