Grilled Chicken Satay with Peanut Butter Dipping Sauce

As I briefly mentioned in my previous post, my in-laws hosted a wonderful holiday party while we were visiting.  It was a wonderful way to meet some of their friends and spend time with our wonderful friends, AND it was an amazing way to discover some new recipes and get a solid amount of time in the kitchen.  What a bonus!  

Being this was my first year not being with my family for the holidays, it was great to find ways to make Christmas somewhere new to feel like Christmas with my family.  I always help my mom cook during the holidays, so planning the menu with my mother-in-law and cooking for this party made me feel a little closer to home!

We prepared many delicious appetizers which I will blog about when I return from my honeymoon (yay!), but I couldn't wait to share my favorite of them all, Grilled Chicken Satay with a Peanut Dipping Sauce.  The chicken marinade was a recipe we found at a blog called Dishing Up Delights, and the sauce was by the Barefoot Contessa and was found on Food Network.

The grilled chicken was delicious on its own and had a wonderful flavor.  The cilantro and garlic make a delicious savory combination, and the red pepper flakes add just enough kick to give it a little extra something something.  The sauce was also delicious and combined my favorite, peanut butter, with the sweet, salty and sour flavors of brown sugar, soy sauce and vinegar.  It wouldn't hurt to add more peanut butter the next time around, but the sauce was delicious and was definitely a hit!

The party was large so we quadrupled the recipe and it worked out great for the chicken.  We should have only doubled the sauce because we had WAY too much when the recipe was quadrupled, but we later mixed it in with a stir fry which was absolutely delicious!

 Chicken Satay Skewers 

Ingredients

• 2 boneless chicken breasts, cut into thick strips to weave onto skewers
• 2 t sesame oil
• 2 t soy sauce
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 t red pepper flakes
• 1 to 1-1/2 T chopped cilantro

Directions:

1.  Prepare chicken and place in a bowl with a lid
2. Combine sesame oil, soy sauce, garlic, salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, and cilantro and pour over chicken
3. Cover bowl with lid and toss to combine
4. Cook immediately or refrigerate until you plan to grill (we marinaded the chicken overnight)
5. When prepared to grill, soak wooden skewers for 15 minutes and then thread with the chicken
6. Grill chicken over medium high heat until cooked through, about 2-3 minutes per side
7. If feeding a large group, cut skewers in half to make appetizer size bites; otherwise, serve immediately!

Satay Peanut Dip: 

Ingredients:

• 1 T olive oil
• 1 T sesame oil
• 2/3 C small diced red onion (1 small onion)
• 1-1/2 t minced garlic (2 cloves)
• 1-1/2 teaspoons minced fresh ginger root
• 1/4 t red pepper flakes
• 2 T red wine vinegar
• 1/4 C light brown sugar, packed
• 2 T soy sauce
• 1/2 C smooth peanut butter (add more if you want a more peanuty flavor)
• 1/4 C ketchup
• 2 T dry sherry
• 1-1/2 t lime juice

Directions:

1. Note: Rather than chopping some of the sauce ingredients, I put the red onion, garlic, and ginger root in a small food processor so it would be diced small
2. Cook the olive oil, sesame oil, red onion, garlic, ginger root, and red pepper flakes in a small, heavy-bottomed pot on medium heat until the onion is transparent, 10 to 15 minutes. 
3. Whisk in the vinegar, brown sugar, soy sauce, peanut butter, ketchup, sherry, and lime juice; cook for 1 more minute. Cool and use as a dip for Chicken Satay Skewers

I hope you enjoy these as much as I did.  If you try them, please let me know what you think!

After the honeymoon I will have some wonderful getaway posts along with the other dishes we made for our holiday feast!  Stay tuned and have a very Happy New Year!

Bon Appetit!