Satay lovers rejoice! This is the stuff food dreams are made of – chicken marinated in an authentic homemade Satay Seasoning, then simmered in an incredible Satay Peanut Sauce (Malaysian restaurant recipe). No hard to find ingredients, simple to make, guaranteed to blow your mind!
Satay Chicken Curry (Malaysian)
“I rarely leave comments on blogs…but I am going OUT OF MY MIND about this recipe. Seriously, it’s the best thing I’ve ever cooked. My partner actually thinks I ordered it from a restaurant and am trying to pretend like I cooked it!”
– Kellie, 22 May 2017
As you can see from the date stamp of the above reader feedback, this Satay Chicken Curry is a recipe I published years ago. 9 May 2016, to be exact. Way back before I taught myself to make recipe videos.
A recipe this good, a personal favourite of this curry-loving, satay-obsessed gal, had to be filmed.
So I’m giving it a total makeover – new photos, new video, tidying up some writing. But I promise I have not touched the recipe. I wouldn’t dare – too many people are obsessed with it!!
Different types of satay
Real Satay Chicken is skewered chicken marinated with satay seasonings, seared over charcoal and served with a peanut sauce. Many South East Asian countries have their own version, with most well known being Thai, Indonesian (Bali) and Malaysian (this recipe).
All are slightly different, but have similar undertones. Thai Chicken Satay (pictured below, left) is sweeter, more coconut-y and has a mild red curry flavour (the secret ingredient). Indonesian Satay (below right) is the simplest and most peanutty.
Malaysian Satay is said to be the king of all Satays, with the most complex, deep flavours. Stronger satay seasoning, less peanutty and less coconutty than Thai and Indonesian.
What this tastes like (and why it’s not on skewers)
As far as I know, Chicken Satay in this curry-like form is not authentic Asian. But I love making it this way because it’s so much more satisfying to eat (compared to tiny little skewers!) and so much easier to make large volumes (again – no skewering!).
But while the form of this Satay Chicken Curry might not be an authentic Asian recipe, I can promise you this: it tastes 100% authentic. Because I’ve used a Chef recipe for the homemade satay seasoning and a Restaurant recipe for the Peanut Sauce (this recipe from Chinta Ria in Sydney). 🙂
I think you will be surprised when you see the ingredients for the Satay Seasoning. All spices that you might already have in your pantry!
Ingredients in Satay Seasoning
The foundation of this recipe is the homemade Satay Seasoning which is used for both marinating the chicken AND in the satay sauce. Here are the spices required: coriander, cumin, turmeric, paprika, chilli, curry powder (any brand is fine), sugar and salt.
🇺🇸US readers note: the “chilli powder” in this recipe is not what you call “Chili Powder” (with one “l”) which is a spice mix that is not very spicy. This recipe calls for real chilli powder which is pure ground dried chillies and it is spicy!
With the Satay Seasoning, the chicken is absolutely divine by itself. I could honestly eat it straight out of the pan, without the peanut sauce.
