Satay skewers: the benchmark of authentic Thai food! Think deeply marinated chicken with a peanut sauce that’s so good, everyone will be begging for the recipe. Serve this with steamed jasmine or Coconut Rice. Or go all out with a Thai restaurant banquet complete with Thai Fried Rice , Pad See Ew or Thai Chilli Basil Stir Fry!
This is a reader-favourite recipe included by popular demand in my debut cookbook “Dinner”!
Thai Chicken Satay skewers
At the risk of sounding totally obnoxious – this is a recipe for Chicken Satay skewers with Thai Peanut Sauce that truly stacks up to your favourite Thai restaurant.
When it hits the stove, the smell is SO GOOD you will just know they are going to taste amazing.
Then you have a taste of the peanut dipping sauce…… and you’ll just shake your head, wondering how the heck can something so simple taste so good??!!
Or you might be thinking – OMG, I finally cracked it, this tastes EXACTLY like the authentic Chicken Satay I had in Thailand!!! Oh wait, maybe that’s just in my head. 😂
What goes in Chicken Satay and Thai Peanut Sauce
It might surprise you how few ingredients go in Chicken Satay and the peanut sauce! Here’s what you need:
The BEST Thai Red Curry Paste
Thai Red Curry paste is a “secret ingredient” in both the marinade and the sauce. You just need about 2.5 tbsp which doesn’t sound like much, but we don’t want this to taste of red curry. We’re just using it as a flavour enhancer.
While I’m an advocate of homemade curry paste for Thai Red Curry and Green Curry, for recipes like this that use a smaller quantity, I use store bought.
I use Maesri Thai Red Curry Paste which I think is the best by a long shot. I also use this same brand for Green Curry and Red Curry for quick midweek curries.
It also happens to be the cheapest, at around $1.30 per can at major supermarkets like Coles, Woolies and Harris Farms.
How to make Thai Peanut Sauce
Thai Peanut Sauce is almost unbelievably simple to make. It’s literally just a 5 minute plonk-and-simmer job:
coconut milk
red curry paste
cider or white vinegar (not lime juice!)
pure peanut butter (see below for more info)
soy sauce
sugar and salt
For the BEST Thai Peanut Sauce, use natural peanut butter
While commercial peanut butter spread is ok, if you want a really great authentic Thai Peanut Sauce that truly stacks up to your favourite Thai restaurant, use pure peanut butter. You’ll find it in the health food section of most supermarket nowadays.
Pure peanut butter is made with JUST peanuts – no sugar, oil or other additives – so the peanut flavour is stronger.
Also, natural peanut butter is thinner than commercial peanut butter spreads (see below) which means you need less water to thin the sauce = better peanut flavour in Thai Peanut Sauce!
Ahead of publishing this recipe, I tried the Thai Peanut Sauce with natural pure peanut butter vs commercial peanut butter (Kraft, now Bega) side by side to confirm this!
I’m a firm believer that Chicken Satay skewers should be tasty enough to eat on their own and the peanut sauce just takes it over the top. So I like to marinade the chicken to make it extra tasty.
Chicken Satay Marinade
Here’s what you need for the Thai Chicken Satay Marinade:
Chicken pieces – chicken thighs yield the juiciest chicken skewers but breast or tenderloin are fine
Red curry paste – see above for my recommended brand Maesri
Curry powder – any is fine here
Coconut milk
Salt and sugar
It’s best to marinade for at least 3 hours but even 20 minutes is long enough.
Cooking the Chicken Skewers
Chicken satay is a summertime favourite to cook on the BBQ. But I usually cook it on the stove for convenience.
For a really authentic Thai experience, cook the Chicken Satay over charcoal like it’s done in Thailand!
Thai Chicken Satay is a popular starter on Thai restaurants menus along with Thai Fish Cakes. But it’s also ideal served as a main. Serve it with steamed jasmine rice – or with fluffy Asian Coconut Rice (it’s amazing!). Or go all out with Thai Fried Rice or Pineapple Fried Rice!
For a fresh side salad, try this Asian Slaw, or use this Asian Sesame Dressing for a fresh salad or steamed vegetables.
