Thai Peanut Chicken Skewers with Crunchy Slaw Salad

Thai Peanut Chicken Skewers with Crunchy Slaw Salad are fresh, healthy and full of rich flavor that comes from a spicy peanut sauce and a tangy lime vinaigrette.

A Wonderful Salad Dressing / Sauce Mash-Up

Easy, fresh, delicious, healthy, a little spicy, crunchy – that pretty much sums up these Thai Chicken Skewers with Crunchy Slaw Salad. There is a delicious lime vinaigrette that is used both for marinating the chicken as well as dressing the crunchy slaw salad. And, the homemade peanut sauce is used both for topping the cole slaw mix and veggies as well as topping the chicken skewers.

I really love this recipe because it combines so many flavor profiles and textures in one dish. Now, it does have more of a long list of ingredients than a lot of my recipes, but 1.) you likely have most of these ingredients on hand already and 2.) if not, they are easily found in your local grocery store.

And, just because the ingredient list is a bit longer, it doesn’t mean it takes much time to put together. The great thing is that this full recipe provides a complete meal in under 30 minutes.

Preparing the Lime Vinaigrette

The recipe starts with a simple lime vinaigrette. As far as salad dressings go, I love making different types of vinaigrettes because they are so easy to make. And, lime vinaigrettes are some of my favorites (check out this Spicy Jalapeño Lime Vinaigrette).

There is a wonderful citrusy flavor from the fresh lime juice. The honey adds a mellowness and sweetness to the dressing. Finally, the soy sauce, fish sauce and garlic add a depth of flavor and a bit of saltiness.

And yes, there is a tiny bit of fish sauce in the vinaigrette. Do not fear the fish sauce!

It may not seem to be the most appealing ingredient, but it adds a wonderful depth of flavor to the dressing. It really doesn’t add a fishy flavor, I promise!

Once you have whisked in the peanut oil, your dressing is ready. This is used both to marinate the chicken as well as dress the crunchy slaw salad.

Preparing the Spicy Peanut Sauce

I love a spicy Thai peanut sauce as you can use it in so many ways (see this Quick and Easy Thai Peanut Dressing). In this recipe, it is used both for drizzling over the chicken skewers as well topping the crunchy slaw salad.

Obviously, the creamy peanut butter is the base. The lime juice mellows the peanut butter a bit and the garlic, soy sauce and pepper add a bit of pop. Finally, the sriracha gives it the spiciness.

I like to add in fresh cilantro for a bit of color and flavor. However, I know some people don’t like cilantro, so fresh parsley is an excellent substitute.

Once these ingredients are whisked together, you have a delightful spicy, creamy peanut dressing ready to go. Or, in this case, it works as a type of satay sauce for the chicken skewers.

(Note: Save any leftover peanut sauce. Put it in an airtight container and it will keep in the fridge for a week or so. It’s great on salads, as a dipping sauce, so many things!)

Preparing the Crunchy Slaw Salad

Whenever I’m making a coleslaw based salad, I go the easy route and buy a pre-mixed bag of coleslaw mix. Buying a bag of shredded cabbage is so much easier than buying several different cabbages (red cabbage, purple cabbage, green cabbage) and doing all the slicing and dicing.

So, the base of this salad is crunchy cabbage, but I wanted even more crunchy vegetables. In this case, I added in some red bell peppers and cucumbers. To finish, toss with the lime vinaigrette.

​Preparing the Chicken

I do use chicken breast meat as opposed to chicken thighs in this recipe. Chicken breasts tend to be a bit thicker than chicken thighs which makes skewering easier. They also tend to cook up a bit faster than the chicken thighs.

You are basically making chicken satay skewers. After you have marinated the chicken breasts in the lime vinaigrette while you were preparing the crunchy slaw salad, cut the chicken breasts into strips and put them on wooden skewers.

(Note: I like to use bamboo skewers that have been soaked in water to prevent them from charring too much while grilling. If you only have metal skewers, those will work as well.)

Bringing It All Together

At this point, you are ready to bring it all together. Your crunchy slaw salad is ready. Now, grill your chicken skewers for about 3-4 minutes per side until cooked through.

Once the chicken skewers are done, place them on top of the crunchy slaw salad and drizzle the whole thing with the peanut sauce. You basically have an easy chicken satay on top of a delicious crunchy Thai peanut salad. Serve and enjoy!

Type of Peanut Butter to Use

You definitely want to use a creamy peanut butter in order to make a creamy peanut sauce that you are able to drizzle over the salad and chicken skewers. While you can certainly use a Jif or Skippy brand of creamy peanut butter, I do like a natural peanut butter. The natural peanut butter is a bit healthier as it is sugar free and I just think it tastes better.

Tips and Tricks

• If your chicken breasts are extra thick, pound them out until they are 1/2″ to 3/4″ thick before slicing lengthwise into strips.
• I highly recommend using creamy peanut butter rather than crunchy for the peanut sauce. You want the sauce to be smooth and creamy.
• You can add more or less sriracha to the peanut sauce depending on the level of spice you want.

Ingredients Needed to Make Thai Peanut Chicken Skewers with Crunchy Slaw Salad

Full instructions can be found below in the printable recipe card

• Fresh squeezed lime juice
• Ginger paste
• Soy sauce
• Fish sauce
• Honey
• Fresh garlic
• Black pepper
• Peanut oil – Vegetable oil is an excellent substitute.
• Boneless chicken breasts
• Coleslaw mix – No dressing.
• Red bell pepper
• English cucumber – This is preferred over a regular cucumber as you don’t need to seed it.
• Fresh cilantro
• Creamy peanut butter
• Sriracha sauce
• Wooden skewers

How to Make Thai Peanut Chicken Skewers with Crunchy Slaw Salad

• Whisk together lime juice, ginger paste, soy sauce, fish sauce, honey, grated garlic, set aside.
• Slowly whisk in peanut oil until fully incorporated.
• Remove 1/2 cup dressing and set aside.
• Slice chicken breasts lengthwise into strips.
• Place chicken in a bowl or ziplock bag and cover with 1/2 cup of the lime vinaigrette.
• Refrigerate chicken and let it marinate while you prepare the salad and the peanut sauce.
• In a large bowl, combine coleslaw mix, red pepper, cucumber and 1 tbsp cilantro.
• Toss with remaining lime vinaigrette.
• In a small bowl, whisk together peanut butter, juice from remaining lime, soy sauce, sriracha, grated garlic, pepper and remaining cilantro.
• Heat a grill pan (or the outdoor grill) over medium-high heat.
• Meanwhile, skewer each chicken strip lengthwise.
• Grill chicken until cooked through.
• Serve chicken on top of slaw salad and drizzle with peanut sauce.

ENJOY!

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