But with the peanut curry sauce….it just takes it to a whole new level……
Ingredients in Satay Curry Sauce
And here’s what goes into the sauce:
Chicken – thighs are best for the juiciest pieces of chicken, but breast and tenderloin work fine too. Other proteins: pork and beef work too, but it needs to be slow cooking cuts simmered for an hour or so until fall-apart tender. I’ve popped tips in the recipe notes;
Peanuts – roasted, unsalted. Some for blitzing into the sauce, some added later for a bit of crunch in the sauce;
Peanut butter – NATURAL is best (ie no added sugar or oil) because it has the most intense peanut flavour and is thinner than sweetened peanut butter spread. But ordinary peanut butter spreads will work fine too – the peanut flavour is slightly less intense;
Fresh red chilli – I’ve used birds eye chilli here (a common type Australia). 6 chilli = noticeable spiciness but won’t blow your head off. Dial it down if you can’t handle the heat. If you can’t find these specific chillies, don’t worry – use any red chilli you can find, remembering the rule that the smaller the chilli, the spicier it is. You can also leave it out, or take the safe route and start with less then use chilli powder at the end to dial up the spice. Some alternatives: Thai Red Chillies are around the same spiciness. Cayenne is much less spicy (and larger). Habanero is spicier so use 1/2 of 1 (about 1/2 tsp);
Kecap Manis – this is a sweet soy sauce with a consistency like syrup. Here in Australia, kecap manis is available in major supermarkets, in the soy sauce section. And if you can’t find it at your supermarket, don’t worry! It is SO easy to make – just reduce soy sauce and brown sugar. Seriously. I’ve included directions in the recipe for you;
Dark soy sauce – the intense colour of this soy sauce is what darkens the sauce colour from a pale yellow colour to a deeper orangey reddy colour. Read more about different soy sauces here. Don’t have it or can’t find it? That’s ok – you can use normal or light soy sauce, just know your sauce colour will be lighter. Won’t affect flavour that much;
Coconut milk – full fat, for best flavour (because coconut flavour is in the fat);
Chicken stock/broth – to thin about the sauce. Much tastier than using water;
Lime juice – for a touch of sour, to balance out the flavour. Not the end of the world to substitute with a vinegar (it’s not a major flavour component in this recipe);
Garlic and onion – essential aromatics;
Lemongrass OR kaffir limes leaves – plonking either of these into the sauce as it simmers adds a special extra touch of flavour that really elevates it to “real restaurant” flavour. It is still mighty tasty without (I’ve made this plenty of times without either of them) but with, it really is that little bit more special. They both add similar flavour – so use whichever is easier for you to find.
Kaffir lime leaves – sold in small packets at fruit & veg stores, Asian stores and most large grocery stores in Australia. Leftovers freeze perfectly, and it’s used in most authentic Thai dishes (like red curry, Tom Yum Soup) as well as other South East Asian dishes like Beef Rendang and Coconut Rice.
Lemongrass – using a fresh stalk is best if you can get it (bashed to release flavour), otherwise a dab of paste from a tube will works wonders too. If you use paste, just stir in 2 teaspoons when the lemongrass is supposed to go in. Use leftover paste for Thai recipes like Thai Meatballs, Red Thai Curry, Poached Salmon in Coconut Lime Sauce, Thai Coconut Noodle Soup.
How to make Chicken Satay Curry
And here’s how to make it – very straightforward!
Mix the Satay Seasoning ingredients together;
Marinate the chicken in the Seasoning with some grated onion for extra flavour;
Sear the chicken just to get some nice colour on it – no need to cook the chicken through;
Saute aromatics – onion, garlic, chilli;
Transfer to blender (or Nutribullet, in my case) with most of the peanuts and chicken broth;
Blitz until smooth;
Pour back into the skillet along with the coconut milk, and lemongrass or Kaffir Lime leave;
Add chicken back in then simmer until it reduces and thickens, your mouth is watering and it looks like THIS ↓↓↓:
Food euphoria. Food so good it makes you want to cry. And to think this is made from scratch, no jar pastes…just incredible.
This peanut curry sauce is so good it’s nuts. Go on – groan at the terrible pun!!! That might distract you for a mere moment of lusting after this sauce!!! 😉 – Nagi x
Watch how to make it
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Satay Chicken Curry (Malaysian)
Ingredients
Satay Seasoning
- 1 1/2 tsp coriander
- 1 1/2 tsp cumin powder
- 1 1/2 tsp tumeric
- 1 1/2 tsp paprika (sweet or normal, not smoked or spicy)
- 1 1/4 tsp chilli powder , adjust to taste (not US "Chili Powder", Note 1)
- 3 1/2 tsp curry powder , not HOT (any, Malaysian, generic, Clives of India, Keens)
- 1 1/4 tsp salt , cooking / kosher (or 1 tsp table salt)
- 2 tsp white sugar
Chicken
- 750g / 1.5 lb chicken thigh fillets , cut into bite size pieces (Note 2)
- 1/2 onion (brown, white or yellow), grated
Satay Sauce
- 2 tbsp oil , separated
- 3 – 6 birds eye chillies or other small hot red chillies , finely chopped (Note 3)
- 1/4 cup onion (brown, white or yellow), finely diced (~ 1/4 onion)
- 4 garlic cloves , minced
- 1 cup chicken broth / stock
- 3/4 cup peanuts, roasted unsalted, , chopped, separated
- 2 tsp kecap manis (Note 4)
- 3 tsp dark soy sauce (Note 5)
- 400g / 14oz coconut milk (preferably full fat but light will be ok)
- 2 tbsp peanut butter , pure best but spread ok too, crunchy or smooth
- 2 tbsp lime juice , to taste
Flavour Infusion – choose ONE:
- 3 kaffir lime leaves
- 1 lemongrass stalk , white part only, smashed to burst open (Note 6)
Garnish (choices)
- Peanuts , chopped
- Cilantro / coriander leaves
- Fresh chilli, finely chopped
Instructions
- Combine Satay Seasoning ingredients in a small bowl.
