2013 is going to be GREAT, I can feel it!
This is the first recipe of the year and I already know that it’s going to go on next year’s “best of” list! It’s SO good and SO easy. Peanut and coconut combine to make an incredibly luxurious and creamy sauce for the chicken, which is then sassed up with just a little soy sauce, brown sugar, lime, and sriracha! If you don’t have sriracha, you can just add a pinch of red pepper flakes… or just leave it out for a mild version.
Of course this “luxurious” sauce is a little high on the fat content, so make sure to serve this up with a side of some yummy vegetables, like this Crunchy Asian Salad. And, if you can find it, serve it over brown jasmine rice for some added fiber.
Enjoy and HAPPY NEW YEAR!
Chicken in Peanut Sauce
Chicken in Peanut Sauce
Servings 4Ingredients
- 2 cloves garlic ($0.16)
- 2 inches fresh ginger ($0.14)
- 1 Tbsp vegetable oil ($0.08)
- 1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breast* ($1.99)
- 1 14oz. can coconut milk ($2.14)
- 1/2 cup natural peanut butter ($0.66)
- 1 Tbsp soy sauce ($0.10)
- 1 Tbsp brown sugar ($0.02)
- 1/2 tsp sriracha hot sauce, optional ($0.02)
- 1 lime ($0.50)
- 1/4 bunch cilantro, optional ($0.20)
- 4 cups cooked jasmine rice ($0.69)
Instructions
- If you don’t have cooked jasmine rice on hand, begin cooking your rice first so it will be ready by the time the chicken and sauce are complete. To begin the sauce, mince the garlic and then peel and grate the ginger into a large skillet or pot. Saute both in the vegetable oil over medium heat for about 2 minutes or until they are soft and fragrant.
- Cut the chicken into small pieces (about one inch across). Add them to your skillet or pot. Saute until lightly browned and cooked through (about 10 minutes).
- Turn the heat down to low and add the coconut milk and peanut butter. Stir gently to combine the two and dissolve any browned bits off of the bottom of the pan. Once the sauce is relatively smooth, add the soy sauce, brown sugar, sriracha, and juice from half of the lime. Stir to combine and heat through (about ten minutes).
- Pull the cilantro leaves from their stems and roughly chop. Scoop about one cup of jasmine rice into the bottom of each bowl and then top with the chicken and sauce (about 3/4 cup). Sprinkle the fresh cilantro over top and enjoy!
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Notes
Nutrition
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Step By Step Photos
Start by mincing the garlic and grating the ginger (peel the ginger with a vegetable peeler or scrape the skin off with the side of a spoon). Saute both in vegetable oil over medium heat for 1-2 minutes, or until soft and fragrant.
Cut the chicken into small pieces, about one inch across each.
Add the chicken to the pot/skillet and saute until cooked through (about 10 minutes). It’s okay if stuff sticks to the bottom of the pan because it will dissolve off into the sauce, just don’t let it go past “brown” to “burned.”
Next, add the coconut milk and peanut butter.
Turn the heat down to low. Gently stir (to minimize splashing) the two together until they are smooth and all of the browned bits on the bottom of the pan have also dissolved in.
Now it’s time to add a little pizazz! We’re touching all of the flavor bases here with the soy sauce, brown sugar, sriracha, and lime juice. You can start with juice from half of the lime and add more if you’d like. If you don’t have sriracha, add a pinch of red pepper flakes for a little heat.
Stir all of those flavor ingredients in and your sauce is finished! Allow the sauce to heat through and then serve. Just make sure to have the heat low enough so that the pot does NOT boil. If it reaches a boil, the coconut milk will separate.
Serve with cooked jasmine rice and a sprinkle of fresh, chopped cilantro. INCREDIBLE.
This looks great! Can this be done with extra firm tofu instead of chicken?
Ah, yes. You definitely want to use natural peanut butter. I forgot to specify that in the ingredients! I’ll fix it now :) I use Smucker’s brand because that’s what they have at my local grocery. Even on peanut butter that is labeled “natural” you do want to check the ingredients list. I had bought one once (I think it was Great Value brand) that was labeled natural but still contained brown sugar, which changes the flavor quite a bit.
Yep, you really have to read the ingredients on the peanut butter. Should just say “Peanuts” and maybe salt. All of Trader Joe’s peanut butter is natural, and pretty affordable. Mmm, I love this kind of stuff! But veggies and “Chickenless” strips for me (vegetarian).
Happy New Year, Beth! :)
i’m glad this was the first recipe i saw on this blog, because i make a similar recipe all the time and knew the rest of it should be good. :) instead of sriracha, i like to use a bit of red curry paste, and i’ll usually sub white or apple cider vinegar for the lime juice. i also tend to marinate the chicken beforehand with turmeric, garlic, pepper, sugar, coriander, and some coconut cream i reserve from the can for the sauce. (my poor thai grandmother, bless her, would come after me if she knew i only rarely grilled the chicken. it’s just so much easier on the stovetop or under the broiler.) the listed recipe is delicious as is, though!
i can field a couple questions about the peanut butter too: you’ll want to find a natural peanut butter that has no sugar added. you’re in the right direction if you open up the jar and there’s a nice, thick layer of oil on the top. the closer you can get to “nothing but peanuts finely ground in their own oil”, the more thai your sauce will taste. if you have peanuts and a food processor, you’re already good to go.
thanks for a recipe, and have a great new year. :)
Hey Beth. This looks like it would be a good crock pot recipe. Maybe adding some veggies in the last hour of cooking… What do you Think? I’m also thinking of trying your Greek chicken stew in the crock pot as well. I love all your recipes (if I could afford the ink and paper I would print and bind them all) and I am trying to make as many of them as I can work in the crock pot since I work til 7 each night and prefer to eat rather than start cooking at that time. :)
This looks super delicious!
This sounds great! Along the lines of Nick’s comment – whenever I’ve tried dishes that use peanut butter, they’ve ended up sickly sweet and overpowering. Is there a specific kind of peanut butter you recommend? I admit i’ve just used regular peanut butter before, not natural, so I’ll have to look for that. Thanks!
I just made this for dinner after you posted it :) It was definitely tasty!
My one criticism though, is that I actually found the peanut butter to be a little bit overpowering. Thai peanut sauce that I have had at restaurants seems to be a little more discreet and flavorful, and I feel like the coconut milk didn’t really shine through in the recipe as much as it could have.
All in all, though, I would make it again! Thanks Beth and happy 2013!
This was delicious and quick. I substituted lemon and rice noodles in place of lime and rice. Next time I will saute a red pepper and add some green onions to dress it up. Thank you!
This is like an easy version of the Thai dish Swimming Rama, which is traditionally served over a bed of fresh spinach – it is SO GOOD.
Mmmm, peanut butter…
yum! i am absolutely making this! sounds and looks so good. :)
This looks so yummy!
Anon – Now that I think about it, this sauce would be AWESOME over some stir fry vegetables, too! Then just spoon the whole lot over the jasmine rice :)
The recipe sounds delicious, but we are lucky if we can find chicken breast for less than $6.99/lb… and that is on sale!!!
Basic or best yet always 1.98\lb.