Sunday, August 1, 2010

Javanese Indonesian Cuisine: Chicken Satay With Peanut Sauce

Posted by The 4 Chiquez at 9:18 AM


Ingredients:

8-16 skinless chicken thighs, cut into thin strips (You can use Beef or Mutton)
1 package wooden skewers

SATAY MARINADE:
1/4 cup minced lemongrass, fresh or frozen (if using fresh, see below for instructions)
1 small onion, quartered
2 cloves garlic
1-2 fresh red chilies, sliced, OR 1/2 to 2 tsp. dried crushed chili (from the spice aisle)
1 thumb-size piece galangal or ginger, peeled and sliced
1/4 of thumb-size piece fresh turmeric, OR 1/2 tsp. dried turmeric
2 Tbsp. coriander seeds, ground in a coffee grinder, OR 1 Tbsp. ground coriander
2 tsp. cumin
3 Tbsp. dark soy sauce
4 Tbsp. fish sauce
5-6 Tbsp. brown sugar
1 Tbsp. fresh lime juice

Method:

  1. If using wooden skewers, soak them in water while you prepare the meat. This will prevent them from burning (I find the kitchen sink works well for this).
  2. Cut chicken or beef into thin pieces or strips (small enough to easily skewer). Place in a bowl.
  3. Place all marinade ingredients in a food processor (discard the upper stalk of lemongrass, if using fresh). Process well.
  4. Taste-test the marinade - you will taste sweet, spicy, and salty. The strongest tastes should be SWEET and SALTY in order for the finished satay to taste its best. Add more sugar or more fish sauce (instead of salt) to adjust the taste. You can also add more chili if you want it spicier.
  5. Pour the marinade to the meat and stir well to combine. Allow to marinate at least 1 hour, or longer (up to 24 hours).
  6. When ready to cook, slide the pieces of meat onto the wooden skewers. Tip: Fill only the upper half of the skewer, leaving the lower half empty so that the person grilling has a "handle" to easily turn the satay during cooking.
  7. Grill the satay on your BBQ, OR on an indoor grill, OR broil in the oven on a broiling pan or baking sheet with the oven set to "broil" Place satay close beneath the heating element and turn the meat every 5 minutes until cooked (be sure to soak your wooden satay sticks in water before skewering). Depending on how thin your meat is, the satay will cook in 10 to 20 minutes.
  8. Serve it with the peanut sauce.
PEANUT SAUCE



Ingredients:

½ lb peanuts
1 ½ Tbsp tamarind pulp
6 Tbsp sugar
2 cups of water
6 Tbsp oil
Salt to taste

Spice Paste

8 dried chilies, soak in warm water
2 stalks chopped lemon grass, use only the bottom 3 inches
2 tsp thinly sliced galangal
3 cloves garlic
1 tsp cumin powder
1 tsp coriander powder

Method:

Tamarind pulp
Soak the tamarind in 2 cups of water. Use only the juice, discard the pulp and seeds, if any.

Peanuts
Without using any oil, roast the peanuts in a frying pan or wok over low heat until they are brown and fragrant. Allow them to cool before removing as much of the peanut skins as possible.

Put the peanuts in a blender and whizz on a low setting until coarsely ground. Put aside.

Spice Paste
  1. Remove the dried chilies from the water, cut the top off, remove the seeds and slice. Put all the ingredients for the spice paste into a blender and grind into a fine paste. If the ingredients are too dry and you have trouble grinding, add 1 Tbsp oil.
  2. Heat 6 Tbsp of oil on low heat in a pot. Saute the spice paste until it turns and golden brown and fragrant.
  3. Add the ground peanut and the tamarind juice. Cook on low heat while stirring frequently so that the sauce does not stick to the bottom of the pot. Add some water if the satay sauce becomes too thick and hard to stir.
  4. Cook for about 45 minutes or until a reddish chili oil rises to the top of the pot. The satay sauce should have a rich, dark red color with a thick consistency.

Note: The amount of sugar specified in this recipe is only a guide. You can adjust it depending on your taste. The layer of oil can be removed after cooking without affecting the taste of the satay sauce.

An Extra Note: If you feel that the sauce is not spicy enough, increase the amount of dried chilies. If you are already midway through the cooking, a shortcut method is to soak the extra dried chilies in hot water. After 5 minutes, cut the tops off, remove the seeds and cut into tiny slices. Add them to the satay sauce in the pot and simmer for at least 15 minutes. Another shortcut is to use fresh chilies. The bird’s eye chilies will help to spice up your satay sauce quickly.


 

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