Peanut sauce (sometimes called satay sauce) is one of those dressings that’s so good, it can take just about any dish you serve it with from just okay to awesome. It’s some seriously delicious stuff! But not all peanut sauce is vegan. Most recipes call for honey, which most of us know isn’t vegan, or some type of granulated sugar, which depending on where you’re at may be processed using animal bones. So make sure if you go to a Thai restaurant you always ask what the peanut sauce is sweetened with before ordering it. But the good news is that making your own peanut sauce at home is super easy. Homemade vegan peanut sauce also tastes just as good as the stuff you’d get at a restaurant. Ready to give it a try?
Ingredients You’ll Need
Peanut butter. Choose a creamy variety of natural peanut butter (the runny kind that separates). Conventional peanut butter has added sweeteners and hydrogenated oils that will mess with the flavor and texture of your peanut sauce, so we’re using natural in order to avoid that. I’m a big fan of Trader Joe’s brand.Soy sauce. Gluten free tamari or liquid aminos will also work.Lime juice. Freshly squeezed lime juice is best. Please don’t use the bottled stuff! If you can’t get ahold of some fresh limes, rice vinegar will work as a substitute.Maple syrup. Other vegan liquid sweeteners like agave nectar or coconut nectar will work just fine as a substitute if needed.Garlic.Ginger. If you can get your hands on Thai ginger (known as galangal), use it! But since that can be hard to come by, the recipe simply specifies regular old ginger root.Sambal oelek or sriracha. Just use one of these if you’d like to add some heat to your vegan peanut sauce. Both can be found in the international section of most supermarkets.Coconut milk. The recipe calls for full fat coconut milk, but you could use light coconut milk or even water if you’d like to reduce the fat content.Water. We’re using this to thin our Thai peanut sauce. If you like your sauce super creamy, feel free to add more coconut milk instead.
Tip: Your peanut sauce will be easiest to mix if your ingredients are at room temperature. Try to set them out a bit in advance if possible, or warm them up briefly before you begin.
How It’s Made
The following is a detailed photo tutorial on how to make this dish. Scroll all the way down if you’d like to skip right to the recipe!
Start by whisking the peanut butter, soy sauce, lime juice, maple syrup, ginger and garlic together in a medium bowl, along with the sriracha or sambal oelek if you’re using them. The mixture will be very thick at this point.
Whisk in the coconut milk. I find adding a bit at a time is the easiest way to do this.
Thin your vegan peanut sauce with some water (or additional coconut milk, if that’s how you roll). Add enough so the sauce is just pourable, but still very thick and creamy.
Give your sauce a taste test and adjust any seasonings to your liking.Serve! I like to top my sauce with some peanuts and chopped scallions.
Leftovers & Storage
Leftover vegan peanut sauce will keep in a sealed container in the fridge for about 5 days, or in the freezer for about 2 months.
How to Serve Thai Peanut Sauce
Use it as a dipping sauce for veggies, drizzle it on a salad, or try serving it with one of these dishes:
Vegan Summer RollsTofu SataySmoky Tofu DumplingsCrispy Baked Spring Rolls
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