Marinate & Cook Chicken:
- Marinate – Combine chicken with 3 1/2 TABLESPOONS Satay Seasoning and onion in a bowl. Marinate for at least 3 hours, preferably overnight, minimum 20 minutes (Note 6)
- Cook – Heat 1 tbsp oil in a non stick skillet over high heat (Note 7). Cook chicken in 2 batches until browned all over but still raw inside. Transfer to bowl, cover and keep warm.
Satay Sauce:
- Saute aromatics – Using the same skillet, turn heat down to medium and heat 1 tbsp oil. Add chill, onion and garlic cloves. Sauté until onion is translucent – around 2 minutes.
- Satay Seasoning – Add remaining Satay Seasoning and cook for 1 minute.
- Blitz – Transfer to a blender or small food processor (I use a Nutribullet). Add chicken stock and 1/2 cup of the peanuts (rest gets added later). Puree until pretty smooth – some peanut chunks can remain. Pour mixture back into the skillet.
- Add remaining ingredients into sauce – Add remaining 1/4 cup peanuts, kecap manis, dark soy sauce, coconut milk and peanut butter. Stir to combine.
- Add kaffir lime or lemongrass – Crush kaffir lime leaf in hand a bit (to break leaf to release the flavour). Add kaffir lime leaf OR lemongrass and chicken to sauce.
- Simmer – Bring to simmer, turn heat down to medium low and simmer for 15 minutes until thickened.
- Serve – Add lime juice to taste. Serve with rice (jasmine, white rice or brown rice). Garnish with peanuts, cilantro/coriander leaves and more chilli if desired. See Note 9 for suggested sides.
Recipe Notes:
- Beef – 1kg / 2lb chuck or beef ribs cut into 4cm / 1.5″ pieces. Marinate and sear per recipe (use a pot) then make sauce per recipe. Now, before adding beef back in, add about 2 cups of water, enough so that the beef is mostly submerged. Put lid on and cook on low simmer for 1.5 hrs (topping up water as needed) until beef is fall apart tender. Remove lid towards end to reduce sauce to pictured thickness. Crazy delicious!
- Prawns/Shrimp – Using about 500g/1lb peeled prawns, follow recipe as written except with following changes: prawns will cook through during sear step, so simmer to reduce the sauce without the prawns in it. Just add the prawns back in right at the end, just to warm through, making sure you tip in all the juices dropped by the prawns in the bowl.
- Fish – I personally wouldn’t because I think the sauce is too rich for fish in this saucy curry form, but you certainly can if you want! Follow prawn steps using large fish cubes It would be great for economical freshwater fish that has a tendency to taste a bit muddy (those fish are always served with strong sauces to disguise the muddy flavour).
