Name: Chicken Satay (Sate Ayam)
Yield: Makes 6–8 servings as a snack or appetizer
Cuisine: Indonesian
Ingredients: 1 teaspoon fine sea salt; 4 cloves garlic, smashed; 2 lb (1 kg) boneless chicken thighs or breasts, with or without skin, cut into ¾-inch (2-cm) dice; About 30 bamboo skewers, soaked in water for at least 30 minutes; 2 Asian shallots or 1 European shallot, chopped; Fried shallots for serving; Lontong (optional) for serving; Bird’s eye chilies or Thai chilies, seeded (optional), stemmed, and chopped, for serving; ½ teaspoon ground white or black pepper; ½ cup (120 ml) kecap manis, plus more for serving; ¼ cup (60 ml) Sambal Kacang II or smooth peanut butter (optional); 1 large cucumber, chopped; 4 makrut lime leaves; 1 teaspoon coriander seeds or ground coriander; 2 tablespoons vegetable oil

Preparation info

Makes
6–8
servings as a snack or appetizer

Difficulty
Easy

Appears in

Mortar and Pestle

By Patricia Tanumihardja

Published 2024

About

Every time I visited my oma in West Jakarta, I was bound to have sate ayam. There was a street vendor (abang sate) who plied the neighborhood, carrying his wares on a bamboo pole stretched across his shoulders. Once he was hailed, he would set up his accoutrements at the gate in front of the house. I would watch impatiently as he continuously turned the skewers on his portable charcoal grill, the intoxicating smell of the grilling meat tickling my nose. Once the satay was cooked, I would de