Simple & Delicious Slow-Cooker Peanut Chicken
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
A delicious & satisfying slow-cooker peanut chicken that is infused with robust flavor and comes together easily.
Author: Kelly
Serves: Serves 4-6 Adults
Ingredients
- The Chicken:
- 12 boneless, skinless chicken thighs (about 2 pounds/900 grams), cut into bite-sized pieces
- For the Peanut Curry Sauce:
- 1 can full fat coconut milk (13.5 fl oz/400 mL)
- 1 heaping Tbsp Chili Garlic Sauce (or to taste)
- 4 tsp Thai red curry paste
- 1 Tbsp soy sauce (or tamari for gluten-free)
- 2 Tbsp tangy tamarind sauce
- 2 heaping Tbsp tomato paste
- 2 heaping Tbsp all natural (unsweetened) peanut butter
- 1 heaping Tbsp grated fresh ginger root (or more to taste)
- 1 Tbsp coconut palm sugar (or brown sugar)
- 2 flat Tbsp tapioca starch
- Topping Ideas:
- squeeze of fresh lime juice
- chopped green onion
- chopped cilantro
- chopped peanuts
Instructions
- In a medium sized mixing bowl, place: coconut milk, chili garlic sauce, red curry paste, soy or tamari sauce, tamarind sauce, tomato paste, peanut butter, ginger and sugar - whisking well to combine.
- Taste the sauce and make any flavor adjustments.
- Add tapioca starch to the sauce and whisk again to combine, making sure it is fully broken down and integrated.
- Place sauce in a slow cooker set to low heat.
- Add chicken pieces to the sauce and stir to combine such that the chicken pieces end up being fully submerged in the sauce.
- Cover the slow cooker and allow the chicken to cook for 4-6 hours on low heat the whole time.
- Carefully remove lid and stir the chicken in the sauce (breaking up any pieces that have buddied up).
- Serve peanut chicken with as much or as little sauce as desired and top with your choice of nuts, cilantro, onion, etc. and season with salt & pepper as you wish.
- I accompanied the chicken with some steamed veggies and a side of grains (a mixture of white/red quinoa, millet and buckwheat sold together under the label "super grains" at Whole Foods).
Notes
Chicken Thighs - do not be tempted to use chicken breasts in this recipe - thighs are not only more economical, they are also perfect for the slow cooker method, resulting in gorgeously tender morsels.
Tapioca Starch - tapioca starch (also sometimes called tapioca flour) is a gluten-free plant based starch that is used as a thickening agent in this recipe. You can find tapioca starch in the baking section of any grocery store. If you omit it, you will end up with a soupy consistency rather than a sauce (still delicious just runny).
Spicy Factor - while this peanut sauce has plenty of flavor it is not, to my taste anyway, particularly spicy. Be sure to taste the sauce before transferring it into the slow cooker to make any seasoning adjustments desired.
Sides - you can serve this peanut chicken with any side/s desired - grains absorb the sauce nicely and are nourishing on a cold winter's day but I personally enjoy this meal on a bed of crunchy cabbage too. As you wish.
Peanut Substitutions - while it's difficult to replicate the precise taste of peanut, if there are allergies present, some alternate suggestions would be: sunflower seed butter, cashew butter and tahini (sesame seed paste). If you make this recipe using one of these alternates, I would love to hear from you in the comment section.
Tapioca Starch - tapioca starch (also sometimes called tapioca flour) is a gluten-free plant based starch that is used as a thickening agent in this recipe. You can find tapioca starch in the baking section of any grocery store. If you omit it, you will end up with a soupy consistency rather than a sauce (still delicious just runny).
Spicy Factor - while this peanut sauce has plenty of flavor it is not, to my taste anyway, particularly spicy. Be sure to taste the sauce before transferring it into the slow cooker to make any seasoning adjustments desired.
Sides - you can serve this peanut chicken with any side/s desired - grains absorb the sauce nicely and are nourishing on a cold winter's day but I personally enjoy this meal on a bed of crunchy cabbage too. As you wish.
Peanut Substitutions - while it's difficult to replicate the precise taste of peanut, if there are allergies present, some alternate suggestions would be: sunflower seed butter, cashew butter and tahini (sesame seed paste). If you make this recipe using one of these alternates, I would love to hear from you in the comment section.
Recipe by Inspired Edibles at https://www.inspirededibles.ca/2016/01/simple-delicious-slow-cooker-peanut-chicken.html