- white, jasmine or brown rice
- fresh slices of cucumber and tomato wedges, no dressing – very Asian, pairs great with rich mains like this
- Smashed Cucumbers (personal favourite), Asian Slaw, leafy greens or any garden salad with Asian Sesame Dressing or this Vermicelli Noodle Salad.
i). Make one common seasoning (because the ingredients are very similar); and
ii) Converted the sauce into a curry sauce rather than dipping sauce, but keeping the flavour; and
iii) Change the Satay Sauce steps to avoid grinding the peanuts with a mortar and pestle a) for convenience; b) because the sauce for this recipe should be silkier than chunky satay peanut dipping sauces for satay on sticks; and c) because depending on the quality of the peanuts, sometimes it can make the sauce a bit gritty. Also because of the vast volume of the sauce compared to making a dipping sauce, I added a small amount of peanut butter to help create a thick smooth curry sauce as well as adding a touch of sweet rather than using sugar. 12. Nutrition per serving, curry only no rice. Sauce is rich, coconut, peanutty, heavily spiced!
Nutrition Information:
Originally published May 2016. Updated September 2020 with brand new photos, process photos, brand new recipe video. No change to recipe!
Life of Dozer
No satay for Dozer – too spicy!
So he chewed his toy octopus instead.
And from the original publication date:
The only reason there’s no photo of Dozer drooling over Satay along with you (and me) is because he’s outside gnawing on a bone. He always splays his front legs out like this when he’s munching on a bone – is this normal?? Looks awkward!
That is one happy boy to be all sprawled out like that. He’s in doggie heaven on earth with you. Did you ever post his puppy pics? Im sort of newish to your blog in the last couple of years so I wasn’t able to be a part of when you first got him. Boy we sure all adore him too😊
I cannot wait to try this recipe! What type of peanuts do you use? Roasted in oil unsalted, or dry roasted unsalted? Thank you!
Hi Donna! To be honest I am not sure. They just say roasted! It shouldn’t matter because they’re blitzed up / cooked in this 🙂 Hope you get a chance to try this – and that you love it!! N x
Hi Nagi I would like to make a yummy Laksa paste & Thai Red curry paste from scratch & would greatly appreciate if you could help. Many Thanks. May you & your family stay we’ll & happy.
Hi Nimal – try my red curry paste here: https://salesdock.info/thai-red-curry-paste/%3C/a%3E I don’t ave one for laksa just yet 🙂 N x
Hi Nagi – here in rural California I can’t find anything but tubes of minced lemongrass in the produce section. No kaffir lime leaves or stalks of lemongrass – do you have substitution recommendations? 🙂
Hi Leslie! Tube is fine – I forgot to put in the recipe the amount to use! 2 tsp 🙂 Just added it now! N x
I am very happy for Dozer’s revovery……i keep reading your posts whish i enjoy a lot…..love it…..
Thanks so much Edna – he’s doing much better thank you!! N x
Thanks Nagi for another wonderful recipe to try! Having lived in Malaysia for decades before moving to Canada, I can safely say after eating many, many satay in restaurants or pasar malams (night market with street food), we usually add lemongrass (finely chopped or blended) into the spice marinade for the chicken. This intensifies the flavours of the chicken. Any extra lemongrass I’ll use in the curry. 🙂 also, this dish goes well with garlic lime rice!
Lemongrass or galangal (I couldn’t think of this word while commenting earlier) ☺️ Thanks again and hope all is well with the lovely Dozer.
Is there any way to add the spiciness in the end? I have a toddler who can’t handle any chilli and a hubby who won’t eat anything without lots of heat! (Other than cooking a batches separately) Thanks!
Hi Anna! Absolutely – just leave out the chilli powder and fresh chilli. Then you can just add chilli powder right at the end, or even stir in chilli garlic paste or sriracha 🙂 N x
I am a chef and what you cook and describe in your recipes is phenomenal!!!
Every dish is always a restaurant style and even better I would say!!
And good to hear that Dozer is getting better!!
Keep up the good work..
God bless you!!
