Easy 5 Minute Thai Peanut Sauce

This Easy 5 Minute Thai Peanut Sauce is the only peanut sauce recipe you’re gonna need! It’s easy to make, super creamy and flavorful and can be put on just about anything!

I love a good peanut sauce. The balance of nuttiness from the peanut butter, acidity from the lime juice, sweetness from maple syrup, a splash of toasted sesame oil and chili flakes just goes so well together and tastes so good. Creamy, umami, fatty, salty… all the best things in one!

This Vegan Peanut Sauce recipe can be used for drizzling over tofu bowls, as a marinade, dipping sauce for spring rolls, salad dressing, or for peanut noodles.

What is Thai Peanut Sauce?

Thai Peanut Sauce, sometimes known as satay sauce, is a peanut butter based dipping sauce that includes ingredients such a soy sauce, lime juice, chili flakes or chili sauce, and a sweetener like agave or maple syrup.

Thai peanut sauce is associated with Thai cooking but is popular all throughout Southeast Asia and originates in Indonesia.

Peanut sauce is commonly served as the sauce that comes with skewers of meat or tofu or drizzled on noodles or salads. Traditional peanut sauce sometimes includes ingredients such as coconut milk for creaminess, tamarind and other spices like cumin or coriander.

What You Will Need For This Easy Peanut Sauce

Kitchen Essentials:

You can simply whip this peanut sauce up in a bowl with a whisk or you can place all the ingredients in a food processor and process until smooth.

Main Ingredients:

• Creamy peanut butter with no added ingredients
• low sodium soy sauce
• lime juice
• fresh garlic and ginger
• red chili flakes

Substitutions:

This sauce is very forgiving and easily customizable.

• Peanut Butter: The peanut butter can be replaced with sunbutter, almond butter, or cashew butter.
• Water: Can be replaced with coconut milk for a creamier texture.
• Fresh Garlic & Ginger: I love fresh in this because it’s stronger in flavor but dried will work as well.
• Rice Vinegar: Compensate by adding more lime juice.

How to Make Spicy Thai Peanut Sauce

1. Pick out a super smooth and creamy peanut butter. Preferably one with no added ingredients.
2. Prep all your ingredients by mincing the garlic, grating the ginger and cutting the lime.
3. Whisk together all the ingredients in a bowl or combine the ingredients in to a food process. Blend or whisk until combined then slowly add in the water. 1/4 cup of water was the sweet spot for me but depending on your preference and peanut butter you might need more or less.

What to eat with Thai Peanut Sauce

• Drizzled over tofu, tempeh, seitan or vegan chicken or used as a marinade
• On a salad or over noodles
• As a dipping sauce for vegetables or spring rolls

How to Make the Best Spicy Thai Peanut Sauce Every Time

My tips & tricks:

Use a creamy nut butter! I can’t stress this enough. This peanut sauce needs a runny extra creamy natural peanut with no added ingredients. If you’re peanut butter is thick, try microwaving it for about 10-15 seconds to soften.

Slowly add in the water a little by little until you reach desired consistency. 1/4 cup water perfect for my desired consistency but this is all preference.

I usually make this Easy 5 Minute Thai Peanut Sauce without measuring and go heavy on certain flavors that I’m thinking will be complementary to what I’m making it for. Sometimes I go heavy on the spice, sometimes I add less or more lime, etc. This is super customizable and forgiving.

FAQ:

How spicy is this Peanut Sauce?

As spicy as you like! I usually add about 1/4 teaspoon to 1/2 teaspoon but sometimes I add more depending on what I’m making.

Mine is too thick! What do I do?

This is probably because your peanut butter was too thick. Try adding more warm water to thin it out.

Does it keep well?

Yes! This can be stored up to 10 days in the fridge in an airtight jar.

Can I freeze it?

Yes! This sauce freezes well. Just thaw the night before you plan to use.

How can I make this gluten free?

Simply switch out the low sodium soy sauce to low sodium gluten free tamari.

Can I leave out the maple syrup?

You could but it’s more balanced with an added sweetener. It’s a very small amount but really does impact the flavor.

More Sauce Recipes You Might Like:

• Vegan Roasted Red Pepper Cheese Sauce
• Easy Vegan Basil Pesto
• Baba Ganoush

If You Make This Recipe:

Tag me on Instagram! I’d love to see your delicious re-creations and feature them! As always, I would greatly appreciate if you share your review in the comments below. Don’t forget to add if you made any fun substitutions. Thank you!

Easy 5 Minute Thai Peanut Sauce

5 from 2 reviews

• Author: Liv
• Prep Time: 5m
• Cook Time: 0m
• Total Time: 5m
• Yield: 1 cup 1x
• Category: Sauce & Dips
• Method: By Hand
• Cuisine: Thai
• Diet: Vegan

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Description

This Easy 5 Minute Thai Peanut Sauce is the only peanut sauce recipe you’re gonna need! It’s easy to make, super creamy and flavorful and can be put on just about anything! 

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Ingredients

Units USM Scale 1x2x3x

• 1/2 cup Creamy Peanut Butter
• 3 tablespoons Low Sodium Soy Sauce
• 2 tablespoons Fresh Lime Juice
• 1 tablespoon Rice Vinegar
• 1 1/2 tablespoons Maple Syrup
• 1/2 teaspoon Toasted Sesame Oil
• 1 Large Garlic Clove, minced
• 1 tablespoon Grated Fresh Ginger
• 1/4 – 1/2 teaspoon Red Chili Flakes
• Pinch of Salt
• Pinch of Black Pepper
• Roughly 1/4 cup Water

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Instructions

1. Simply whisk together all the ingredients (except the water) in a bowl until well combined. Add in the water slowly to thin out the sauce to the desired consistency. Serve and enjoy!

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Notes

This easy 5 minute thai peanut sauce can be stored up to 10 days in the fridge in an airtight jar. This sauce also freezes well. Just simply thaw the night before you plan to use.

Keywords: Easy Thai Peanut Sauce, 5 minute Thai Peanut Sauce, Thai Peanut Sauce, Easy Peanut Sauce, Peanut Sauce