たれ
Also: Tare
One of the two seasonings the Japan National Tourism Organization names for yakitori — a sweetened sauce, as against shio, which is salt. Being sweetened, it behaves over a fire the way any sugared sauce does.
What it is
- Base
- soy
- When it goes on
- apply late
- Burn risk over the fire
- high
It will burn if it goes on early
The sugar in this one caramelises and then burns over sustained heat. That is a fact about sugar rather than a matter of taste, and it is why it belongs at the end of a cook or at the table. If yours has burned, the diagnosis is in troubleshooting.
Where it comes from
A documented association, qualified. BBQHQ records which source documents the link and does not make claims about authenticity.
- Yakitori — documented in
What it goes with
Grouped by how the pairing is known rather than by how good it is. The first group is somebody else’s statement; the last is ours, and says so.
A source pairs them
A named source says this sauce or seasoning is used with this food. Follow the citation and you will find somebody stating it.
- Chicken thigh, bone-in — Tare is one of the two seasonings the retrieved source names for yakitori, the alternative to shio.
- Chicken wings — Named by the same source, on the parts a yakitori counter grills.
BBQHQ's suggestion
BBQHQ's own suggestion, with the reasoning stated so you can disagree with it. Nobody published this pairing; it is not presented as though they had.
- Duck breast — BBQHQ's own suggestion. A sweetened soy glaze behaves the same on any fatty poultry skin — it needs to go on late or the sugar blackens before the fat has rendered — but no source in this catalogue pairs tare with duck, and yakitori is a chicken tradition.
What this rests on
- Yakitori is seasoned in one of two ways — shio, salt based, or tare, a sweetened sauce — and yakitori restaurants use every part of the chicken, including negima, sasami, gizzards and hearts.