Chicken Satay with Peanut Sauce

Chicken Satay skewers with the easiest peanut sauce is both authentic and approachable for kids too! So delicious you’ll skip the Thai food delivery!

Thai recipes are a huge hit in our house including the fan favorites Easy Pad Thai and Pad See Ew (Thai Stir Fried Noodles).

 Chicken Satay with Peanut Sauce

We’re totally creatures of comfort around here. If you were to work at one of our favorite delivery options you’d know our order the second you heard our voices. When it comes to ordering Thai food the kids are ALL about chicken satay.

What is in satay?

Chicken satay is sweet, salty, savory and tangy. The peanut butter is creamy, slightly spicy and citrusy with both lime juice and zest in the peanut sauce.

We’ve created many different versions of peanut sauce including peanut sauce with coconut milk, but this version is genuinely the easiest peanut sauce ever without even needing the coconut milk.

The best chicken satay uses an ingredients like fish sauce and lemongrass. I actually love cooking with fresh lemongrass, but I find it hit or miss when I am cooking for clients who don’t have local Asian grocery stores.

To combat the issues with finding lemongrass I actually use dried lemongrass in this recipe and it works PERFECTLY. You can of course use fresh, I’d say about a 2 inch piece of fresh lemongrass would be plenty.

To bring a bit of sweetness to the recipe we use brown sugar. Brown sugar is great in this recipe because it has a deeper flavor from a bit of molasses and it melts well into the marinade and caramelizes well during the grilling.

I use chicken breasts in this recipe because we’re grilling on skewers and it’s quick with high heat. If you’d prefer to bake this recipe or use thighs just make sure you’re cooking long enough to cook through the chicken. Often when putting chicken on a skewer people will overload the skewer and push the pieces of chicken together.

Use caution in how much chicken you add to the skewer. Make sure there is a small space between the pieces of chicken.

Other tips for these Chicken Satay Skewers:

• Soak the wooden skewers before grilling them. I start soaking before doing anything else, then just thread the chicken on. No need to dry them.
• If you have found this recipe in time, the longer you marinate the chicken, the better the flavors. I try to give it a full 24 hours.
• How long to grill chicken satay? Try not to overcook, white meat chicken will tend to dry out before dark meat. Just a few minutes on each side is plenty.
• Looking for a fun presentation, I dressed them up with chopped cilantro, crushed peanuts and a swirl of Sriracha in the dipping bowl.

Baked Chicken Satay Recipe:

• Marinade the chicken satay as described for 30 minutes.
• Pre-heat the oven to 375 degrees.
• Bake the chicken for 18-20 minutes, turning halfway through the cook time.
• Serve with peanut sauce.

Looking for the slow cooker version? Slow Cooker Thai Peanut Chicken

The marinade in this recipe may seem overly complicated but the flavors of Chicken Satay are authentic to Thai cuisine which has a very floral and tropical flavor.

We’ve created many different versions of peanut sauce including peanut sauce with coconut milk, but this version is genuinely the easiest peanut sauce ever without even needing the coconut milk. The ingredients for the marinade may seem hard to find but I’ve included sources for them below.

The use of coconut milk, lemongrass and fish sauce in Thai cooking are very popular. In fact if you’re looking for a peanut sauce with coconut milk you can add 1/4 cup unsweetened coconut milk to the recipe below.

How to make Chicken Satay Peanut Sauce:

• 1 cup smooth peanut butter
• 1/3 cup low sodium soy sauce
• 3 cloves garlic
• 2 tablespoons sesame oil
• 1 inch piece fresh ginger
• 1 teaspoon Sriracha
• 2 limes juiced and zested

1. Puree all the ingredients together until smooth before serving.

What do you serve with chicken satay? We love to serve with roasted or grilled vegetables, steamed coconut rice and Healthy Thai Peanut Chicken Zucchini Noodles.

Want more Asian Food Recipes?

• Crispy Sesame Chicken
• Cheesecake Factory Mandarin Cashew Chicken
• General Tso’s Chicken
• Easy Mongolian Beef
• Panda Express Recipes… every single one in fact: Panda Express Recipes Index
• Many more options…

Tools used in the making of this Chicken Satay with Peanut Sauce:
Dried Lemongrass: All the flavor with all the convenience.
Fish Sauce: Great flavors, but for our family I actually use the fish free version (tastes JUST as good)
Dark Soy Sauce: Brewed longer and with a thicker texture the flavors are not saltier than soy sauce, they’re more like a marinade.

5 from 9 votes

Print

Chicken Satay with Peanut Sauce

Chicken Satay skewers with the easiest peanut sauce is both authentic and approachable for kids too! So delicious you'll skip the Thai food delivery!

Course Main Course

Cuisine Asian

Keyword Chicken Satay with Peanut Sauce

Prep Time 45 minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes

Total Time 55 minutes

Servings 6 Servings

Calories 564 kcal

Author Sabrina Snyder

Ingredients

CHICKEN SATAY

• 1/4 cup dried lemongrass
• 1/4 yellow onion
• 4 cloves garlic
• 1 teaspoon Sriracha
• 1 tablespoon fresh ginger 1 inch piece
• 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
• 2 tablespoons ground coriander
• 1 tablespoon cumin
• 1/4 cup dark soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons fish sauce
• 1/3 cup brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 pounds chicken breast cut into 1 inch cubes

PEANUT SAUCE

• 1 cup smooth peanut butter
• 1/3 cup lite soy sauce
• 3 cloves garlic
• 2 tablespoons sesame oil
• 1 inch piece fresh ginger
• 1 teaspoon sriracha
• 2 limes juiced and zested
• wooden skewers

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

1. Soak your wooden skewers in water.
2. Add all the ingredients from the chicken marinade except for the chicken in the food processor and puree until smooth.

3. Add the marinade to the chicken pieces and let marinate for as long as possible (30 minutes minimum but ideally one day).

4. Thread each piece of chicken onto a wooden skewer (about 6-8 pieces on each one).

5. Cook on a grill or grill pan over high heat for 2-3 minutes per side.

6. To make the peanut sauce add all the ingredients of the sauce together in a small food processor and puree until smooth.

Recipe Notes

• Looking for a fun presentation, I dressed them up with chopped cilantro, crushed peanuts and a swirl of Sriracha in the dipping bowl.

Nutrition Facts

Chicken Satay with Peanut Sauce

Amount Per Serving

Calories 564 Calories from Fat 252

% Daily Value*

Fat 28g43%

Saturated Fat 7g44%

Cholesterol 96mg32%

Sodium 2182mg95%

Potassium 1039mg30%

Carbohydrates 34g11%

Fiber 3g13%

Sugar 17g19%

Protein 46g92%

Vitamin A 110IU2%

Vitamin C 14.5mg18%

Calcium 73mg7%

Iron 3.5mg19%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.