If you want to go all out with a homemade Thai Banquet, serve this Chicken Satay as the starter with Thai Chilli Basil Stir Fry, a curry (Massaman Curry, Green Curry or Red Curry) with Coconut Rice as the mains. Or Pad See Ew! ~ Nagi x
Recipe source: An original creation but the roots of this recipe are from various Thai cookbooks and renowned Thai food experts like David Thompson and Sujet Saenkham (owner of the famous Spice I Am restaurants). Except I’ve made this recipe so it’s accessible to everyday cooks – without compromising! 🙂
Watch how to make it
This recipe features in my debut cookbook Dinner. The book is mostly new recipes, but this is a reader favourite included by popular demand!
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Thai Chicken Satay with Peanut Sauce
Ingredients
- 400 g/14oz coconut milk (1 can), full fat
- 13-16 bamboo skewers , 16cm / 6.5″ long (Note 1)
Marinade:
- 600 g / 1.2lb chicken thighs , boneless skinless, cut into 2cm/4/5″ pieces (Note 2)
- 1 tbsp curry powder (Note 3)
- 1 tsp white sugar
- 2 tsp red curry paste (Note 4)
- 1 tsp salt
Thai Peanut Sauce:
- 2 tbsp red curry paste (Note 4)
- 3/4 cup (180g) natural peanut butter, smooth (Note 5)
- 1/4 cup (50g) white sugar
- 2 tsp dark soy sauce (Note 6)
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 tbsp cider vinegar (Note 7)
- 3/4 cup (185ml) water
Serving:
- 2 tbsp peanuts finely chopped
- Lime wedges (optional)
- Coriander / cilantro leaves and sliced red chilli (optional)
Instructions
- If cooking on a BBQ or over charcoal, soak skewers for 2 hours in water.
Thai Chicken Satay Skewers:
- Mix together the chicken and Marinade with 1/4 cup of coconut milk, then set aside for at least 20 minutes, or overnight.
- Thread onto skewers – I do 4 to 5 pieces each.
- Heat 1.5 tbsp oil in a large non stick pan over medium high heat.
- Cook skewers in batches for 3 minutes on each side until golden.
Thai Peanut Sauce:
- Place remaining coconut milk and Peanut Sauce ingredients in a saucepan over medium low heat.
- Stir to combine then simmer, stirring every now and then, for 5 minutes.
- Adjust consistency with water – it should be a pourable but thickish sauce.
- Cover with lid and keep warm while cooking skewers.
Serving:
- Pour some sauce into a bowl. Sprinkle with some peanuts – stir some through if you want.
- Pile satay skewers onto a platter, sprinkle with remaining peanuts, coriander and chilli.
- Serve with sauce on the side for dipping. Add a side of Jasmine Rice or Thai Fried Rice to complete the meal!
Recipe Notes:
- Sauce for for rice, noodles, veggies (raw or steamed)
- Make a simple Gado Gado with steam veg, hard boiled eggs and rice
- Dip for prawn crackers and vegetables
- As the dressing for this Chinese Chicken Salad, Satay Noodle Salad, Peanut Noodle Salad or Sesame Noodles
Nutrition Information:
Life of Dozer
He thought I said PELICAN satay……
Lulu says
Sounds delicious! Can I substitute beef for chicken?
Nagi says
Sure can Lulu!
Lulu says
I made it with beef and my husband loved it so much that I made it again with chicken the next night. Thanks Nagi. Am loving cooking through your recipes. They’re fantastic! I’ve even become a chicken thigh convert thanks to your brilliant recipes! 😄
Wei says
This is absolutely amazing, I made it for a dinner party last night and everyone loved it, the family has asked to make it again tonight, my husband said it’s better than most of the restaurant ones, I will add this to my most favourite list. Thank you so much for sharing. 🙂
Nagi says
That’s awesome to hear Wei!!
Mel says
All kinds of delicious! There is a local Thai restaurant that has the best satay sauce and this is pretty darn close. I impressed all my lunch guests today. Extra bonus is that I now get to try your satay chicken and noodles with the leftover deliciousness!!!!
