Chicken Satay

Category
Appetizer
Cuisine
Asian
Serves
Makes 4 servings
From
Jean-Georges Vongerichten

chickenpeanut sauceskewersgrilledmarinadecoconut milk

Simple and incredibly good, especially with the peanut sauce.

Ingredients

Peanut Sauce

  • 1 teaspoon grape seed, corn, or other neutral oil
  • 1 tablespoon red curry paste, store-bought is fine
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 1½ cups coconut milk
  • 1½ cups chopped roasted peanuts
  • 1 tablespoon soy sauce, plus more to taste

Marinade

  • 1 tablespoon coriander seeds
  • 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
  • 3 shallots, finely chopped
  • ¼ cup peanuts, toasted (see page 15) and chopped
  • ½ cup coconut milk
  • 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
  • 1 tablespoon sweetened condensed milk
  • 1 tablespoon palm sugar
  • 2 tablespoons nam pla (Thai fish sauce)
  • 1 tablespoon whiskey
  • ¼ teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
  • 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into 1-inch cubes
  • Bamboo skewers, soaked in water for 1 hour
  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Instructions

Peanut Sauce

  1. To make the sauce: Put the oil in a medium saucepan and set over high heat. When the oil is very hot and almost smoking, add the curry paste and sugar and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the coconut milk and bring the mixture to a boil. Stir in the peanuts and soy sauce. Taste and adjust the seasoning.

Marinade

  1. To make the marinade: Put the coriander and cumin seeds in a small skillet set over medium heat. Toast, shaking the pan occasionally, until lightly browned and fragrant. Remove from the heat, cool completely, and grind to a fine powder in a spice grinder.
  2. Put the shallots, peanuts, ground coriander and cumin in a blender. Blend until the mixture becomes a paste. Add the coconut milk, turmeric, sweetened condensed milk, palm sugar, nam pla, whiskey, and salt. Blend again until smooth and set the marinade aside in a shallow plate.
  3. Thread the chicken cubes onto the skewers, leaving 3 inches at the end. Dip and roll each skewer in the marinade and let sit while you start a charcoal or gas grill or broiler; the fire should be medium-hot, and the grill rack should be about 4 inches from the heat source. (You can also cover the meat and refrigerate it for up to a day.) Season the skewers with salt and pepper and grill or broil for 5 minutes per side, or until lightly browned all over and cooked through. Serve immediately with the peanut sauce.