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This 10-minute simple satay sauce recipe is creamy, sweet, and spicy with rich peanut flavor. It pairs well with chicken satay, as well as other grilled meats or roasted vegetables. It’s also delicious on sandwiches or tossed with noodles, and makes a great salad dressing!
If you enjoy savory peanut dishes (like Thai peanut chicken) as much as I do, you’re going to love this sauce! The deep flavor of nutty roasted peanuts shines through, but it’s a beautifully balanced blend of sweet, salty, tangy, and savory flavors. You can customize it exactly how you like it, and it’s one of those sauces that you’ll think of about a hundred different ways to use.
Known as Nam Jim Satay in Thailand, this sauce is popular in Southeast Asian, including Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, and Indonesia (where it’s believed this originated from). Here in the U.S., it’s common to find chicken satay with peanut sauce on menus at Thai restaurants. You can easily make this favorite at home!
How to Use Peanut Satay Sauce
As always, you’re only limited by your imagination when it comes to ways to use this sauce. Here are some ideas to get you started:
- As a dipping sauce for chicken satay skewers, or other grilled meats. Or try it paired with honey garlic chicken wings!
- Or as a dip for appetizers, such as egg rolls or dumplings.
- Along with raw vegetables (like cucumber, bell pepper, broccoli, etc.) for dipping.
- Tossed with rice noodles (or any kind of noodles you like) for a cold noodle salad.
- Instead of mayo or mustard on a sandwich or wrap.
- Drizzled onto a salad instead of salad dressing, or onto steamed rice. Or mix it with shredded cabbage for an easy coleslaw!
Ingredients
Breaking It Down
Ingredients Explained
In this section I explain the ingredients and give substitution ideas where applicable. For the full recipe (including the ingredient amounts), see the recipe card below.
Peanut Satay Sauce Ingredients
- Roasted salted peanuts – This adds deep, toasted peanutty flavor. For sauce that’s richer, sweeter, and creamier, you can use creamy peanut butter instead. (If your peanut butter is sweetened, you might want to start with less brown sugar and add more to taste.)
- Coconut milk – This is a classic ingredient in authentic satay sauce. For rich flavor and creamy texture, I like to use canned unsweetened full-fat coconut milk.
- Light brown sugar – Or coconut sugar.
- Fresh lime juice – This adds a tart, bright, citrusy component that wakes up the other flavors.
- Soy sauce – For rich, salty, umami flavor. For the gluten free version, use tamari sauce or coconut aminos.
- Garlic – Contributes pungent, savory flavor and aroma.
- Spicy red chili pepper – Adds spicy heat and helps create a balanced flavor profile. Depending on what kind of chili pepper is available to you, you can add more or less depending on how fiery hot you want the peanut sauce. Thai Bird’s Eye Chili peppers (aka Prik Kee Noo) are one of the hottest chilies, so if you’re using those, start with less and add more to taste. Another popular chili in Thai cuisine is the Thai Spur Chili (aka Prik Chee Fah), which are larger and a bit milder than Bird’s Eye Chili peppers, but still quite hot. Or you can substitute with up to 1 teaspoon of crushed red pepper flakes.
- Galangal – Provides an earthy, citrusy, subtly peppery, slightly piney flavor. Look for galangal at Asian grocery stores in your area. If you can’t find it, you can use fresh ginger instead.
- Salt – Or opt for fish sauce instead of salt for a salty, briny flavor that also packs an umami punch.
- Water – If needed to thin out the sauce to the perfect consistency.
- Unpictured “secret ingredient” – Add a tablespoon or two of Thai red curry paste to really bump up the complex flavor. You may want to add an extra splash of water if you do so.
Step-by-Step Instructions: How to Make Satay Sauce
- Add all ingredients except the water to a food processor.
- Pulse a few times, and then process until it forms a sauce, stopping to scrape down the sides if needed.
- If the sauce needs thinning out, add a little water through the feed tube with the motor running until it reaches your desired consistency.
- I like my sauce with a bit of texture, but you can process it until it’s completely smooth if you like.
Storage
This sauce will keep well in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week.
Tips For the Best Homemade Simple Satay Sauce
- Using roasted peanuts here adds great depth of flavor. If you don’t have roasted peanuts, you can roast shelled peanuts in a 350F oven spread in an even layer on a baking tray until lightly browned, about 15 to 20 minutes.
- If you want to kick the flavor up a notch, add a tablespoon or two of Thai red curry paste. You may need to add an extra splash of water if you do so. This is the single “secret ingredient” that contributes a variety of ingredients and creates complex flavor.
- For perfectly smooth and creamy satay sauce, use a high-speed blender to make it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes! Instead of roasted salted peanuts, you can use the same amount of peanut butter. If your peanut butter is sweetened, hold off on adding the brown sugar until after the sauce is blended so you can taste it first. Also, you may not need to add water if you use peanut butter.
Peanut satay sauce like this is more commonly used as a dipping sauce for skewered grilled meat after it’s cooked, but it could serve double duty as a marinade. To use this as a marinade instead of as a dipping sauce, add enough water so it’s on the thinner side.
More Recipes For Peanut Lovers
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Simple Peanut Satay Sauce Recipe
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Ingredients
- 3/4 cup roasted salted peanuts
- 1/2 cup canned unsweetened full-fat coconut milk
- 3 tablespoons light brown sugar lightly packed (or coconut sugar)
- 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce or tamari sauce or coconut aminos
- 2 cloves garlic crushed
- 1/2 spicy red chili pepper or more to taste (or up to 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes)
- 1 tablespoon freshly-grated galangal or fresh ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- Water if needed to thin it out (I needed about 2 tablespoons)
Instructions
- Add all ingredients for the peanut sauce (except the water) to a food processor. Pulse a few times, and then process until it forms a sauce, stopping to scrape down the sides as necessary.
- If need be, add a little water through the feed tube with the motor running to thin it out until it reaches your desired consistency.
Notes
- Recipe Yield and Serving Size: This recipe makes about 1 cup, or 8 (2-tablespoon) servings.
- Storage: Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week.
- Secret Ingredient: If you want to kick the flavor up a notch, add a tablespoon or two of Thai red curry paste. You may need to add an extra splash of water if you do so. This is the single “secret ingredient” that contributes a variety of ingredients and creates complex flavor.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is automatically calculated and should be used as an approximate.
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I’m the writer, recipe developer, photographer, and food stylist behind this blog. I love finding the human connection through something we all do every day: eat! Food is a common ground that we can all relate to, and our tables tell a story. It’s my goal to inspire you to get in the kitchen, try something new, and find a favorite you didn’t know you had.
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