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This 30-Minute Thai Peanut Chicken with super tender chicken, healthy veggies and a silky smooth Asian peanut sauce comes together in less time than you can order takeout!
When my husband tells me at least five times during a meal, how delicious it is and, as I'm clearing the table, says, "That was like candy!" (his description of something crazy-good), I know the dinner was a winner! I love that this Thai Peanut Chicken comes together quickly, yet has the flavor of a much more time-consuming recipe!
I wanted a Thai Peanut Chicken recipe that would be easy enough to make it feasible for a weeknight dinner, yet something so delicious it would also be great for a dinner party. To create a recipe like that, I employed some of my favorite flavor creating secrets.
Delicious flavor secrets
To give more depth of flavor to this Thai Peanut Chicken, I have included a few of my favorite little culinary secrets. Secrets that give the sauce a long-simmered, complex deliciousness in a short amount of time.
- Include a variety of super flavorful ingredients; in this case, garlic, finely chopped red onion, ginger, red curry paste, peanut butter (hence the name), brown sugar, soy sauce and turmeric.
- Gently sauté these aromatics and flavor enhancers in oil before adding the liquid. This helps them "bloom" which adds a wonderful complexity to this Thai Peanut Chicken. It's sweet, spicy and has a ton of delicious Asian-inspired flavor.
- Use an oil that complements the recipe and other ingredients. I chose coconut oil which, in combination with the other ingredients, creates another layer of flavor.
- Create lots of texture in addition to flavor. A silky smooth sauce, crisp veggies, tender chicken and crunchy peanuts all work together to enhance each other.
The vegetables (sliced red onion and broccolini) stay crisp-tender in this recipe as they're quickly stir-fried before making the sauce, then removed from the pot until right before serving. They retain both their pretty color and shape as well as adding a nice texture to the finished dish.
An easy trick for tender chicken
One last element of this recipe that makes it unique is the prep I use with the chicken. If you've been following The Café for a while you may recognize this technique called "velveting". I've used it in lots of other Asian recipes like this 30 Minute Sticky Thai Chicken and this Easy Chicken Coconut Curry.
If you've ever eaten at an Asian restaurant and wondered how in the world they get the chicken so tender, they probably employ this velveting technique. It's a wonderful trick to have up your sleeve!
Velveting doesn't take long and it's not difficult, but it makes a world of difference in the finished product. How does it work? There are actually several ways to velvetize chicken. I've tried them all, but I found the following technique produces the most delicious results.
Simply combine the chicken with a mixture of egg white, cornstarch and rice vinegar and marinate this mixture for 20 minutes. This simple process doesn't affect the flavor, but what is does do is break down the tough fibers, making the chicken super tender - like velvet!
The only other thing you need to know about this Thai Peanut Chicken is that you definitely need to make it! Pick up some chicken breasts, a bunch of broccolini (baby broccoli) and a can of coconut milk next time you shop. If you have a well-stocked pantry you probably have everything else you need.
Café Tips for making this Thai Peanut Chicken
- You can use either full-fat or light coconut milk in this recipe. I usually have both in my pantry but the light works well in this recipe and saves a bunch of calories. If you prefer the full fat, feel free to use it.
- I use creamy Skippy peanut butter for this recipe. Crunchy style would also be nice, although the sauce won't be as smooth. I would hesitate to use natural peanut butter that has oil on the top, I think it could make it difficult to obtain a creamy, smooth sauce.
- Use whatever type of peanuts you really like. Salted, roasted are great, plain unsalted also work. I used honey roasted, salted peanuts the first time I made this, only because I was out of plain peanuts. We loved this crunchy, sweet, salty garnish so that's what I now use every time I make this Thai Peanut Chicken.
- I like to use fresh Thai basil and cilantro as a garnish for this dish but regular basil also works well as does fresh mint. You don't have to have a combination of herbs, feel free to use whatever you like and/or have available.
- Another garnish I enjoy using on Asian dishes like this Thai Peanut Chicken is sesame seed. I usually keep a supply of both black and light-colored sesame seeds. I store them in the freezer as sesame seeds can go rancid if stored too long at room temperature.
- This recipe calls for red curry paste. Red curry paste is available at most larger grocers in the Asian section. Red curry pastes can vary in heat intensity so I put a range for the amount to use. Thai Kitchen is the brand I usually use. We like things medium spicy and one and one-half tablespoons is perfect for us. If you like your food fairly spicy, go with two or more. Like things less spicy? Start out with one tablespoon and you can always add more later.
