One of my earliest restaurant memories was having Satay Chicken in a Malaysian restaurant called Kwallis, in Toowong. A small place you used to have walk through the dry store of the kitchen, and out the back door to get the toilets in an adjacent building, via the industrial bins.
I must have been about 4 or 5 years old, and instantly loved the sauce. At the time, already a peanut butter fan the transition to Satay was not a big step for a young palate. If memory serves, it was mild slightly sweet and sticky with plenty of nut pieces.

My next outing on the Satay junket was my mothers Satay pork kebabs, inspired no doubt by the above meals. This was a more spicy style, heady with ground coriander and onion. If my father had not eaten it all in one sitting it made a great leftover snack on toast the following day.

That remained my mainstay growing up, and learning to cook myself, it just gained a bit more chili kick along the years. Then with my pro career kicking in, my palate was challenged. My first Chefs version of Satay was of the coconut laden variety, which was new to me. I liked the smoothness that the coconut cream added, but found it a mild westernized version of what I was used to.

So given the opportunity to make gallons of the stuff with any ingredients I fancied I developed the bellow receipt, and it is still developing. But at its essence, is a spicy sauce with a multitude of layers and highpoints balanced by the smooth coconut milk.

Off note more recently I developed a soft spot for the sweet nutty version, encountered at a Chinese Suriname take away served over Banana Fritters, very redolent of the sauce I had in the very beginning as a child.

Receipt

• Peanut Oil
• Onion
• Garlic
• Fresh Coriander whole including root
• Dark Brown Sugar
• Ground Coriander
• Ground Chili
• Limes
• Peanut Butter
• Coconut Cream
• Soy Sauce Dark
• Sesame Oil

I vary amounts to what I have or what I feel like, but will mention guideline amounts as I go along.

1. Sweat off a large diced onion in the oil, when soft add four cloves of chopped garlic, and the chopped roots and stems of 4 coriander plants.
2. Cook out for five minutes, then add 2 tbl spoons of ground coriander, and a tbl spoon of hot dried chill.
3. Once the spices have lost there rawness add a couple tablespoons of sugar, cook till it starts to caramelise then add lime zest and juice, one or two if smaller and dry.
4. Then quickly add a jar (450g ish) of crunchy peanut butter, allow to cook out, and colour a little.
5. If it becomes dry a little too early and catches add some hot water.
6. Next a good 60ml of Soy Sauce and a splash of sesame oil can go in and cook for a little more before adding the coconut milk(1tin), and more water if dry.
7. Cook out for a good hour, adding water if need be, and adjusting, seasoning with soy, chili, or lime juice.
8. Towards the end add all the coriander leaves chopped.

Eet Smak lekker