Chicken Satays with Spicy Thai Peanut Sauce

Posted on March 7, 2012 by Romina Moradi

These chicken satays come loaded with mind blowing flavours! The yogurt marinade creates an extremely juicy & tender chicken satay and the peanut sauce will leave an unforgettable after-taste in your mouth.

They are by far the most requested dish at my catering events. Try them for yourselves and you’ll see why!

I love making these because it gives me an excuse to indulge in some peanut butter. Confession: I may have a slight peanut butter obsession.

The trick to the perfect chicken satay lies in the preparation of the chicken. To ensure even cooking- “butterfly” your chicken breast by running the blade of the knife width-wise down the breast. Do not cut all the way through!

Keep the edge intact & open the breast along the fold.

Cut the chicken breast into equal sized pieces. Repeat this method for each chicken breast. This recipe calls for 1 1/2 pounds of chicken breasts ( 3-4 breasts)- which yields around 15-20 chicken skewers.

Once prepared, transfer the chicken strips to the fridge & start on the yogurt marinade.

Yogurt Marinade for Chicken Satay’s

1 cup of Plain Yogurt

1 1/2 teaspoons freshly grated ginger

1 teaspoon minced garlic

1 tablespoon curry powder

1 tsp cumin

1/4 cup of chopped cilantro

1 1/2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cut into strips (method shown above)

15-20 wooden skewers, soaked in water 30 minutes

In a large mixing bowl combine: 1 cup of plain yogurt with 1 1/2 tsp of grated ginger, 1 tsp minced garlic, 1 tsp cumin, 1 tbsp of curry powder & 1/4 cup of chopped cilantro.

Add the chicken pieces to the marinade and give it a gentle toss until each chicken piece is coated. Refrigerate for a minimum of 2 hours.

If you let the chicken satay’s absorb the flavours of the marinade overnight- they will be much more tender.

When ready, skewer each chicken strip in a “thread” like method. Please make sure you have pre-soaked your wooden skewers first!

Broil the chicken satays for approximately 8-9 minutes and turn to broil another 4-5 minutes on the other side. Serve with Spicy Thai Peanut Sauce (click for the recipe!).

Bon Appétit!

xo r

Red Coconut Chicken Curry

Posted on February 19, 2012 by Romina Moradi

About a month ago I held a Twitter contest asking if any of you could guess what fruit this was.

I got a ton a hilarious replies: Gauva? Crazy looking orange? Tomatillo?

My friend Kelly ended up guessing correctly with her answer as Passion Fruit. She won a free dinner (of her choice) cooked by me. We decided on Thai flavors & I thought my Red Coconut Chicken Curry would do the trick .

The great thing about this recipe is it’s versatility. Work with what you have in your fridge! You can use just about any vegetable in this dish.

Red Coconut Chicken Curry

1 lb (454 g) boneless skinless chicken thighs ( I used 2 chicken breasts instead)

2 tbsp (30 mL) vegetable oil

2 medium sized Carrots, cut into chunks

1 cup of Sprouts

1 cup of green beans (leave whole)

1 large onion, cut into chunks

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 tbsp (15 mL) minced gingerroot

1 tbsp (15 mL) Thai red curry paste

1 can (400 ml) coconut milk

2 tbsp (30 mL) fish sauce

1 tbsp (15 mL) granulated sugar

1/2 tsp (2 mL) grated lime rind

1 tbsp (15 mL) lime juice

1/4 tsp (1 mL) salt

1/2 cup (125 mL) lightly packed fresh coriander leaves

1/4 cup of Peanuts (for garnish)

Cut chicken into bite-size pieces. In wok or large skillet, heat 1 tbsp (15 mL) of the oil over high heat; stir-fry chicken, in batches, until browned, about 3 minutes. Transfer to plate.

Add remaining oil to wok; stir-fry the carrots, green beans, onion, garlic, ginger and curry paste ( for those sensitive to spicy food, reduce the curry paste to 2 tsp ) until onion is softened, about 3 minutes.

Pour in coconut milk and bring to boil; reduce heat to medium and cook for 5 minutes.

Reduce heat to simmer. Add fish sauce, sugar, lime rind and juice, salt and chicken; cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until slightly thickened and carrots are tender, about 10 minutes. Garnish with fresh sprouts, peanuts & coriander. Serve with Coconut rice ( see recipe below). Makes 5-6 servings.

