Sambal Chicken Skewers

Theophan · August 2016

I made a new recipe tonight, this one from Bon Appetit, and it was delicious. My wife also was raving about how good it was. I don't think it was quite as amazingly wonderful as a Korean recipe I grabbed from this forum a while back, but it was really delicious, will definitely be making it again!

1/2 cup (packed) light brown sugar
1/2 cup unseasoned rice vinegar
1/3 cup hot chili paste (such as sambal oelek)
1/4 cup fish sauce (such as nam pla or nuoc nam)
1/4 cup Sriracha
2 teaspoon finely grated peeled ginger
1 1/2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken thighs, cut into 1 1/2-inch–2-inch pieces

Directions:

Prepare grill for medium-high heat. Whisk brown sugar, vinegar, chili paste, fish sauce, Sriracha, and ginger in a large bowl. Add chicken and toss to coat. (The directions call for no marinating time, but I'm not sure why that wouldn't help.) Thread 4 or 5 chicken pieces onto each skewer.

Transfer marinade to a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer until reduced by half (about 1 cup), 7–10 minutes.

Grill chicken, turning and basting often with reduced marinade, until cooked through, 8–10 minutes.

Here's the chicken, marinated for an hour (though, oddly, the recipe and accompanying video say no marinating), no glaze applied, yet, just put on the grill:

Image: https://us.v-cdn.net/5017260/uploads/editor/in/gl6e45v5c1qc.jpg

Almost ready to come off the grill:

Image: https://us.v-cdn.net/5017260/uploads/editor/uk/f09a2haprkwq.jpg

Done:

Image: https://us.v-cdn.net/5017260/uploads/editor/vc/od7sex1cy2wd.jpg

Off the skewers:

Image: https://us.v-cdn.net/5017260/uploads/editor/um/7vrs5rgle68j.jpg

On the plate (didn't attempt a SE Asian meal):

Image: https://us.v-cdn.net/5017260/uploads/editor/q9/md0jgw9w6a97.jpg

bgebrent · August 2016

Had this saved to do! Outstanding go brother!

johnnyp · August 2016

Those look awesome!

KiterTodd · August 2016

That looks fantastic. Going to remember this one...I do love that hot chili paste!

jollygreenegg · August 2016

Can't go wrong with food on a stick!

Gunnar · August 2016

Nice...I can do this one...

Griffin · August 2016

There should be more food on sticks. Looks great. I probably would have let it marinate regardless of the instructions.

SmokingPiney · August 2016

Killer!

Theophan · August 2016

Many thanks for the kind comments!!!

pescadorzih · August 2016

@Theophan, Looks great! I'll have to try this. Reminds me of some chicken skewers I had in Indonesia years ago.

KiterTodd · August 2016

How spicy was it? Not a factor for me, but the troll under the bridge gets very angry if I serve her food too spicy...

Oh wait, I didn't say that.

So how spicy is it?

Theophan · August 2016

KiterTodd said:

... Oh wait, I didn't say that. So how spicy is it?

What's "too spicy" is hugely dependent on who's tasting. The sauce tasted on its own had little bit of a bite, but the final product didn't seem very hot to me at all. My wife used to love hot food but can't handle it anymore, and I was a little worried it was going to be hot for her, but it wasn't. So to me, it was "a little spicy" but not very hot. If practically ANY sensation of burning hotness is a problem, then it might be risky. Both Sriracha and Sambal Oelek are a little hot.

caliking · August 2016

Looks fantastic. Bookmarked.

PASmoke · August 2016

Saved! This looks awesome! Thanks for sharing.....

Theophan · August 2016

My wife and I really loved this, will definitely be having it again, but as I've thought about it a few days, the Korean "Dakkochi" recipe was similar but even better, and I'd encourage anyone who's interested in this recipe to check that one out too. It was a little more trouble, and different enough that I'll make both of these from time to time, but it really was wonderful.

Here's my post on making it, which points to a recipe posted by @RichardFL, who got it from this page on BBQ Brethren. It needs gochujang, which in some areas is hard to find. I ordered it from Amazon, but I've seen it in one of my stores more recently. It also uses two sauces, not one, so in that way I suppose it's twice the work, but gosh that stuff was good!

GregW · August 2016

You always have the best looking most interesting cooks.

Theophan · August 2016

GregW said:

You always have the best looking most interesting cooks.

Oh, you are way too kind, but thank you! I am not even in the same league as some of the people on this forum, of whom I am in awe. I couldn't begin to do some of the stuff they do! I enjoy learning from everybody.

Thanks again!

smokeyw · August 2016

I tried the recipe this weekend. It was fantastic! Thanks for sharing!

HelenGrace203 · August 2016

We've been making this awesome recipe for years, but we call it "stinky chicken" because the marinade STINKS when you cook it down to be a sauce.

smokeyw · August 2016

HelenGrace203 said:

We've been making this awesome recipe for years, but we call it "stinky chicken" because the marinade STINKS when you cook it down to be a sauce.

You got that right! Must be the fish sauce.

But It tastes really good!

Theophan · August 2016

I totally agree on the fish sauce! It gives a wonderful dark flavor to things, but too much of it can be almost nauseating, and it really does stink, especially when it's by itself. I actually put in only half the called-for amount when I first was making the marinade and tasted it to see if maybe that was plenty, because I sure did not want too much! But I wound up deciding it was plenty mild and I probably could go with the whole amount, so I did, and I loved it.

But yeah, I could see "stinky chicken..." <laughing>

smokeyw · August 2016

I did marinade the chicken in it for a couple of hours. Loved it!

Sambal Chicken Skewers

Comments

Categories