Flavor: Teriyaki
Country: Germany
When Seen: February 2026
In a Bite: Sweet and savory soy sauce
In a Haiku:
Soy and ginger dance.
Mirin sweetens every step.
Grilled to perfection.
Origin Story: Teriyaki emerged in Japan during the Edo period as a cooking technique – “teri” meaning glaze and “yaki” meaning grill. The Lay’s Flavor Department spent months in their German lab attempting to capture that signature sweet-savory balance, boiling down soy, mirin, and sake until they found the precise reduction that could coat a potato chip. The result honors the technique’s origins while adapting it for the German palate, pairing umami depth with a subtle sweetness that doesn’t overpower the crisp.
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