Indonesian Chicken Satay with Peanut Sauce
INDONESIAN · INDONESIA

Indonesian Chicken Satay with Peanut Sauce

Sate AyamSnack

Smoky char-grilled chicken skewers, lacquered in sweet kecap manis and served with a thick, rich peanut sauce. The street-food classic done properly, from the charcoal to the last squeeze of lime.

Total
45 min
Heat
2/5
Serves
4

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Flavour profile

Heat
Funk
Acid
Richness
Umami
  • Nutty
  • Savoury
  • Smoky
  • Sweet

The real deal

Region
Java, Indonesia. The classic street-food skewer sold from charcoal grills across the archipelago.
Technique
Chicken marinated in sweet soy and spices, threaded onto bamboo skewers and char-grilled over coals, basted with kecap manis so it lacquers and caramelises.
We kept
The marinade, the kecap manis basting, and a proper thick peanut sauce made with candlenut and palm sugar.

Ingredients

4 Serves

Marinade

  • 600 g · cut into bite-sized pieces
  • 3 tbsp
  • 3 cloves · finely minced
  • 3 cm · finely grated
  • 2 tsp · ground
  • 1 · juiced
  • 1 tsp
  • 2 tbsp

Sauce

  • 250 g · unsalted
  • 4 · toasted
  • 3 · deseeded
  • 4 · roughly chopped
  • 4 cloves · roughly chopped
  • 1 · white part only
  • 30 g
  • 1 tbsp
  • 200 ml
  • 1 tbsp
  • 150 ml

baste

  • 3 tbsp

Garnish

  • 1 · sliced
  • 1 · cut into wedges
  • 3 tbsp · optional

prep

  • 20 · soaked

Method

  1. Soak the bamboo skewers in cold water for at least 30 min so they don't scorch on the grill.

    No bamboo skewers? Metal ones work but the chicken won't grip them as well.

  2. Pound or blitz the garlic, ginger, ground coriander and a good pinch of salt into a rough paste.

  3. Toss the chicken with the spice paste, kecap manis, oil and a squeeze of lime. Cover and leave for 45 min in the fridge, or overnight for a deeper flavour.

    Thigh meat stays juicy over charcoal; breast dries out fast.

  4. Toast the peanuts and candlenuts in a dry pan over medium heat until they smell nutty and take on a little colour. Cool, then grind to a thick paste.

    Stop before they darken too far or the sauce turns bitter.

  5. Pound the chilli, shallot, garlic and lemongrass to a rough paste. Fry in a splash of oil over medium heat until fragrant, about 2 min. Add the tamarind, palm sugar, soy sauce, coconut milk and water.

  6. Stir the ground peanut paste into the base and simmer gently for 10 min, until the sauce is thick, glossy and coats a spoon. Taste and adjust with more palm sugar or tamarind: it should be nutty, sweet and a little sour.

    If it tightens too much, loosen with a splash of hot water.

  7. Thread the marinated chicken onto the soaked skewers, leaving a little space between pieces so the heat reaches every side. You should get about four to five pieces per skewer.

  8. Grill over a hot charcoal fire or a screaming-hot griddle for 10 min to 12 min, turning often and basting with kecap manis, until the chicken is charred at the edges and cooked through.

    A dry, fierce heat gives the smoke and char that define satay. Baste late so the sugars don't burn before the meat cooks.

  9. Slide the skewers onto a platter and serve with the peanut sauce, cucumber slices, lime wedges and a scatter of crispy fried shallots.

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