What a great compliment Sid, thank you so much!!! N x
Totally correct. Manoeuvring square sheets of meat into a small round bowl soon becomes tedious. Not made it yet but my Thai in-laws will be the Guinea pigs. I’ll report back 😊. Aced it Nagi 🤩
First up glad Tozer is looking better and recovering… Wow fabulous recipe. Unfortunately, I have to avoid coconut. I could make some cashew nut milk or cream myself. What are your thoughts? Thanks Nagi 🤗
Hi Nina! This would be delightful made with cream – use the same quantity using thickened/heavy cream. The coconut is a background flavour here because there’s so much satay seasoning. Though… Can you add artificial coconut essence? 🙂 That would make it amazing! N x
I made this tonight, so good! I had to leave out a few ingredients due to my husbands’ food sensitivities (no onion/garlic/easy on the chili), and I had no peanuts, Lime leaves or lemongrass, but still so delicious, even with only marinating for 20 minutes. I added some diced sweet potato at the simmer stage and steamed some bokchoy when there was 5 minutes remaining for extra veg content.
I’m so glad it was still a winner Gemma, that’s great to hear!! N x
Could l do this with prawns? My daughter is allergic to chicken ☹
Absolutely, it is so so good! I just popped directions in the recipe note 2 🙂 N x
Thank you so much Nagi. We will try it tonight! I love all your recipes. Whenever we want to cook anything at all we go straight to your recipes as they are always fantastic! So happy Dozer is recovering well. Scary times for you x
Girl … you are amazing, I’ve just finished a Cert III in commercial cookery.. but I’ve learnt more from you in just a few short months than in my course.
Thank you
It’s never too late to learn Jo!! N x
Hi Nagi. Thanks for the satay recipe. I will try it. I love the satay beef/chicken/prawn dishes I used to get when I lived in Sydney’s Northern Beaches. I was never able to duplicate that flavour until a lady in an Asian store in Newcastle sold me a jar of Jimmy’s Satay Sauce. That was it! But I must have used too much because the heat was nuclear. Have you used this sauce? Any suggestions on how to get that flavour without needing a fire brigade?
Hi Tony, I LOVE Jimmy’s – It’s used in Chinese dishes and I talk about it in this posts here: https://salesdock.info/chinese-satay-chicken-stir-fry/%3C/a%3E I’m still yet to get the perfect recipe using Jimmy’s sate! N x
I looked at that recipe. Brilliant! I’ll give it a go and if I ever crack that perfect combination, I’ll send it to you to share. I’m glad I’m not the only one who has trouble duplicating restaurant flavours. Thank you!
Hi Nagi & Dozer. So glad that it was nothing serious & Dozer is well on the road to full recovery. Big relief. I’m sure you are giving him lots of special attention and cuddles.
Of course Lynne 🙂 N x
Hi Nagi – your recipes are the really the best – I am a 72 year old ex Rhodesian male who loves cooking “tasty” food and trying out new recipes!
Your recipes and style of cooking are so fantastic, that I no hardly ever use any of my old standby recipes and now follow your cooking program all the time.
I have a great Oxtail stew (not soup) recipe which I use as often as I get the urge to eat this unique cut of beef – do you have one from your archives?
Again, great recipes and style. Regards, Guy
Thanks so much for the great feedback Guy!! I love Oxtail but I haven’t published any recipes with it – time to revisit I think!! N x
I have made this and the whole family loved it, thank you for your wonderful recipes. I currently have Osso Bucco cooking in the slow cooker, which is also your recipe.
I love hearing this Julzy!! N x
Hi Nagi. I so look forward to your recipes arriving in my inbox. I look forward to making this recipe but can I use cashews instead of peanuts and would I use the same amount?
Can I ask is it three and a half tablespoons of satay seasoning on the chicken regardless of how many servings ? Thank you!
Hi Rose, satay is all about the peanuts, cashews would have a different flavour (but still delicious I’m sure) N x
I have made this dish before and it’s the best recipe soooo delish.I am glad Dozer is getting better.A big thank you for your recipes really appreciated 👍🥰🥰🥰🐾🐾💋😂😂
Thanks so much Carol!! N x
I love Malaysian curries Nagi, and this sounds fabulous. Unfortunately I am allergic to peanuts (other nuts are okay) so am now experiencing curry envy :(. Although satays are based on peanuts, is there anything I can sub them with? Alternatively what would be your next favourite Malaysian curry?
Thanks so much for your wonderful recipes and the love you are sending us Melbournians!