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June 16, 2023

Peanut Sauce-Marinated Chicken Skewers

Peanut sauce-marinated chicken skewers—grilled or cooked in the oven!—are an easy, flavorful, and budget-friendly meal to make any day of the week.

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Peanut Sauce Marinated Chicken Skewers sprinkled with crushed peanuts on a plate served with cucumber salad
Photography by Gayle McLeod

Peanut Butter Chicken Skewers

We are always excited to think of chicken dinner options. And these chicken skewers with peanut sauce marinade offer options upon options because they’re equally delicious cooked in the oven or on the grill! Start with moist, juicy chicken thighs, and marinate them in a rich and creamy peanut sauce until they take on tons of nutty, garlicky, soy sauce-y goodness. Make a batch of White Rice and our Red Cabbage and Apple Slaw for extra crunch and flavor!

raw chicken pieces, cilantro, peanut butter, soy sauce, sesame oil, vinegar, chicken, fresh herbs, and spices in prep bowls

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Ingredients For The Peanut Butter Sauce Marinade

Our take on peanut sauce chicken uses the homemade peanut sauce as a marinade rather than a dip. This peanut marinade for chicken skewers is so simple. In a bowl big enough to hold all of your chicken, simply whisk together:

  • Creamy peanut butter. Look for a “natural” variety without any added sugar or palm oil.

  • Garlic. Use fresh cloves—minced, or try grating the garlic with a microplane grater to get it extra fine for easy mixing.

  • Soy sauce. Low-sodium variety will still be plenty salty, and make this already-healthy chicken kebab recipe that much healthier!

  • Toasted sesame oil. Don’t use untoasted, it just doesn’t have the flavor we’re looking for in this marinade. Read more about various oils in The TMP Guide to Cooking Oils.

  • Ground ginger. We know, we know. Usually we call for fresh. Here, we want the ginger to distribute easily throughout the marinade, and ground ginger is better for that. Just be sure yours isn’t too old!
peanut butter, garlic, soy sauce, sesame oil, white vinegar, green onions, cilantro, ground ginger, and salt in a bowl
peanut butter, garlic, soy sauce, sesame oil, white vinegar, green onions, cilantro, ground ginger & salt combined in a bowl
chicken thighs cut up in 1 inch pieces being marinated in peanut sauce in a glass bowl
peanut sauce marinated chicken thighs on skewers on top of a cooling rack placed in a baking sheet

How To Cook Chicken Skewers

You can cook these peanut sauce-slathered chicken skewers in the oven or on the grill! They’re a great recipe to lean on when you’re not sure what the weather is going to do—no grill, no prob. Just remember, whichever kebab cooking method you opt for, look for an internal temp of 165°F, and try to take that reading near the middle of the skewer. Here’s how to cook chicken kebabs on the grill and in the oven:

  • In the oven: we’re sort of imitating a grill by using an oven-safe cooling rack in the oven. Just be sure to have a sheet pan under the chicken kebabs as they cook to catch any drips that may fall.

  • On the grill: this is probably the easier option, weather permitting. On a gas grill, you’ll want to cook these chicken thigh kebabs at a medium heat, on a charcoal grill that means you want to place them over indirect heat as much as possible.
Peanut Sauce Marinated Chicken Skewers on a cooling rack on top of a baking sheet
Peanut Sauce Marinated Chicken Skewers sprinkled with crushed peanuts on a plate served with cucumber salad

Tips For Making Peanut Sauce-Marinated Chicken

Call them shish kebabs or call them chicken skewers—cooking meat and veggies on a stick is one of our very favorite things. Bite-sized pieces are evenly and quickly cooked, and the clean up is super-minimal (especially if you grill the peanut butter chicken skewers). A few things to keep in mind about making chicken skewers:

  • Have your butcher cut the chicken thigh meat into pieces for you—asking your butcher (nicely) to do some of the messy prep for you is not a big deal.

  • Wooden skewers: to soak or not to soak? While some argue that soaking wooden skewers is unnecessary, we’re firmly in the “why risk it?” camp. Soak wooden or bamboo skewers in water for at least 30 minutes before you cook your kebabs to prevent burning. The ends may still take on a bit of char, but that’s OK. If the thought of soaking feels like too much hassle, may we suggest...

  • Metal skewers! No need to soak—just skewer the peanut sauce-marinated chicken thigh meat, and cook those kebabs! The only downside of metal skewers is that they do get quite hot.

Peanut Sauce Marinated Chicken Skewers sprinkled with crushed peanuts on a plate served with cucumber salad

Obsessed With Peanut Sauce?

