Home / Recipes / Small bites / Chicken satay with peanut sauce

Chicken satay with peanut sauce

Small bites

45 mins

Pretty Easy

The secret to our succulent and fragrant marinade is the combination of lemongrass, pandan leaves, and galangal! You won’t find this recipe anywhere. But the long list of ingredients of marinade can be scary. The trick is to make the marinade beforehand and let the meat (or tofu) marinate for a few hours (or overnight) in the sauce. (If you haven’t got the time, 30 minutes will do the trick as well). Once you’re ready to cook, just skewer and put them in the oven, and you’ll be done in 15 minutes!

The peanut sauce recipe is another great one to make a big batch of. It will keep well in the fridge for up to 4 weeks. Did you know that it goes very well with prawn crackers too?? Try it and let us know.

Recipe modified from page 156 of Rosa’s Thai Cafe the Cookbook.

Ingredients

500g chicken breast, cut into thin strips (for a vegetarian option, use 300-450g extra firm tofu, cut into blocks)
For the marinade
3 lemongrass stalks, chopped
4 pandan leaves, chopped (available from Asian supermarkets)
3 tablespoons galangal, chopped
150ml (1⁄4 pint) coconut milk
1 teaspoon turmeric
2 teaspoons curry powder
1 tablespoon Thai fish sauce
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 tablespoon ground coriander seeds
1 tablespoon caraway seeds (use 2 tablespoons of garam masala powder if you don't have coriander and caraway seeds)
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
1 tablespoon light soy sauce
For the peanut sauce
250ml coconut milk
1⁄2 tablespoon Red Curry Paste
1⁄2 tablespoon Massaman Curry Paste
2 tablespoons palm sugar
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 tablespoon Thai fish sauce
100ml tamarind paste
150g crushed roasted peanuts

Method

Put all marinade ingredients into a blender and blitz to a smooth paste, or pound them in a pestle and mortar.
Transfer the mixture to a bowl, add the chicken strips and mix well.
Marinate in the refrigerator for 30 minutes up to overnight.
Place the wooden skewers in water and leave to soak for about 10 minutes before cooking. This will make it easier to skewer later on.
While the meat is marinating, make the peanut sauce by bringing the coconut milk to the boil in a small saucepan and cook until the oil rises to the surface.
Stir in the curry pastes and cook for about 30 seconds, then add the palm sugar, fish sauce, tamarind paste and the roasted peanuts.
Reduce the heat to low and cook, stirring continuously, until the mixture has thickened with a smooth consistency.
Preheat a grill or griddle pan until very hot. Now is a good time to skewer the meat.
Place the skewers on the pan or in a tray for the oven. Cook for about 5 minutes on each side or until fully cooked.
Serve hot with the peanut sauce.