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Chicken Satay with Peanut Sauce is one of our favorite appetizers to make at home. Better than anything we have ordered at a restaurant!
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My husband made this Chicken Satay with Peanut Sauce for me for Mother’s Day and it was absolutely delicious! I loved the meal, partly because of all the spicy sweet Thai flavor, and partly because I didn’t have to cook. We always order chicken satay skewers as an appetizer when we go out for Thai food. This recipe is much better than anything we have ordered and you get a lot more for your money! The skewered chicken is grilled to tender perfection and our peanut sauce recipe is as scrumptious as it is simple to make.
Ingredients in Chicken Satay with Peanut Sauce
If you’re new to cooking Thai food, this is a perfect recipe to start with. Simple, easy to find ingredients and a few quick steps, and you’ll have delicious Thai Chicken Satay Skewers in no time! Here’s what you need:
For the Chicken Satay Marinade
- Chicken breasts – about three, cut into long strips. You can also use skinless chicken thighs or chicken tenders
- Peanut oil – two tablespoons. Find this in the cooking oils section of the grocery store. If you can’t find it, you can use sesame oil in its place.
- Ground cumin – half a teaspoon of cumin gives the marinade a smoky, slightly flavor.
- Kosher salt – to taste
- Ground ginger – gives this dish a slightly sweet, lemony flavor that is so good with the chicken.
- Curry powder – pairs beautifully with the cumin, giving this dish a sweet, earthy flavor.
For the Peanut Sauce
- Creamy peanut butter – any brand will do.
- Soy sauce – I like to opt for the low sodium variety to control the amount of sodium that goes into this dish.
- Rice vinegar – find this next to the regular vinegars or in the Asian food aisle of the store. It’s a bit sweeter and more mild than regular vinegar.
- Honey – a teaspoon or more if you like things extra sweet. You can also add a teaspoon of light brown sugar or dark brown sugar for more sweetness.
- Minced garlic – half a teaspoon or about two cloves garlic.
- Sriracha hot sauce – start with half a teaspoon but add more if you want to kick it up a notch.
- Water – quarter cup
- Chopped peanuts to taste
Cool Cucumber Salad
The chicken has such great flavor, the peanut sauce adds a little spice, and adding cool cucumber salad just balances all the flavor out and acts as a coolant. The three foods together make the most tasty appetizer! Even though it is considered an appetizer at most Thai restaurants, I could definitely have it as my own main dish. make your own using these ingredients:
- Cucumbers – two medium cucumbers, sliced and seeded
- Fresh cilantro – about two tablespoons chopped. Find fresh herbs in the produce section of most grocery stores.
- Rice wine vinegar – six tablespoons to start, add more if you want.
- Water – just a couple of tablespoons
- Sugar – go for about a tablespoon of sugar and taste before adding more.
- Kosher salt – half a teaspoon, or to taste
- Lime wedges – cut up a couple of limes as a garnish or squeeze a bit of fresh lime juice over the top of the salad.
Optional Add-ins for the Salad
The beauty of a salad is you can add in or take out anything you like or don’t! Add some diced shallots, or sliced red pepper, or any other veggies you want.
You could also serve this dish with coconut rice, brown rice or Thai noodles in lieu of the salad.
Grilling the Chicken Skewers
You can use an indoor grill pan or outdoor barbecue grill for this recipe. I love getting them all prepped and sending my husband out to grill them up while I get the rest of dinner together.
- To prep the chicken, simply toss the chicken thighs or cut up chicken breasts in peanut oil, then roll them in the mixed spices in a bowl.
- Make sure to cover the chicken with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least thirty minutes.
- Once the chicken is nice and marinated, thread it onto skewers and grill, either on a grill pan over medium high heat or on grill grates outside. They should only take a couple of minutes each side.
- If you don’t have an outdoor grill or grill pan, you can bake them in the oven!
Questions
In this recipe the satay sauce is used as a dip for the chicken skewers, but you could use it to pour over veggies or use as a salad dressing. It’s very versatile!
This chicken goes great with coconut rice, cucumber salad, noodles, broccoli or any other veggies that you love.
Satay is really a mixture of spicy and sweet. The peanut butter adds a sweet element but the sriracha gives the sauce a good kick. For meat, I like things to be a little more on the spicy side.
READ MORE:35+ Best Chicken Breast Recipes
More Great Thai Dishes
If you do opt to make the Chicken Satay as an appetizer, you’ll want to follow it up with some of these other great Thai food dishes.
How to Make Chicken Satay with Peanut Sauce
Chicken Satay with Peanut Sauce and Cool Cucumber Salad
Video
Equipment
- Outdoor Barbecue Grill
Ingredients
For The Chicken Satay
- 3 chicken breasts cut into long strips
- 2 tablespoons peanut oil
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon curry powder
For The Peanut Dipping Sauce
- 3 tablespoons creamy peanut butter
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
- 1/2 teaspoon sriracha hot sauce
- 1/4 cup water
- chopped peanuts to taste
For The Cool Cucumber Salad
- 2 cucumbers sliced and seeded
- 2 tablespoons fresh cilantro chopped
- 6 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
- 2 tablespoons water
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
Instructions
For The Chicken Satay:
- Mix the spices together and set aside. Toss the chicken in the peanut oil then stir in the spices.
- Cover and refrigerate for 20 to 30 minutes.
- Thread onto skewers and grill.
For The Peanut Dipping Sauce:
- In a small saucepan mix together the ingredients. Bring to a simmer and cook 1 to 2 minutes to thicken. Set aside and bring to room temperature.
For The Cool Cucumber Salad:
- Mix everything but the cucumber, then add the cucumber in. Refrigerate and serve.
Notes
- To prep the chicken, simply toss the chicken thighs or cut up chicken breasts in peanut oil, then roll them in the mixed spices in a bowl.
- Make sure to cover the chicken with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least thirty minutes.
- Once the chicken is nice and marinated, thread it onto skewers and grill, either on a grill pan over medium high heat or on grill grates outside. They should only take a couple of minutes each side.
- If you don’t have an outdoor grill or grill pan, you can bake them in the oven!
What kind of curry do you use in the chicken satay recipe?
I use the curry powder that you can find in the spice section of a grocery store. Any brand will work but I used McCormick.
I eat this as my main meal!! I love it so much. I can’t get enough of Thai flavors.
These chicken satays were so good. I loved the flavors! My family gobbled them right up and have been begging me to make them again.
I love the dipping sauce! I am excited to try that with other things, too! These are a easy & delicious appetizer!
Made it! Loved it
Is there any real reason why I can’t use Chunky Peanut Butter in the dipping sauce?
No, it’s simply a matter of preference. Chunky Peanut Butter would work just as well. Thanks for asking!
This recipe looks really delicious…can’t wait to try it! Thanks for sharing!
Thank you for all the great posts!! As a college student that, one, LOVES Asian food but, two, doesn’t have any money, your site gives me hope! I can’t wait to try these recipes.
Huge hit with the family & we have 2 picky eaters! Love your website! I’ve cooked several great meals!
Go Beau!
I love chicken or pork satay, but usually pork satay not serve with peanut sauce. yummy 🙂
I can’t wait to try this recipe. Thanks for all the good posts!!