When we think of favourite takeaway dishes, it’s safe to say that something with a Thai flavour will often appear somewhere towards the top of the list. Australians love the fresh flavours and delicious ingredients associated with this Asian cuisine.
While many Thai dishes contain larger than usual portions of healthy foods like veggies and rice, many favourites also contain very high levels of salt and sugar, meaning that your favourite Thai takeaway might not be doing your weight loss plans any favours.
This doesn’t have to mean that you can’t enjoy yummy, Thai inspired dishes. Far from it. By whipping up your faves at home, you’re able to vary the ingredients for all the flavour, without the extra calories, salt and sugar.
This chicken satay dish is a hit in our house with everyone from my husband through to our toddler (who loves to feed himself). Traditional satay dishes are often heavy on the calories and sugar, with some recipes calling for full fat peanut butter, coconut cream AND up to ½ cup of sugar! This recipe uses low fat, salt reduced peanut butter with honey for sweetness and a variety of healthy oils and spices for taste and flavour.
These satay skewers also use lean diced chicken breast, as opposed to the fattier and more calorific thigh meat. While chicken thigh is a good option for dishes that need to be cooked for longer periods (stews, casseroles etc), when it comes to grilling or pan frying, chicken breast is the best option.
We served these satay sticks as is but you could also serve them as an entrée, canapé style, with rice and greens or even as part of a salad or sandwich.
Enjoy!
Ingredients
- 500g chicken breast tenderloins or chicken breast fillets cut into strips
- 2 garlic cloves, crushed
- 1 tbsp ginger, grated
- 3 tbsp low fat, reduced salt smooth peanut butter
- 2 tbsp cider vinegar
- ¼ cup salt reduced soy sauce
- 1/3 cup runny honey
- 1 small chilli, de-seeded and finely diced
- ¼ cup lime or lemon juice
- 1 tbsp lime or lemon zest
- 1 tbsp cooking oil (olive, peanut, sunflower)
Directions
- Place garlic, ginger, peanut butter, cider vinegar, soy sauce, honey, chilli and citrus juice and zest in the bowl of a food processor.
- Blend until a smooth paste forms.
- Transfer mix to a large bowl and add the chicken strips.
- Allow to marinate for as long as possible (minimum 45 minutes)
- When finished marinating, heat oil in a large frypan and cook chicken strips until the surface is golden and caramelised.
- Thread cooked chicken strips onto skewers and serve.
Makes 2 servings – Cal per serve – 495
