those of you with an especially keen eye might notice that the “peanut” (more on the quotations marks in a moment) sauce on this grilled chicken with spicy peanut sauce recipe bears a strong resemblance to the sauce used in the spicy sesame beef and broccoli. and by “strong resemblance”, i mean it’s exactly the same. hooray for repurposing leftovers into new recipes!
as i mentioned when i posted that recipe, it makes a bit more sauce than we really need for the beef and broccoli. i suggested storing the leftover sauce in a jar in the fridge and making a smaller batch of beef and broccoli the next week.
ooooor waiting 2 months (whoops!) and then turning the still usable (results not guaranteed, friends; i was amazed) leftover sauce into a marinade/dipping sauce for grilled chicken. using leftover sauce is obviously easier, but given that the sauce comes together in 90 seconds in the blender, having to make the sauce from scratch isn’t exactly a weeknight deal breaker.
and while we’re focused on the sauce, let’s talk about those quotations marks around the word peanut for a second. here’s the thing: peanuts are delicious. and i don’t eat them anymore. BUT! i discovered by accident that brazil nuts are a great flavor/texture substitute for peanuts! and they have lots of selenium, which our brains like. so, total win. and peanut butter also works, if you’re not me/paleo/violently allergic/see, this is why i was so excited to discover this substitution!
(i’m getting distracted by the sudden idea that grilling a steak and then dipping it in this spicy peanut sauce might be yummy. i haven’t really worked up to steak yet in my whole reintroduce beef thing, but it’s a good idea to file away for later…)
ok, where were we? yes! grilled chicken with spicy peanut sauce. right! i learned by trial and error (emphasis on the error) that it’s a good idea to pound chicken breasts into a relatively uniform 1” thick slab (can we say “slab”? does that sound gross?) before grilling. and if part of the breast is still thicker at one end, put that side closer to the heat on the grill in an attempt to trick the entire breast into cooking uniformly.
but really, this is a super simple grilled chicken recipe. very weeknight do-able. and a reusing leftovers magic trick, which i always get excited about. and i bet soon we’ll be able to turn the heat off indoors again and grill without raincoats, so maybe we’ll celebrate those summer milestones by making more grilled chicken with spicy peanut sauce.
ps – you may also enjoy last summer’s grilled chicken, simple grilled chicken marinade, which involves miso paste. yum!
did you make this recipe? i’d love to know what you think of it! leave a comment below and share a picture on instagram with the hashtag #tastyseasons.
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grilled chicken with spicy peanut sauce combines an easy blender sauce with quick grilled chicken so that you can be eating dinner in no time this summer! brazil nuts can be substituted for peanuts in this gluten free, dairy free, paleo, easy chicken recipe. light up the grill and enjoy this recipe today!
Ingredients
- 68 g. (½ cups / 2 ¼ oz.) brazil nuts or 68 g. (¼ cup / 2 ¼ oz.) peanut butter
- 2 ½ tablespoons (39 ml / 1 1/3 fl. oz.) coconut aminos, low sodium tamari, or low sodium soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons (30 ml / 1 fl. oz.) sesame oil
- 2 tablespoons (30 ml / 1 fl. oz.) rice vinegar
- 1 ½ tablespoons water, plus more as needed to thin the sauce
- 1 tablespoon sambal oelek (homemade if strict paleo)
- 1 small clove of garlic
- ½” (1.25 cm) piece of fresh ginger
- juice of quarter a lime
- 1 pound (454 g. / 16 oz.) boneless, skinless chicken breast
Instructions
- to make the sauce, combine all of the ingredients except the chicken in a blender (a high-speed blender (affiliate) will work best if you’re using whole brazil nuts). if you don’t want to/can’t use a blender, use peanut butter (instead of whole nuts) and finely grate the garlic and ginger (i recommend a microplaner (affiliate)), then shake the sauce together in a glass jar with a tight-fitting lid. thin with water, adding a teaspoon or two at a time, if desired.
- trim the chicken breasts and pound to a uniform 1” (2.5 cm) thick. coat the chicken in about ½ to 2/3 of the sauce. let it marinate for a few minutes while you prepare the other parts of dinner.
- prepare a medium – hot (350 – 400° F) grill. cook the chicken breasts over direct heat, thicker parts of the breasts closer to the hot side of the grill, for about 15 minutes total, turning over halfway through the cooking time, or once they are no longer stuck to the grate. cook until the thickest part of the breast reaches 165° F. discard the used marinade. serve immediately with remaining sauce (that didn’t have raw chicken in it) for dipping.
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