Malaysian Chicken Satays

You’ll learn to make authentic Malaysian chicken satay from scratch, starting with a fragrant marinade built from toasted coriander and fennel seeds, lemongrass, palm sugar, and fresh aromatics like galangal and ginger. This recipe walks you through creating a thick spice paste, marinating and threading chicken thighs onto skewers, then grilling them to juicy perfection with a beautiful caramelized char. These sweet-and-spicy skewers are ideal for entertaining since they can be prepped ahead and frozen, and you’ll master the technique of balancing bold Southeast Asian flavors with simple grilling skills that work on a grill, barbecue, or even in your oven.

Serves 48 | Active Time: 40 minutes | Total Time: 1 hour

Chef's Notes

These skewers make a great addition to any party! They cook quickly, they are the perfect balance of sweet and spicy and any food served on a stick is just plain fun!

These satays are great to make ahead of time and freeze. Just lay them out raw onto a baking tray, covered in plastic wrap and place into the freezer. Once frozen transfer to a large freezer-proof container. They will keep for quite a while in the freezer and they are quick to defrost for an impromptu barbeque with friends. If you don’t have a grill or barbeque, you can bake in a 375° degree oven for 8 to 10 minutes.

For a nice light meal, serve these delicious satays with Coconut Infused Pandan Rice and a Cucumber Sunomono Salad.

Marinating the Chicken

To make the marinade, first toast the coriander and fennel seeds over medium heat. Set aside and let cool. Once the spices have cooled, transfer them to a food processor and pulse, until roughly ground.

Next, roughly chop the shallots, garlic, ginger, young ginger (or galangal), serrano peppers and add to the food processor. Blend everything together.

Finely mince the lemongrass, chop the palm sugar and add them to the food processor, along with the salt, turmeric, oil and water. Blend until you achieve a nice, thick paste.

For the chicken, trim off any excess fat or gristle. Cut each thigh into 2" -inch strips, lengthwise. Add the chicken to the marinade and fold everything together. Allow to marinate for up to 4 hours.

This is a good time to soak the skewers, but it’s even better to soak them overnight.

Step 1: Marinating the Chicken

1 tbsp coriander seeds
2 tsp fennel seeds
4 large shallots
6 garlic cloves
2 tbsp fresh ginger
1 tbsp young ginger (or galangal)
2 serrano peppers
4 tbsp lemongrass
4 tbsp palm sugar (or brown sugar)
1 tbsp turmeric
4 1/2 tsp kosher salt
3 tbsp peanut or vegetable oil
3 tbsp water
24 boneless, skinless chicken thighs (about 4 lb)

Cooking the Satays

Soak the skewers in water for at least an hour, ideally overnight.

Thread the chicken onto the skewers prior to cooking. Once done, set the skewers aside while you heat the grill. Heat the grill to medium-high and lightly grease with oil. Cook the chicken on the first side until the meat starts to cook and turns white around the edges. Then lightly brush the top side with a bit more oil and flip. This should take about 5 to 7 minutes per side. Serve

Step 2: Cooking the Satays

48 skewers

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