Description
Spicy Thai peanut sauce brings bold Southeast Asian flavors to your kitchen. Creamy, tangy, and packed with zesty ingredients, this sauce offers a perfect balance of heat and richness you’ll crave again and again.
Ingredients
Scale
Main Ingredients:
- 0.75 cup peanut butter (made with just peanuts + salt)
- 0.5 cup warm water (to thin, or more as needed)
Flavor Enhancers:
- 3 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce or tamari
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil (omit if you don’t want any sesame flavor)
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 1–2 tablespoons maple syrup
Spices and Aromatics:
- 0.5 teaspoon ground ginger
- 2 small cloves garlic, finely minced
- 0.25–0.5 teaspoon red pepper flakes
Instructions
- Crush garlic cloves using a press to ensure a fine, uniform texture, releasing maximum flavor into the mixing bowl.
- Combine all liquid and dry ingredients except water, vigorously whisking to create a smooth, homogeneous base that blends flavors harmoniously.
- Gradually introduce warm water, beginning with a modest amount, stirring continuously to achieve the ideal viscosity for your culinary application – whether a drizzling dressing or thick dipping sauce.
- Conduct a flavor assessment, fine-tuning the profile by incrementally adjusting seasonings – consider enhancing with additional soy sauce for depth, sweetener for balance, or red pepper flakes for a spicy kick.
- Present this versatile Thai-inspired sauce as a dynamic accompaniment to an array of dishes: toss with noodle bowls, drizzle over grilled proteins like tofu, tempeh, or chicken, enrich stir-fries, or offer as a vibrant dipping sauce alongside fresh, crisp vegetables.
Notes
- Garlic Mincing Matters: Use a garlic press for ultra-smooth texture, preventing annoying large chunks that disrupt the sauce’s silky consistency.
- Whisking Wisdom: Combine all ingredients except water first to create a perfect base, ensuring even blending of flavors.
- Liquid Leverage: Add warm water gradually, starting with ½ cup, to control sauce thickness for different culinary uses like dressing or dipping.
- Flavor Flexibility: Taste and tweak seasonings boldly – a splash more soy sauce, sweetener, or red pepper flakes can transform the sauce.
- Versatile Companion: Drizzle over noodle bowls, proteins like tofu, tempeh, or chicken, enhance stir-fries, or use as a vibrant vegetable dip.
- Storage Tip: Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 5 days, allowing flavors to meld and intensify for even more deliciousness.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Category: Snacks, Dinner
- Method: Blending
- Cuisine: Thai
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 4
- Calories: 224
- Sugar: 3g
- Sodium: 230mg
- Fat: 18g
- Saturated Fat: 3g
- Unsaturated Fat: 15g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 10g
- Fiber: 2g
- Protein: 7g
- Cholesterol: 0mg