Coconut Rice

Adapted from Steamy Kitchen

1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon sea or kosher salt (or 1/2 teaspoon table salt)
2 cups jasmine rice, washed and drained well
1 1/2 cups good, thick coconut milk (shake can to mix well before opening)
1 1/2 cups water

Heat butter a medium sized, heavy saucepan over medium heat. When butter is melted, add brown sugar and salt, stir until dissolved. Turn heat to high, add rice and stir until all grains coated evenly. Add coconut milk and water. Stir.

When boiling, immediately cover with tight fitting lid, turn heat to medium-low and simmer undisturbed for 20 minutes. Remove pot from heat but do not open lid. No peeking! Let sit for 10 minutes. Makes 4-6 side servings & is a great pair to the Red Coconut Curry.

P.s Next Twitter Dinner Give-a-Way will be on March 14th. Study your fruits & veggies!

Bon Appetit!

xo r

Spicy Thai Peanut Sauce

Posted on December 24, 2011 by Romina Moradi

There’s no more excuses for buying store bought peanut sauce! This recipe is not only quick but also extremely budget friendly.

Peanut Sauce:

1 cup smooth peanut butter

1/4 cup soy sauce ( use low sodium!)

2 teaspoon of red chilli paste ( I used sambal, you can also use sriracha )

2 tablespoons of brown sugar

2 limes, juiced

Lime Rind from the two limes

1 teaspoon fresh grated ginger

1/2 cup hot water

1/4 cup chopped peanuts for garnish

Combine all the above ingredients (except for the the hot water & the peanuts) together in a blender

While your mixture is blending-add hot water (gradually) from the top of the blender. You probably won’t need the whole 1/2 cup- you are just incoorperating the water until the desired consistency is reached. This sauce is suppose to have a medium thin consistency.

Once made, sprinkle your chopped 1/4 cup of peanuts right into the sauce.

I served this peanut sauce on top of chicken satays at a catering event and they were the perfect appy!

1 cup of Plain Yogurt

1 1/2 teaspoons freshly grated ginger

1 teaspoon minced garlic

1 tablespoon curry powder

1 tsp cumin

1/4 cup of chopped cilantro

1 1/2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cut into strips (method shown above)

15-20 wooden skewers, soaked in water 30 minutes

Bon Appétit!

xo r

Red Coconut Chicken Curry

1 lb (454 g) boneless skinless chicken thighs ( I used 2 chicken breasts instead)

2 tbsp (30 mL) vegetable oil

2 medium sized Carrots, cut into chunks

1 cup of Sprouts

1 cup of green beans (leave whole)

1 large onion, cut into chunks

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 tbsp (15 mL) minced gingerroot

1 tbsp (15 mL) Thai red curry paste

1 can (400 ml) coconut milk

2 tbsp (30 mL) fish sauce

1 tbsp (15 mL) granulated sugar

1/2 tsp (2 mL) grated lime rind

1 tbsp (15 mL) lime juice

1/4 tsp (1 mL) salt

1/2 cup (125 mL) lightly packed fresh coriander leaves

1/4 cup of Peanuts (for garnish)

Coconut Rice

Adapted from Steamy Kitchen

1 tablespoon butter 1 tablespoon brown sugar 1 teaspoon sea or kosher salt (or 1/2 teaspoon table salt) 2 cups jasmine rice, washed and drained well 1 1/2 cups good, thick coconut milk (shake can to mix well before opening) 1 1/2 cups water

Bon Appetit!

xo r

Peanut Sauce:

1 cup smooth peanut butter

1/4 cup soy sauce ( use low sodium!)

2 teaspoon of red chilli paste ( I used sambal, you can also use sriracha )

2 tablespoons of brown sugar

2 limes, juiced

Lime Rind from the two limes

1 teaspoon fresh grated ginger

1/2 cup hot water

1/4 cup chopped peanuts for garnish

Enjoy!

xo romina

1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon sea or kosher salt (or 1/2 teaspoon table salt)
2 cups jasmine rice, washed and drained well
1 1/2 cups good, thick coconut milk (shake can to mix well before opening)
1 1/2 cups water