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.
Another Fantastic Recipe!!! My husband and son made this tonight and WOW, we loved it. Thank you.
This one and your siracha hummus our my absolute favorites. Love your blog!
Happy 2013! If this is just the start of great recipes this year, I can’t wait to see what else you have in store for us. :D Simple, affordable, yet delicious and inspired. A college cook’s dream come true. YUM.
I made this for dinner last night, and my wife raved about it. I’m eating leftovers for breakfast as I type, if that says anything. I added some stir-fried vegetables then served it on a bed of green cabbage and rice noodles as rama.
I just made this for dinner and my husband loved it. I’m not a big fan of Thai food, but I am trying to expand my food horizons. Instead of the sriracha, I used some finely diced red bell pepper and I also used light coconut milk to cut down on the fat and make it more Weight Watcher friendly.
Zackzor – are you asking why the brown bits are difficult to get off of the bottom of the pan before adding the liquid? If so, it’s just because they are sticky and when you add the liquid, it helps them dissolve off. It’s kind of like when you add hot water to scrub a pan. It’s just a lot easier with moisture :)
My wife and I really enjoyed making this recipe; it was fun and I learned a few things. I am curious as to why the brown chicken bits were difficult to get the pan before adding the coconut/peanut sauce. Why is that? Thanks for the great recipe.
Found my dinner for tonight! Thanks so much for sharing. :)
This recipe is so delicious! I made it VEGAN by substituting “chicken” seitan instead of chicken meat and LOW-CARB by stir-frying assorted veggies (green onions, eggplant, carrot & red pepper) instead of rice. I also used less coconut milk to make the sauce thicker for the veggies. Definitely one I will be making again and again – THANKS :)
I want to know where the person who says they cant get chicken for less than 6.99 a pound lives…so that I never move there on accident.
My husband just made this for dinner tonight and it’s an awesome recipe. We make a lot of thai & thai-inspired dishes and this is one of my new favorites! Thank you!
My family makes a recipe very similar to this but with a heaping spoonful of curry paste for the spicy and added bell peppers and green beans. I also know for a fact that chunky peanut butter can be substituted for creamy. We love this recipe.
This sounds so good, and super easy besides! I also may try it with tofu, as we’re a half vegetarian household. But chicken is also delicious, so maybe I will just have an entire batch to myself… :)
Rie – I think you definitely could use tofu in place of the chicken :)
Dixya – I think lite coconut milk would probably still be good, although I’ve never worked with low fat peanut butters, so I don’t know about that.
what a great way you start off the new year. I love anything peanut and sriracha and coconut milk. The sauce looks pretty rich and do you think I could skinnyfy it little bit with low fat peanut butter and light coconut milk?