Thai Peanut Sauce

Name: Thai Peanut Sauce
Yield: Makes About 1 Cup
Cuisine: Thailand
Ingredients: 2 teaspoons minced peeled fresh ginger; 2 tablespoons Asian fish sauce or soy sauce, or more to taste; ¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro (optional); 2 teaspoons sugar, or more to taste; 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice, or more to taste; 1 to 2 Thai chiles or serrano or jalapeño peppers, seeded and minced (for a hotter sauce, leave the seeds in); 1 clove garlic, minced; 2 scallions, both white and green parts, trimmed and minced; ⅓ cup chunky peanut butter; ⅓ cup coconut milk, canned or homemade, or more as needed

Thailand

Preparation info

Makes About
1 Cup

Difficulty
Easy

Appears in

The Barbecue Bible

By Steven Raichlen

Published 1998

About

Peanut sauce is the traditional accompaniment to Southeast Asian satés. There are probably as many individual recipes as there are street vendors. You might find this version—enriched with coconut milk—at a Thai saté stall.

Ingredients

2 teaspoons minced peeled fresh ginger
1 to 2 Thai chiles or serrano or jalapeño peppers, seeded and minced (for a hotter sauce, leave the seeds in)

Asia
Thailand
Sauce
Spicy
South East Asia

Method

Combine the ginger, Thai chiles, garlic, scallions, peanut butter, coconut milk, fish sauce, lime juice, sugar, and cilantro (if using) in a small, heavy saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring to mix well, then reduce the heat to low and let simmer, uncovered, until richly flavored, 5 to 10 minutes. The peanut sauce should be thick but pourable; thin it