Thai Satay with Peanut Sauce
Satay (สะเต๊ะ) arrived in Thailand from Indonesia via Malay traders and became one of the country's most beloved street foods. Thin strips of chicken or pork are marinated in lemongrass, turmeric, coconut milk, and warm spices, then threaded onto bamboo skewers and grilled over charcoal until caramelized at the edges and fragrant throughout. The essential accompaniment is the satay sauce — a rich, sweet, slightly spicy peanut sauce made with roasted peanuts, red curry paste, and coconut milk — not the peanut butter version common elsewhere. In Thailand it is often served with a quick cucumber pickle to cut the richness and toasted white bread for dipping into the sauce.
Ingredients
- 600 gchicken thighs
- 1 lemongrass stalk, tender inner part only
- 1 tspturmeric powder
- 1 tspground coriander
- ½ tspground cumin
- 1 tbspfish sauce
- 1 tbspbrown sugar
- 120 mlfull-fat coconut milk
- 150 groasted peanuts
- 2 tbspred curry paste
- 400 mlfull-fat coconut milk
- 2 tbspfish sauce
- 2 tbsppalm sugar or brown sugar
- 1 tbsptamarind paste or lime juice
- 20 bamboo skewers
Method
- Marinate the meat. Combine the minced lemongrass, turmeric, ground coriander, cumin, fish sauce, brown sugar, and coconut milk in a bowl. Slice the chicken into strips about 2 cm wide and 8 cm long, cutting against the grain so the fibres are short. Add to the marinade and massage well. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours — overnight is significantly better. Thread each strip onto a soaked bamboo skewer in a zigzag weave so the meat lies flat and cooks evenly.
- Make the peanut sauce. Roughly grind the roasted peanuts to a coarse meal — they should be sandy and textured, not smooth like peanut butter. The texture is part of the authentic character of Thai satay sauce. Heat 80 ml of the coconut milk in a small saucepan over medium heat until it thickens slightly. Add the red curry paste and stir-fry in the coconut cream for 2 minutes until fragrant and the oil separates. Add the remaining coconut milk, ground peanuts, fish sauce, palm sugar, and tamarind paste. Stir well. Simmer gently 5 to 7 minutes until the sauce is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. Taste: it should be rich, slightly sweet, nutty, and gently spiced. Add water to thin if needed.
- Make the quick cucumber pickle (optional but traditional). Slice half a cucumber and one shallot thinly. Dissolve 2 tablespoons sugar and 1 teaspoon salt in 4 tablespoons rice vinegar with 2 tablespoons water. Pour over the cucumber and shallot. Leave 10 minutes — the pickle is ready when the cucumber softens slightly but still has crunch. This acid cuts through the rich peanut sauce.
- Grill the skewers. Cook over a hot charcoal grill or a very hot griddle pan, turning every 60 seconds, for 6 to 8 minutes total. The chicken is done when golden-caramelized at the edges with a slight char and cooked through. Do not cook on low heat — satay needs high direct heat to develop the caramelized exterior that makes it distinctive. If using an oven: grill/broil at maximum temperature for 12 to 15 minutes, turning halfway.
- Serve. Arrange the skewers on a plate. Pour the warm peanut sauce into a small bowl alongside. Add the cucumber pickle. In Thailand, satay is commonly served with toasted white bread for dipping into the remaining peanut sauce once the skewers are finished. Garnish with sliced red chilli and crushed roasted peanuts.
FAQ
Both use skewered grilled meat with peanut sauce, but the details differ. Thai satay marinade typically includes lemongrass, turmeric, coriander, cumin, and coconut milk — warm spices with a clear Southeast Asian herb character. Indonesian satay marinade is simpler, often just sweet soy sauce (kecap manis), garlic, and shallots. The sauces differ more: Thai satay sauce is built on coconut milk and red curry paste with coarsely ground peanuts; Indonesian satay sauce is tamarind-forward and less creamy. Thai satay is generally milder and more coconut-rich; Indonesian is bolder and more sour.
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Comments (1)
The peanut sauce is where most homemade satay falls short. Restaurant satay uses roasted peanuts ground fresh, not peanut butter from a jar. I dry-roast raw peanuts in a pan until dark golden, then blitz them in a food processor while still warm. The texture and flavour are incomparably better. For the skewers themselves, soak bamboo sticks for at least an hour or they catch fire on the grill. I learned that one the hard way at a dinner party.