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A local restaurant serves an unusual satay sauce that I love. Where the satay sauces I see in most places are essentially liquid peanut butter theirs is much lighter on the peanuts, red in color and with some hotness. It also doesn't contain any milk and the consistency is more oily/starchy.

It's also not served with skewered meat but with small loose cuts of meat with some bell peppers, some pineapple and lots of onions.

I was wondering if anyone knew what style of satay this sauce might be and how I could replicate it at home.

Kempeth
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The "western shortcut" to satay sauce is often to use peanut butter (a staple in US kitchens, available in many countries), add spices and possibly thin it a bit. It's typically peanut-coloured. Especially if no red chili is added.

The method I learned from a Thai cook is to sweat a base of red chili paste, then add coconut milk, ground peanuts, fish sauce and all the usual fixings. This will give you a nice, creamy sauce that thickens when cooked - you can later adjust the consistency by playing with the ratios. Peanuts thicken, coconut milk or even water make your sauce thinner. The chili paste gives it a reddish or orange tinge.

The kitchn has a no-cook recipe that looks pretty similar to what I do.

Stephie
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