Learn how to make homemade gluten-free peanut sauce with just 5 ingredients! This easy peanut sauce recipe is perfect for chicken satay, but you’ll also love it on lettuce wraps, spring rolls, stir fry, noodles, salads, and more!
Fact: this peanut sauce recipe is SO good that I’ve literally eaten it right off the spoon. I’d put it on just about anything! (And I basically HAVE over the last 12 years!)
Finding gluten-free peanut sauce can sometimes be tricky at the grocery store, but it couldn’t be easier to make at home! The creamy texture, simple ingredients, and delicious flavor make this a great recipe to add to your repertoire.
Authentic Thai Peanut Sauce often relies on peanuts ground with a mortar and pestle, mixed with curry paste, and a few other ingredients. For simplicity, we’re making the Americanized version, made with a peanut butter base, which may be more accessible for those in the U.S.
All you need is 5 simple ingredients to get started...
Simple Ingredients To Start
So what is Thai peanut sauce made of? Our recipe starts with 5 simple ingredients–let’s take a look at the ingredients list:
- Creamy Peanut Butter. To start, you’ll need smooth natural peanut butter. We prefer brands that use just peanuts or peanuts and salt, since they’ll blend easier.
- Light Coconut Milk. You can blend Thai peanut sauce with water, but we love using coconut milk since it makes for a more velvety, delicious sauce. I usually use light coconut milk, but you can use full-fat coconut milk or water, if desired. (Note: I don’t find this adds a strong coconut flavor to the sauce)
- Gluten-Free Tamari. Since we’re making gluten-free peanut sauce, I recommend low-sodium gluten-free tamari. You can also use coconut aminos (Paleo & soy-free!), or low-sodium soy sauce if gluten isn’t an issue for you.
- Pure Maple Syrup. Then, you’ll need some sweetener. Some recipes use brown sugar or even honey, but I love using pure maple syrup. It’s a natural sweetener, easy to blend in, and lets the other flavors shine.
- Fresh Lime Juice (Or Rice Vinegar). Lastly, for a little tang and acidity, you’ll add some fresh lime juice or rice vinegar (sometimes labeled rice wine vinegar) to the sauce. It makes a delicious difference in the flavor profile!
We Recommend: Natural Peanut Butter
While you can use conventional peanut butter (like JIF, Skippy, etc.), we highly recommend natural peanut butter that contains JUST peanuts or peanuts and salt.
Natural peanut butter is thinner, and runnier, which works better for homemade peanut sauce. If you use traditional peanut butter, you’ll likely need more liquid, and may prefer less sweetener.
How To Make Thai Peanut Sauce, Step By Step
As always, you can find the full recipe with ingredient amounts, detailed instructions, and tips in the recipe card below.
- Combine. In a small bowl or Mason jar, combine peanut butter, 3 Tbsp. coconut milk, the tamari, the pure maple syrup, and the lime juice.
- Blend. Use an immersion blender to blend the sauce until completely smooth, adding more coconut milk as needed, if you prefer thinner sauce. (You can absolutely do this with a food processor, blender or whisk, it’ll just take longer to blend!)
- Set Aside Or Chill. Cover the peanut sauce and set aside while you cook your chicken. If making the peanut sauce in advance, store in an airtight container in the refrigerator up to 1 week.
Variations & Extras
Now that you know how to make my favorite Peanut Sauce recipe, we can talk about variations! Here are a few twists to try when you’re craving a change of pace.
- Add Sriracha. Craving a little kick? Try a dash of sriracha sauce, hot sauce, or chili garlic sauce (like Sambal Oelek) to make spicy peanut sauce!
- Add Thai Curry Paste. A little dollop of Thai red curry paste can add delicious umami and warmth to the sauce. It also brings it closer to authentic Thai peanut sauce!
- Add Fish Sauce. This classic condiment adds a salty umami flavor. It’s not everyone’s cup of tea, but can be an interesting addition when you’re making peanut noodles!
- Add Ginger & Garlic. For a savory layer of flavor, add some minced fresh ginger and minced garlic to the sauce. Yum!
- Add Sesame Oil. For a richer flavor, you can add a small dash (1/8-1/4 teaspoon) toasted sesame oil.
Yummy Ways To Use Peanut Sauce
I can basically guarantee, you’ll have no trouble using this yummy dipping sauce! Our peanut sauce is DELICIOUS, and tastes delicious on all kinds of dishes. Some of my favorite ways to eat peanut sauce are:
- Chicken Satay. There’s basically no recipe more classic to serve with peanut sauce than chicken satay! We love dipping these seasoned chicken skewers into creamy peanut sauce. Peanut sauce = the perfect satay sauce! Peanut sauce = the perfect satay sauce!
