Thai Marinated Grilled Chicken Skewers with Peanut Sauce
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Fire up the grill for marinated Thai chicken skewers served with a creamy peanut dipping sauce that’ll keep everyone reaching for more!
I first discovered this wonderful recipe in the Costco magazine, but it comes from Alice Currah, the talented voice behind the blog and book Savory Sweet Life. The marinade—a blend of soy sauce, brown sugar, garlic, and spices—perfectly seasons the grilled chicken. Yet, it’s the rich peanut sauce that truly steals the show. When I first served this dish to my family about ten years ago, the reaction from my then-young son was memorable. After he went for seconds of the steamed broccoli I served alongside, and seeing my surprised look, he simply said, “Mom, this sauce would make anything taste good.” Honestly, I couldn’t agree more—I am always half-tempted to skip the chicken entirely and just slurp up the sauce like soup!
Table of Contents
What You’ll Need To Make Thai Marinated Grilled Chicken Skewers With Peanut Sauce
Step-by-Step Instructions
Begin by pounding the chicken breasts to an even 1/2-inch thickness. This both tenderizes the meat and ensures it cooks evenly.
Cut the chicken into chunks.
Make the marinade by combining the soy sauce, brown sugar, lime zest, vegetable oil, garlic, curry powder, ginger, cardamom and salt in a bowl. Add the chicken to the marinade, then cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight.
Meanwhile, make the sauce by combining the coconut milk, peanut butter, dark brown sugar, soy sauce and red curry paste in a medium saucepan. Bring the sauce to a boil, then turn the heat down and cook a few minutes more. Finish the sauce with freshly squeezed lime juice.
Once the chicken has marinated, thread the chunks onto skewers.
Grill the chicken about 5 minutes per side, or until cooked through. Serve with the peanut sauce and lime wedges. If you have leftovers, try serving the chicken over a salad; the chilled sauce makes an excellent dressing.
Video Tutorial
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Thai Marinated Grilled Chicken Skewers with Peanut Sauce
Fire up the grill for marinated Thai chicken skewers served with a creamy peanut dipping sauce that’ll keep everyone reaching for more!
Ingredients
For the Chicken
- ¼ cup soy sauce
- 3 tablespoons dark brown sugar, packed
- Zest of one lime
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tablespoon curry powder
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon ground cardamom
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 3 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts
For the Peanut Sauce
- 1 (13-oz) can coconut milk (do not use low fat)
- ⅓ cup peanut butter
- ¼ cup dark brown sugar, packed
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon red curry paste
- 3 tablespoons fresh lime juice, from 2 limes
For Serving
- 1 lime, cut into wedges (optional)
Instructions
- Prep the Chicken: Pound the chicken breasts to an even ½-inch thickness between two pieces of wax or parchment paper. Cut the breasts into 1½-inch pieces and set aside.
- Marinate the Chicken: Make the marinade by combining the soy sauce, dark brown sugar, lime zest, vegetable oil, garlic, curry powder, ginger, cardamom and salt in a large bowl. Add the chicken pieces to the bowl and mix until chicken is evenly coated. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and marinate in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours or overnight.
- Make the Peanut Sauce: In a medium saucepan, whisk the coconut milk, peanut butter, brown sugar, soy sauce and red curry paste until evenly combined. Bring to a simmer, then cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, for about 3 minutes. Stir in the fresh lime juice and set aside.
- Grill the Chicken: Preheat the grill to high heat. Meanwhile, thread the chicken pieces onto skewers. Grease the grill. Place the skewers on the grill and cook for about 10 minutes, turning once, or until the chicken is cooked through. Serve the chicken skewers with the peanut sauce and lime wedges, if desired.
Pair with
Nutrition Information
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- Calories: 547
- Fat: 29 g
- Saturated fat: 14 g
- Carbohydrates: 21 g
- Sugar: 14 g
- Fiber: 2 g
- Protein: 52 g
- Sodium: 1106 mg
- Cholesterol: 152 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
Gluten-Free Adaptable Note
To the best of my knowledge, all of the ingredients used in this recipe are gluten-free or widely available in gluten-free versions. There is hidden gluten in many foods; if you're following a gluten-free diet or cooking for someone with gluten allergies, always read the labels of your ingredients to verify that they are gluten-free.
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Comments
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Wow! What a terrific recipe. I followed it to the letter. The marinade, thanks to a few hours in the fridge, was flavorful. The peanut sauce was delicious! I’ve been cooking six days a week recently, and even our 18 year-old son and 16 year-old daughter thought this was the best meal so far. It’s hard to please everyone, but this did it! I served with the homemade naan and a simple salad with creamy feta dressing, both from this site. We also had lime-cilantro rice and broccoli.
Note: I used frozen chicken, because that’s all I had available. I was worried after I tenderized (with a flat mallet) because it looked a bit mangled and stringy. It looked even worse coming out of the marinade to thread on the skewers, but it was so tender and looked great coming off the grill.
My whole family gobbled this up!
Hi -can the chicken be made in advance and reheated?
I’m doing some dishes for a lunch at my daughter’s friends hen do.
I have made this with the accompanying Thai salad and loved it.
I won’t be at the hen do so want things that my daughter can deal with easily.
Thanks
Hi Anne, Yes, I think these could be made ahead of time and reheated. They can either be reheated on the grill or in a 300°F oven just until warm. These would also be good served room temperature if you want to go that route.
Hi Jenn,
I LOVE this recipe and make it a few times a month.
I would love to prep this on a weekend to make the post-work dinner scramble a little less hectic. Two questions – first, I can prep the marinade and then add the chicken in a few days later? Second, could I prep all of it, including combining the chicken and marinade and freeze it to use later in the week? Thanks!
Yes and yes (and glad you like it)! 🙂
There was waaaay to much brown sugar in this. I wouldn’t make again.
Another excellent recipe! I did add some Sambal Oelek to the sauce to give it a bit of heat. Served with jasmine rice and roasted broccoli. Topped with some basil. The creamy sauce was a perfect foil to the grilled chicken and the charred edges on the broccoli. I used some frozen Costco chicken breasts I had on hand. They can be somewhat dry, but the marinade really added flavor and kept them moist. What I really liked about this dish is that it is very fresh and flavorful tasting. Many of the Thai/Asian recipes I see lately are very salty from the use of a lot of soy sauce and the flavors tend to be muddy. Added bonus, I had some sauce left over and served it as a vegetable dip last night!
Hi Jenn, Can I bake / broil instead of grilling?
Hi Lin, You can broil these in the oven for the same amount of time that the recipe indicates – about 5 minutes per side. Enjoy!
Jenn,
I love your recipes, and everything I’ve tried in your cookbook has been great. I was mesmerized by the aroma of the marinade sauce and was looking forward to a fabulous dish. but I can only rate the Grilled Thai Curry Chicken Skewers with Coconut-Peanut Sauce a 3.
I followed your recipe exactly, and it was way too salty. Perhaps the next time I make it I will use low sodium soy sauce, and less of it, and no added salt in the marinade. Please consider this if you are thinking about including it in an upcoming cookbook. The recommended Basmati Rice recipe was simple and wonderful, as is the Basmati Rice recipe in your cookbook. Thank you for your recipes and blog, I look forward to it every week.
Good day Mrs. Segal,
Could I bake strips of chicken for this recipe instead of grilling?
Thanks,
Shelley
Hi Shelley, Yes, these can be broiled. Cook them for the same amount of time that the recipe indicates, flipping once – about 5 minutes per side. Enjoy!
I made this recipe for a group of friends last weekend and everyone loved it! Just another one of your delicious recipes that is now in permanent rotation at my house!