Chicken Sate with Spicy Peanut Sauce (CEIMB)

This week's Craving Ellie in my Belly recipe was the ever-popular Thai appetizer, chicken sate. Of course Ellie Krieger gave it a new, healthy spin. The dipping sauce is the stuff of legend - spicy, creamy and rich without a single truly sinful ingredient. The chicken marinade is lovely, but I slathered so much of the dipping sauce on each bite that I probably didn't fully appreciate it.

I opted to do this as an entree rather than an appetizer, and I didn't thread the chicken on skewers before grilling it. I made a cucumber-avocado salsa (also an Ellie recipe!) to have on the side and round out the meal. It was a festival of flavors on my plate, to be sure. I definitely recommend this one. I made a few changes from the original recipe, but the spirit is Ellie's.

As a little shout-out to the love of my life, I should mention that I actually made this a night early (on Wednesday) because Thursday is my husband's birthday and I'm taking him out to dinner. He'll be free of my cooking for a night! (That's a joke. I think.)

Chicken Sate with Spicy Peanut Sauce
adapted from Ellie Krieger's The Food You Crave
serves 2

INGREDIENTS:

the chicken
1/4 cup low-sodium chicken broth
1/4 cup unsweetened coconut milk
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon low-sodium soy sauce
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 tablespoon light brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon grated lime zest
1/2 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
1/2 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast, cut into strips
cooking spray

the dipping sauce
1/4 cup creamy natural peanut butter
2 tablespoons low-sodium chicken broth
1 1/2 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
2 teaspoons light brown sugar
2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger
juice of 1/2 lime
pinch red pepper flakes
pinch curry powder

DIRECTIONS:

1. Make the marinade: Whisk chicken broth, coconut milk, soy sauce, garlic, brown sugar, lime zest, and ginger in a dish. Add the chicken pieces and toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate for one hour.

2. Meanwhile, make the peanut sauce by combining all the ingredients in a food processor or blender and pureeing.

3. After the chicken has marinated for an hour, heat a grill pan over medium-high heat and spray with cooking spray. Remove chicken from marinade and discard the excess. Cook chicken 3 minutes on each side, or until cooked through. Serve with the dipping sauce.

Enjoy!