Sate : Chicken on a stick

It’s so funny when I say to our kids “sate” they go “yuk”, but when I say “chicken on a stick” they go “yay”. Either way it’s a quick and simple version of another traditional Indonesian dish. Obviously I leave out the chilli when I make this for the kids.

What you need (serves 4)
– 450 grams chicken (thigh-) fillet
– sweet soy sauce
– salt to taste
– 1 teaspoon grated ginger
– 1 teaspoon grated garlic
– 1 lime – juice
– chilli if you like
– a dash of vegetable oil
– 6 – 8 sate sticks (bamboo skewers)

For the marinade
Cut the chicken into 3 cm blocks or long strips, so that it will be easy to put on the skewer and small enough to cook quite quickly.
In a bowl add the sweet soy sauce, the vegetable oil, grated ginger and garlic, add some salt to taste and squeeze the lime. You can add a finely chopped chilli if you like at this stage.
Add the chicken, give it a bit of a toss, and let it marinate for about half an hour.
(In the mean time you can make the peanut sauce for the Gado Gado if you like… )

Before you can cook the sate, you have to make sure that the skewers are soaked; you can soak them by placing them in some water in the sink, or in a tall glass for about 15 minutes.

Take the chicken and divide in onto the skewers, this is a bit messy, but it’s worth it!
Make sure your griddle pan or BBQ is on moderate heat. Most griddle pans have a raised edge, before you start to cook your sate, make sure your skewers fit on the pan, if it doesn’t you can just snap off a bit at the end of the skewer to make it fit your pan.

When the chicken is on the stick, you’re ready to cook. Place the skewers on by one on the pan/ BBQ, turn frequently as the sweet soy sauce will caramelise quickly and it will get all sticky. The sticks should be done in about 10 minutes.

This sate is best enjoyed with some peanut sauce, and white rice. To add some vegetables to your meal you can make this quick GadoGado!