andrejthechef
InternationalGrillDinnerDairy-free

Chicken Satay

Street-stall satay: turmeric and lemongrass chicken skewers charred hard, with real peanut sauce built on coconut milk and kecap manis.

prep
40 min
cook
15 min
total
55 min
serves
4
level
easy
Satay, a classic from Indonesia.

Satay is a smoke dish: small skewers over hard heat, charring at the edges while the turmeric-lemongrass marinade caramelizes. The street stalls of Java and Kuala Lumpur run on exactly this and nothing fancier.

The peanut sauce is a dish in its own right, coconut-rich with tamarind sour, and bears no relation to peanut butter thinned with regret.

Chicken Satay is one of the world's classic dishes from 67 countries.

method

  1. Marinate the chicken in the lemongrass, shallots, two-thirds of the garlic, the dry spices, half the sugar, the oil and salt for at least 30 minutes.

  2. Make the sauce: blend or pound the peanuts coarse, then simmer with the coconut milk, kecap manis, tamarind, remaining garlic, chili and sugar for 5 minutes until thick. Loosen with hot water to pouring consistency.

  3. Thread the chicken onto the soaked skewers, snug but not crammed.

  4. Grill over high heat or under a hot broiler, 3 to 4 minutes a side, until charred at the edges and cooked through.

  5. Serve stacked, with the peanut sauce, cucumber and rice cakes.

chef's tips

  • Thighs, always; breast dries out in the time char takes.
  • The char is flavor, not damage. Pale satay is boiled chicken on a stick.
  • The sauce thickens as it sits; thin it with hot water, not more coconut milk.