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Authentic and spicy peanut sauce with spices and rich taste. This homemade peanut sauce recipe goes well with chicken satay. This is the best peanut satay sauce you will find online!
Peanut Sauce Recipe
Peanut sauce is one of the most popular Asian dipping sauces. The sauce goes perfectly with chicken satay or beef satay.
My peanut sauce recipe is 100% homemade and authentic. It’s mildly spicy, made of aromatics, spices and dry roasted peanuts.
The amazing rich taste of this recipe is unmatched. It is the best recipe you’ll find online!
Ingredients
Ingredients For Peanut Sauce
- Vegetable oil
- Coriander powder
- Palm sugar or sugar
- Roasted peanuts
- Salt
- Sweet soy sauce
- Tamarind pulp
- Water
Ingredients For Spice Paste
- Dried red chilies
- Shallots
- Garlic
- Galangal
- Lemongrass
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients.
How To Make This Recipe
Step 1: Crush the peanuts with mortar and pestle or use a food processor to ground the peanuts. Set aside.
Step 2: In a small bowl, add the tamarind pulps plus 1/4 cup warm water. Set aside for 15 mins. Squeeze and extract the juice from the tamarind pulps and discard. Keep the tamarind juice.
Step 3: Chop the Spice Paste ingredients coarsely, transfer to a food processor and blend until very fine. Add a few tablespoons of water to help blending.
Step 4: In a sauce pan, heat the oil on medium heat and add the spice paste.
Step 5: Add the remaining two strips of lemongrass to the spice paste. Cook the spice paste until it becomes aromatic and smell spicy.
Step 6: Add the ground peanuts, water, tamarind juice, salt, sugar, coriander powder and sweet soy sauce. Stir to combine well.
Step 7: Turn the heat to medium-low heat, stir continuously for about 5-10 minutes or until the peanut sauce thickens to your desired consistency. The oil and the peanut sauce should separate when it’s done.
Step 8: Let cool at room temperature and serve the peanut sauce with satay.
Asian Peanut Sauce
This sauce is very popular in Southeast Asia; almost every country has its peanut dipping sauce recipe.
There is Thai, Vietnamese, Malaysian, Indonesian versions and so on but the BEST peanut sauce is found in Malaysia.
The recipe I am sharing today is the best of all. The taste is exquisite, rich and complex!
Once you try it, you will never go back to peanut butter sauce or any recipes using peanut butter as the main ingredient.
What Do You Eat With Peanut Sauce
Peanut sauce is versatile and goes well with a variety of dishes.
Other than satay dipping sauce, you can use it as a salad dressing.
It tastes great on noodles and spring rolls, for examples: Goi Cuon Vietnamese fresh spring rolls and summer rolls.
It’s equally delicious on chicken, tofu, rice cakes and a variety of Asian dishes.
You can also use it in stir fry dishes.
Frequently Asked Questions
For the best and authentic flavors, I don’t recommend peanut butter as a substitute.
You can store it in the refrigerator for up to a week. Make sure you store the sauce in a container or in a bowl tightly covered with plastic wraps.
To serve, just reheat the sauce in a microwave for 1 minute.
You can also freeze the sauce in the freezer. To serve, thaw the sauce to room temperature and reheat in a microwave.
This recipe is 199 calories per serving.
What To Serve With This Recipe
This dipping sauce is best served with chicken satay. You can also use the sauce for the following recipes.
I hope you enjoy this post as much as I do. If you try my recipe, please leave a comment and consider giving it a 5-star rating. For more easy and delicious recipes, explore my Recipe Index, and stay updated by subscribing to my newsletter and following me on Facebook, Pinterest, and Instagram for new updates.
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Peanut Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 cup dry roasted peanuts, unsalted
- 1 tablespoon tamarind pulps
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil
- 1 cup water
- 1/2 teaspoon salt , or to taste
- 2 1/2 tablespoons sugar, palm sugar preferred
- 1 teaspoon coriander powder
- 1 tablespoon sweet soy sauce, Kecap Manis
Spice Paste:
- 8 dried red chilies, seeded and soaked in warm water
- 3 cloves garlic, peeled
- 4 cloves small shallots, or pearl onions, peeled
- 1 stalk lemongrass, cut into 3 strips, use only 1 strip for the Spice Paste
- 1/2 inch (1cm) galangal, peeled
Instructions
- Crush the peanuts with mortar and pestle or use a food processor to ground the peanuts. Set aside.
- In a small bowl, add the tamarind pulps plus 1/4 cup warm water. Set aside for 15 mins. Squeeze and extract the juice from the tamarind pulps and discard. Keep the tamarind juice.
- Chop the Spice Paste ingredients coarsely, transfer to a food processor and blend until very fine. Add a few tablespoons of water to help blending.
- In a sauce pan, heat the oil on medium heat and add the spice paste.
- Add the remaining two strips of lemongrass to the spice paste. Cook the spice paste until it becomes aromatic and smell spicy.
- Add the ground peanuts, water, tamarind juice, salt, sugar, coriander powder and sweet soy sauce. Stir to combine well.
- Turn the heat to medium-low heat, stir continuously for about 5-10 minutes or until the peanut sauce thickens to your desired consistency. The oil and the peanut sauce should separate when it’s done.
- Let cool at room temperature and serve the peanut sauce with satay.
Video
Notes
- You may use Planters brand unsalted dry roasted peanuts.
- Cook the spice paste until it becomes aromatic and smell spicy.
- The oil and the peanut sauce should separate when it’s done.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I am unable to get galangal in Kenya is normal ginger a substitute or is there something else
Just skip.
Pretty easy to make and tastes amazing. Totally hooked.
Hi Steve, thanks for trying my recipe and giving me 5 stars rating. Please try more recipes on my site!
I just wanted to know regarding the lemon grass . It is only 1 stick cut it to 3 strips and use 1 strip at the bottom. Is that in food processor? Then 2 strips while cooking.
Sounds dumb. I just want to be sure. This is my 1st time to do them . Thanks
Hi Beth, yes! I updated the recipe card so it’s clearer, sorry if I wasn’t clear.
My son has peanut allergy, do u have any suggestion to make the satay sauce without peanut.. :( Thanks.
Hi Stephy, I am sorry to hear that. Peanut is the main ingredients for peanut sauce. Can he take cashew or hazelnut or almond?
This sauce is delicious, but be aware it is quite spicy. I don’t know if it was the type of Dried Chillies I used, or if the sauce is meant to have this much heat. I loved it, but members of my family would have wanted half the Chilli.
-White Guy from Australia
Hey there. Um yeah….look if it calls for 8 chilli’s, go 2 and de seed them, even if you have the mildest ones you can buy or grow and dry your self. Lived in Penang, Malaysia on and off for 8 years. I’m still no good with chilli. Enjoy!!
This peanut sauce is really the best.
When I first made this during 2020, I seriously thought it is the best peanut sauce and so proud that it turned out so good. I made it several times since. The chicken satay was just as good. If you are in a hurry, just cook the satay and serve with cucumber & tomatoes.
Thanks Bee!
Hi Yen Yen. So lovely to know that my recipe works well for you. Thank you for your support.
Can we use the tamarind block? If so how much? Thanks
Yes, they are pretty much the same.
sesame seed oil is a good oil to use, makes it very very Malaysian taste and smells awesome!
:)
no Lemon grass so used grated lemon zest, very good result!
Made this today with the accompanying chicken satay recipe. OMG have been looking for a good peanut satay for years and finally, I have found it. This is so good I think I want to marry you.
:)
Paul
Lol thanks so much!