Chicken satay skewers with peanut sauce is a game changer when it comes to preparing delicious bites for guests or even for a quick mid week dinner. It might appear like there is a lot of preparation involved, but if you have the ingredients available, it’s pretty easy to put it all together. You also don’t have to worry about being too exact with the quantities. After you make it a few times you’ll work out what quantities best suit you palate.
Where does Chicken Satay originate from?
Chicken satay is well known in all of South-east Asia including Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia and Phillipines. However, it’s origins stem back to the island of Java, Indonesia back in the early 19th century. During this time Muslim Indian and Arab traders and immigrants moved through Indonesia selling textiles in exchange for spices, particularly cloves and nutmeg which had a high demand at that time. This influence saw the the birth of the south east asian ‘kebab’, as Indonesian street vendors created their own unique tasting chicken satay version.
The main ingredients for my Chicken Satay recipe.
The chicken satay recipe I have used leans more towards the traditional Indonesian and Malaysian version. The marinade uses ginger, garlic, cumin and coriander as the base flavours, which then combines sweet and sour flavours using the addition of honey and lemon grass. If you have a liking for chilli then this is an optional addition to ramp up the heat profile.
The main ingredients for the satay chicken peanut sauce are the tamarind, peanut butter and soy sauce. You can use fresh tamarind by breaking off a small portion, placing it in a cup of warm water and then squeezing the juice out of it. Alternatively, tamarind paste is an easier option which comes straight out of a bottle. Just remember, the more tamarind paste you use, the more sour and darker it will become.
Preparing the chicken satay for the grill.
For this recipe chicken breast is the preferred type of chicken meat. Not only is it leaner, but its also quicker to cook. Some may argue that it can dry out too easily, however don’t remember that we have a dipping sauce for this dish. It’s never going to be dry!
I like to slice the chicken breast into long, thin strips so applying it onto the skewers is easy. It’s just one chicken strip per skewer and you’ll have it ready to go in no time. Grill the skewers on the BBQ for 3-5 minute on each side depending on the thickness of the chicken. Cooking it over charcoal will give it that truly authentic smoky taste. The griddle is also fine for that convenient weekday cookup.
Grilled Satay Chicken
Ingredients
Chicken Marinade
- 2 tbsp Rice wine vinegar
- 1 tsp chopped garlic
- 1 tsp chopped ginger
- 1 tsp lemon grass paste
- 1 tsp honey
- 1/2 tsp chilli powder
- 1 tsp coriander powder
- 1/2 tsp cummin powder
- 3 tbsp peanut oil
- 1/2 tsp tumeric powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp pepper
Peanut sauce
- 1/2 Onion
- 1 tsp chopped garlic
- 1 tbsp Peanut Butter (Smooth)
- 1 tbsp Soy sauce
- 1 tsp tamarind paste
- 1/2 tsp coriander powder
- 1 tsp brown sugar
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
For serving
Instructions
- Combine all the ingredients for of the marinade and mix together with the chicken breast(chopped into cubes). Place in the fridge for 1 hour.
- If you are cooking on the BBQ or over charcoal, soak the skewers in water for at least an hour
- Make the peanut sauce. Heat up some vegetable oil in a saucepan and add the onion and garlic
- Add the coriander powder until aromatic
- Add tamarind paste, soy sauce, peanut butter and sugar. Cook until well combined. Add lemon juice once once it has cooled down
- Heat up the grill and lightly oil
- Grill chicken skewers for 3 mins on each side until golden.
- Serve with peanut sauce and garnishes.