Nagi says
Woah that’s great Mel!!!
Beth says
This is superb,it’s amazing very tasty, way better than restaurant 👌👌👌👌 the best recipe ever 😍
Bonnie says
This recipe was really tasty. The peanut sauce is better than shop bought or takeaway. Nagi i have tried your baked sweet and sour chicken also which was lovely.
Nagi says
I’m so glad you loved it Bonnie!!
Jane says
Hi Nagi! How long do you store left over curry paste for in the fridge?
Nagi says
A week or so usually – N x
Jane says
Great Recipe! Thank you for sharing Nagi!
Sara says
This was so tasty with my hubby declaring it one of the best chicken dishes ever!
Nagi says
Winner winner chicken dinner!
Francois Cote says
The video and recipe do not match. EX there is no coconut milk listed in the peanut sauce.
Nagi says
Hi Francois – it’s the first ingredient listed. It is split across both the chicken marinade and the sauce 🙂
Kathy says
How much coconut milk goes in the sauce and how much goes in the marinade?
Jen says
OMG! This was amazing Nagi! I’m allergic to peanuts so I used cashew nut butter instead and it was delicious. I’ve already called my mother and sister to rave about how good it was – so yum I can’t believe it!
Nagi says
Oh that’s so great Jen!!
Annie says
Have made these several times to rave reviews. Oh my goodness these are out of this world. The only problem is now my family won’t eat them from anywhere else cause yours taste better lol. Thank you so much for sharing.
Nagi says
Woah that’s awesome to hear!
John W says
I didn’t have any chili paste so I subsrituted sriracha sauce. Maybe not authentic but ir worked quite well and is easier to find at mist atoes around here
Nagi says
That’s great to hear John!!
Jo says
I have just made the sauce and the chicken is marinating. I cannot wait for dinner as the sauce is exactly the sauce we had at a vegan Thai restaurant! Delicious and thank you for the red curry paste tip! Spot on!!
Nagi says
I hope you love it Jo!
Jo says
It was amazing! Cooked chicken on BBQ and it was perfect!
Kristin says
Is there any chance of a substitution for the coconut milk? I can’t tolerate coconut, but this recipe sounds delicious!
Nagi says
Hi Kristin, you could use normal cream if you prefer – N x
Alicia says
Hi Nagi,
This recipe was a big hit with my family. I have a question to ask though. I’m not a fan of anything spicy… my family would laugh and say that this wasn’t spicey, but it was for me. Is there a way I could recreate the sauce without the spicey taste? I used mild curry paste and the red curry paste from the tin as you suggested.
Thank you!
Ana says
I’d love to make this but would like to try and reduce the sugar quantity – any chance you have a substitute for the white sugar?
Nagi says
Hi Ana, you could possibly make this with a sugar substitute like Stevia, however I haven’t tried so couldn’t give you an accurate amount – N x
Troy says
I made this dish for my co workers family and they like it so much they asked me to make it a second time that week. I sprinkled some chopped mango on top as well, gave it a little sweet kicker to it. Thank you for sharing the recipe.
Nagi says
Sounds divine Troy, great idea!
Belinda Fusco says
Have tried many satay recipes but this one hit the nail on the head. Really simple to make too!!
I doubled the satay sauce ingredients and added some chilli to give an extra kick. Will definitely be saving this recipe and passing it on.
Yum!!!
Genoa Valle says
I made this recipe today. I barbecued the marinated chicken. And then we had the peanut sauce on top with rice and a salad. This was very good. My family loved it. I will definitely make this again.
Nagi says
Oh the BBQ would have given this a great flavour! I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed it – N x
Timothy Burns says
Hi Nagi,
I’m doing an assessment and I need a smart sustainable packaging for those delicious Thai chicken satay skewers.
Any idea’s?
Thanks ❤
Nagi says
Hi Timothy, I’ll have to think about this one, I never package (I just eat!) 😂
Jessiaca says
this dish is to die for I made it for my kids and they loved it! but they got really itchy afterwards…But I loved it
Nagi says
Itchy?! 😂 I’ve never had that complaint before! – N x