Food: chicken satay - pan grilled

After this week's post on samosas that can be tedious....I feel the need to share an effortless recipe with you. I made it this week and it took me less than an hour [consider marinating time of 20 mins]. You can marinate this for longer, even freeze it for an even quicker dinner/lunch. I have made this with chicken breasts, but you can pick the cut and type of meat of your choice. Pan-grilling will be easier but charcoal grilling would be even more flavorful. 

Ingredients are, 

2 pieces of chicken breast :: 2 shallots :: 3 garlic cloves :: 1 tsp coriander seeds :: 1 green chili
1 tbsp red pepper flakes :: 1 tsp brown sugar :: 1 tsp soy sauce :: 1 tbsp tamarind pulp
salt :: oil for grilling :: lime juice for drizzling

I used store bought tamarind pulp/puree. If you have the seed-in tamarind that comes in a packet, then soak the tamarind for half an hour in a little water and then squeeze all the juice out. Discard the seeds.  

Take the shallots, garlic, coriander seeds, green chili and grind to make a puree.

Cut the chicken breast pieces into thin strips. Take the puree you just made and mix in the tamarind pulp, brown sugar, soy sauce, salt, and red pepper flakes and mix everything together. Taste and adjust seasoning. This marinade should not taste perfect - if it does, then the chicken will be under seasoned. So taste to check if its a bit more salty that you like, a bit more spicy than you like, and a bit more tangy than you like. Then it will just be perfect when it sticks to the chicken. 

Take the chicken strips. Mix it in with the marinade and keep it covered outside on the counter for 20 mins.

Heat a flat pan on the stove. You can also use stove grills. I set my temperature to medium high. This way it will get color and be moist inside. Drizzle some oil. Thread the chicken strips onto the skewers. Thread them tightly together. This will also ensure moisture to be trapped inside. Don't keep it on the stove for too long. Otherwise it will dry out. If you have extra marinade left then drizzle it over the chicken skewers while its cooking. Drizzle some lime juice just before serving. Bon appétit!