- Thai Chicken Lettuce Wraps. Drizzle this gluten-free peanut sauce on fresh lettuce wraps full of seasoned chicken, colorful veggies, and a few fun garnishes. This dinner is done in about 20 minutes!
- Thai Quinoa Crunch Salad. This quinoa salad has it all! Color, crunch, and SO MUCH FLAVOR.
- Thai Peanut Slaw. Need an easy side dish? This crunchy slaw gets tossed in creamy Thai peanut sauce instead of a mayo-based dressing. It’s fresh, light, and delicious with grilled chicken!
- Spring Rolls or Summer Rolls. I love pairing fresh spring rolls or summer rolls with peanut sauce. The crunchy veggies + tender rice paper wrappers + creamy peanut sauce are a delicious combination!
- Thai Chopped Salad. One of my favorite colorful dinners!
- Chicken Wraps. Add shredded chicken to a tortilla with lettuce and veggies, then drizzle with thai peanut sauce & roll it up. Delicious.
- Thai Chicken Pizza. This is a dupe of the California Pizza Kitchen Thai Chicken Pizza.
- Chicken Wings. Dip curry or sriracha wings into peanut dipping sauce. Delicious!
- Noodles. You can thin this gluten-free peanut sauce out with some hot water to toss with rice noodles. It’s delicious!
- Chicken Meatballs. Thin the sauce out with more coconut milk (or hot water) and serve with Ginger Chicken Meatballs!
- Stir Fries. Mix a dollop of peanut sauce into your stir-fry (either on its own, or mixed into teriyaki sauce) for an even more flavorful sauce!
FAQ + Tips And Tricks For The Best Thai Peanut Sauce
Try An Immersion Blender! An immersion blender is the easiest and most effective way to blend peanut sauce, since the high speeds help emulsify the mixture more quickly than a whisk. Don’t have one? You can try it in a regular blender, or just whisk-whisk-whisk until the mixture comes together.
Remember It Will Thicken! Peanut sauce will thicken when refrigerated, so we recommend pulling it out in advance to come to room temperature. You can also gently microwave it in 5-10 second increments (ideally on low power) to thin it out, or stir in a small drizzle of hot water.
Do You Use Smooth or Crunchy Peanut Butter For Peanut Sauce? It honestly depends on your texture preference, but I recommend smooth peanut butter for a smoother textured sauce. Love a little crunch? Feel free to use crunchy peanut butter instead!
Recipe Card
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Easy Thai Peanut Sauce
- Total Time: 5 minutes
- Yield: about 1 cup peanut sauce 1x
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
Our favorite peanut sauce recipe! We’d drizzle this on just about anything–try it for chicken satay, spring rolls, stir fry, noodles, salads, lettuce wraps, and more!
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup natural peanut butter (I prefer creamy for peanut sauce)
- 3–5 Tablespoons lite coconut milk (can sub full-fat coconut milk or water)
- 2 Tablespoons reduced-sodium gluten-free tamari, coconut aminos or soy sauce
- 2 Tablespoon pure maple syrup
- 1 Tablespoon fresh lime juice (or rice vinegar)
Instructions
- Combine. In a small bowl or jar, combine peanut butter, 3 Tbsp. coconut milk, the tamari, the pure maple syrup, and the lime juice.
- Blend. Use an immersion blender to blend the sauce until you reach a smooth, creamy consistency, adding more coconut milk as needed, to thin it out to your desired consistency. (You can absolutely do this with a whisk, it’ll just take longer to blend!)
- Set Aside Or Chill. Cover the peanut sauce and set aside while you cook your chicken. If making the peanut sauce in advance, store in the refrigerator up to 1 week.
Notes
- Natural Peanut Butter. While you can use conventional peanut butter (like JIF, Skippy, etc.), we highly recommend natural peanut butter that contains JUST peanuts or peanuts and salt. Natural peanut butter is thinner, and runnier, which works better for peanut sauce. If you use traditional peanut butter, you’ll likely need more liquid, and may prefer less sweetener.
- Tamari. We recommend reduced sodium gluten-free tamari to help moderate the salt content AND keep this peanut sauce gluten-free. Coconut aminos is another great choice! If you’re not gluten-free, feel free to use low sodium soy sauce.
- Blending Tips. An immersion blender is the easiest and most effective way to blend peanut sauce, since the high speeds help emulsify the mixture more quickly than a whisk. Don’t have one? You can try it in a regular blender, a food processor, or just whisk-whisk-whisk until the mixture comes together.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Category: Sauce
- Method: Blender
- Cuisine: Thai
This goes perfectly with so many things! I love it with your chicken satay.