- Serve this Thai Peanut Chicken with white or brown rice. Black rice (forbidden rice) would also be delicious - and beautiful!
- Speaking of rice, did you know that you can freeze rice? Yep, it freezes beautifully! I like to make a double or triple batch when I'm cooking rice and then portion it out into ziplock bags. I freeze the rice in bags and just pull one out when we're having a dinner that goes with rice. It saves so much time and makes it much easier to get dinner together quickly!
If you enjoyed this recipe, please come back and leave a star rating and review! It’s so helpful to other readers to hear other’s results and ideas for variations.
- 1 ½ pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts cut into 1-inch cubes
- 1 egg white from medium or large egg
- 1 tablespoon corn starch
- 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil divided
- 1 medium bunch broccolini
- 1 medium red onion peeled, halved and sliced about ¼-inch thick
- 1-2 tablespoon red curry paste
- ⅔ cup peanut butter
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 ½ tablespoons finely chopped fresh ginger or ginger paste
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 ½ teaspoons turmeric
- ½ medium red onion finely chopped
- 14 ounce can coconut milk I use light
- 2 cups chicken broth
- ¼ cup low sodium soy sauce
- chopped peanuts for garnish
- fresh lime wedges
- cilantro mint, Thai basil, for garnish, if desired
- sesame seeds if desired for garnish (I use black and white)
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Cut chicken into small, bite-size pieces. Combine egg white, corn starch and rice vinegar in a medium-size bowl and whisk with a fork until well combined. Add chicken and stir well to coat. Refrigerate for 20 minutes while preparing the veggies and sauce.
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Thinly slice broccolini stems on an angle. Cut any large florets into smaller pieces.
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Heat 1 tablespoon coconut oil in a medium-large Dutch oven or pot over medium heat. Add the broccolini and stir for 1 minute. Add the sliced red onion and a generous pinch of salt (about ¼ teaspoon) and cook, stirring frequently, for 1 more minute. Remove veggies to a bowl and set aside.
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Heat remaining 1 tablespoon of coconut oil in the same pot. Add red curry paste, peanut butter, brown sugar, ginger, garlic, turmeric and chopped red onion. Cook for 2 minutes stirring frequently.
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Slowly add the coconut milk while stirring. When smooth, add the chicken stock and soy sauce and bring it to a boil. Reduce to a simmer, stirring occasionally, and cook, uncovered for 10 minutes.
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Add the chicken along with the marinade and return to a boil. Cook for 5 minutes then turn off the heat and cover for another 5 minutes. Add the broccolini and red onion (reserve a few pieces of broccolini and a few red onion slices for garnish, if desired) and stir gently.
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Serve with white, brown or black rice or Asian noodles and lime wedges. Garnish with chopped or halved peanuts, sesame seeds and fresh Thai basil, regular basil, cilantro and/or mint.
See Café Tips for more detailed instructions and tips.
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Nanci says
Chris,
I usually love your recipes but this was a miss for me. I would not make it again. But my less picky husband did like it. I found the texture off putting and way too much sauce for the amount of ingredients.
I would definitely change the name. It is not 30 minutes. In the recipe, the cooking time alone is 22 minutes. The marination takes 20 minutes. The measuring of multiple ingredients, chopping of chicken and veggies ….etc all is more than 14 minutes. And I am a seasoned accomplished cook. I’m glad others were amazed but I saw several other reviews who also noted it wasn’t a 30 minute recipe. I am retired but if I were to come home from work thinking I could do this in 30 minutes…well you just can’t.
Chris Scheuer says
Thanks for sharing your input, Nanci.
Vicki G says
Wow, this was outstanding! You make me look like a rock star in the kitchen. I used yellow curry paste because that is what I had and cauliflower and red peppers in place of the broccolini. Superb! I’m anxious to try some of the other Asian dishes on your recent roundup.
Chris Scheuer says
I love that! Thanks, Vicki!
Vicky P. says
Made this on a whim because I was craving peanut butter chicken and I was not disappointed, this recipe is delicious! I was missing the red curry paste, but I substituted it for Korean red pepper paste. My boyfriend loved the recipe, it will surely become a regular dish in our house! Also, marinating the chicken made it so soft, it's incredible! Thanks for the great recipe!
Chris Scheuer says
So happy you enjoyed it, Vicky! Thanks for sharing your results.