Have we mentioned that we’re crazy for peanut butter sauces and marinades? Not only are they richly satisfying and healthy—peanut butter has lots of protein! Lots of iron! Lots of plant-based fat!—they are so easy. Here are a few of our favorite peanut sauce recipes:

Our Favorite Type Of Peanut Gallery

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Peanut Sauce-Marinated Chicken Skewers

  • Serves: 8
  • Prep Time:  40 min
  • Cook Time:  20 min
  • Calories: 378

Ingredients

  • ½ cup creamy peanut butter
  • 6 garlic cloves, minced
  • 2 tablespoons soy sauce or tamari
  • 2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
  • 1 tablespoon white vinegar
  • 4 green onions, minced
  • ¼ cup fresh cilantro, minced, plus more for serving
  • 2 teaspoons ground ginger
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 3 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1 inch pieces
  • Vegetable oil, for brushing
  • 12 metal (6-inch) skewers (see Note)
  • ½ cup peanuts, crushed, for serving
  • Crushed red pepper flakes (optional)

Method

Oven Method:

  1. In a large bowl, combine the peanut butter, garlic, soy sauce, sesame oil, white vinegar, half of the green onions, cilantro, ground ginger, and salt.

  2. Add the chicken to the marinade and toss until evenly coated. Let marinate for at least 30 minutes or up to overnight covered in the refrigerator.

  3. Preheat the oven to 400° F with a rack in the center position. Set a metal cooling rack inside of a rimmed sheet pan and brush rack with oil.

  4. Remove the chicken from the marinade and allow any excess to drip off. Tightly thread the meat onto skewers, dividing evenly. Place the skewers on the prepared baking rack. Bake chicken for 20 minutes, or until the internal temperature reaches 165°F on an instant-read thermometer.

  5. Serve the skewers family-style.


Grill Method:

  1. In a large bowl, combine the peanut butter, garlic, soy sauce, sesame oil, white vinegar, half of the green onions, cilantro, ground ginger, and salt.

  2. Add the chicken to the marinade and toss until evenly coated. Let marinate for at least 30 minutes or up to overnight covered in the refrigerator.

  3. Preheat a grill medium-high, 400°F. Brush the gates with oil.

  4. Remove the chicken from the marinade and allow any excess to drip off. Tightly thread the meat onto skewers, dividing evenly. Grill the chicken, flipping halfway through, until the internal temperature reaches 165°F on an instant-read thermometer, about 5-6 minutes per side.

  5. Serve the skewers family-style.


Note: If using wooden or bamboo skewers, soak them in water for at least 1 hour before using.

Nutrition Info

  • Per Serving
  • Amount
  • Calories378
  • Protein40 g
  • Carbohydrates7 g
  • Total Fat23 g
  • Dietary Fiber3 g
  • Cholesterol0 mg
  • sodium589 mg
  • Total Sugars2 g

Peanut Sauce-Marinated Chicken Skewers

Questions & Reviews

Join the discussion below.

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  • Amy

    Hi! Would rice vinegar work?

    That should work fine, it's not quite as tart but will still be good. Hope you enjoy Amy!

  • Matt

    How many grams or ounces is a serving?

    About 4.5 ounces. Hope you enjoy Matt!

  • Rebecca

    Can I use jif peanut butter?

    Should work fine!

  • Lauren

    What's a good side dish for this recipe?

    I would serve it with our Stir-Fried Baby Bok Choy, Chinese Dry-Fried Green Beans or double the cucumber salad if you are wanting more food! Also doesn't hurt to serve it with cooked white rice!

  • KH

    I used this to marinate chicken that I was serving over noodles because that's what my son loves. We loved the flavor but I did add some red pepper flakes before serving to kick it a bit. Pinned to make again!

    Thanks KH, we are so happy you both loved it!

  • Rachael

    This chicken tastes so good over the Asian Chopped Salad with Thai salad dressing!

    Thanks Rachael! So happy you love this and the salad!

  • Jordan

    First recipe I comment on ever, tastes great!

    Thanks Jordan, so glad you loved it! Thanks for leaving a comment!

  • Anna

    Just made this for dinner and I loved it— but even more surprisingly my husband was obsessed. Easy and delicious.

    Yay! That's a good feeling!

  • Joy

    This recipe is amazing!! Thank you for sharing.Have made a conscious decision to make my meals. Thai food is easy to make and full of flavour!The measurements are perfect and the flavour is perfect.

    Glad to hear you loved it!