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Creamy Spicy Peanut Sauce Recipe

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★★★★★

4.7 from 341 reviews

This rich and flavorful peanut sauce is a versatile condiment made from dry roasted peanuts, aromatic spices, and sweet tamarind and palm sugar. Perfect for dipping or drizzling over grilled meats, vegetables, or noodles, the sauce combines a balance of sweet, tangy, and spicy flavors with a creamy texture achieved by frying a fragrant spice paste and stirring in ground peanuts and kecap manis. It is a traditional Southeast Asian-inspired sauce ideal for adding depth and complexity to your dishes.

Ingredients

Scale

Peanut Sauce

  • 150g dry roasted peanuts
  • 50ml vegetable oil
  • 1 tbsp tamarind concentrate or paste
  • 3 tbsp gula melaka (palm sugar) or dark brown soft sugar
  • 1 tsp ground coriander
  • 1 tbsp kecap manis (sweet soy sauce)
  • 8 dried red chillies, soaked in warm water for 20 mins, drained, deseeded, and roughly chopped
  • 3 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
  • 4 shallots, peeled and roughly chopped
  • 1 lemongrass stalk, trimmed and roughly chopped
  • 1.5cm piece of galangal, peeled and roughly chopped

Instructions

  1. Process Peanuts: Blitz the dry roasted peanuts in a food processor until they are finely chopped but still retain some texture. Remove the peanuts to a bowl and clean out the food processor thoroughly.
  2. Make Spice Paste: Place the soaked, drained, and chopped dried red chillies, garlic, shallots, lemongrass, galangal, tamarind concentrate, gula melaka (or palm sugar), and ground coriander into the food processor. Blitz everything until a smooth paste forms. Add a few tablespoons of water if needed to help blend the ingredients together evenly.
  3. Cook the Spice Paste: Heat the vegetable oil in a non-stick saucepan over medium heat. Add the prepared spice paste and fry it gently until it becomes fragrant and the aromas are released, ensuring it does not burn.
  4. Add Remaining Ingredients: Stir in the ground peanuts, tamarind, sugar, 1 teaspoon salt, ground coriander, and kecap manis along with 200ml of water. Mix everything well to combine the flavors thoroughly.
  5. Simmer Sauce: Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook the sauce, stirring continuously for 15 minutes. Continue until the oil starts separating from the sauce, indicating it has thickened and the flavors are concentrated.
  6. Cool and Store: Remove the peanut sauce from heat and leave it to cool completely. Once cooled, transfer it into a sterilized jar or airtight container. Store the sauce chilled, where it will keep for up to two weeks.

Notes

  • If the sauce is too thick after cooling, stir in a little warm water to loosen it before serving.
  • You can adjust the chili quantity depending on your heat preference.
  • Gula melaka adds a unique caramel-like sweetness; if unavailable, dark brown sugar is a suitable substitute.
  • Ensure continuous stirring during simmering to prevent the sauce from sticking or burning.
  • The sauce is excellent served with satays, grilled meats, noodles, or as a dipping sauce for vegetables.

Keywords: peanut sauce, satay sauce, Indonesian sauce, spicy peanut dip, tamarind peanut sauce, homemade peanut sauce, Southeast Asian condiment

Find it online: https://zestywithzane.com/creamy-spicy-peanut-sauce-recipe/