Gary from Ohio says
Found your website this week, and prepared the Thai Peanut Chicken this evening! Amazing flavors for what’s really a pretty simple dish! And the presentation was great. Thank you and I can’t wait to try more of your beautiful recipes!
Chris Scheuer says
Thanks so much, Gary and welcome to The Café!
Lucy Rogers says
Hi Chris,
Weight Watcher Lucy here again. If I can only have 23 points in a day, I need all of them to be delicious and you have really contributed to making me feel like I am not suffering through this process. Needless to say, I always look to your recipes first when I think about dinner. I saw this as a good option for a weeknight, but when I entered this recipe in as written, it was 13 points per serving, which is more than half my daily allowance. Undaunted, I swapped out the peanut butter for 3/4 cup of PB2 (the powdered peanut butter that has a lot less fat and calories--mixed with water to make 3/4 cup). While the thickening of the sauce may have been impacted in that the sauce was on the thin side, the flavor was not diminished in the least, and the points per serving was reduced to 6! My ridiculously fussy 13 year old son went back for seconds and my husband and I locked eyes as Ben went to help himself to more. No small feat! I also used green beans because it was what I had, and they worked beautifully. Thanks for all you do, you're a star!
Chris Scheuer says
So awesome, Lucy! I love your ingenuity in reducing the calories in this recipe without sacrificing flavor. And the part about your son definitely made me smile! Thanks for sharing your results!
Janet says
This was such a great recipe!! I didn't have coconut milk but I had canned coconut cream which of course was even higher in fat calories but it was wonderful! (I'll use coconut milk next time)
I made your recipe vegetarian and browned tofu pieces to replace the chicken, which I added towards then end.
My husband loved it.....a definite do-over. The broccolini was a perfect.
Thank You another great recipe from your website !
Chris Scheuer says
Thanks so much for sharing your results, Janet. I love your vegetarian version. Sounds like a wonderful dinner!
Patricia Ann Holden says
This is delicious BUT it took about 1.5 hours to prep--not 30 minutes--just so you know. Worth the effort though. Thank you, Chris!
Penny says
I tried this recipe and I really liked it, but I was in the kitchen for quite awhile!
Chris Scheuer says
Thanks, Penny! I try to estimate the time but everyone takes different amounts of time in the kitchen. I'm really happy you enjoyed it!
Chris Scheuer says
Thanks, Patricia! You're not the only one, I may have to change the name! I try to estimate the time but I'm pretty speedy in the kitchen, especially when I've tested and tried things several times. I did put a little tip up in the post that may save some time regarding rice.
I'm glad you enjoyed it!
Tricia B says
This dish has all the flavors that I love! Your culinary tips are spot on and I bet the combination of textures and flavors is spot on. Putting this recipe on my must-make list asap 🙂
Chris Scheuer says
Thanks, Tricia! This is the kind of meal we could eat every day!
Jennifer @ Seasons and Suppers says
This is exactly the type of dinner I want to sit down to just about every night 🙂 So full of flavour, colour and texture. It's a feast for all the senses. Can't wait to try this one!
Chris Scheuer says
Thanks, Jennifer! Hope you enjoy it if you try it!
Kathy says
Just made this and it is DELICIOUS! I used the low side of the red curry paste, but next time I'll add another 1/2 TBLS to kick it up a bit. I followed the recipe exactly and it is a keeper, like so many other recipes I've tried from your site.
Thank you so much.
Chris Scheuer says
Yay! It makes me so happy that you have enjoyed it as much as we do. Thanks so much for taking the time to share your results, Kathy! 💕
Jenna says
This sounds so good and I appreciate all the special tips you shared Chris! Thank you!
Chris Scheuer says
You're welcome, Jenna. Hope you enjoy it!
Liz says
Yum! I never knew about velveting chicken but it makes sense! Such a delicious meal.
Chris Scheuer says
Thanks, Liz! I felt like I won the lottery years ago when I discovered it!
Pauline says
This recipe looks absolutely amazing and thanks for the detail about velveting the chicken. Will definitely be taking this on board.
Chris Scheuer says
Thanks Pauline! Hope you enjoy it as much as we have!
Southerner Forever says
Hello!
Looking forward to giving this one a try, but wanted to clarify the amount of egg white used!
Chris Scheuer says
Thanks, I've clarified that! It's one egg white from a medium or large egg.