Flying on Jess Fuel

Fueling my Navy pilot, one meal at a time...

Navigation
  • Home
  • A little about us…
    • Privacy Policy
  • Recipes
  • Travel
  • Gardening

Thai Peanut Chicken with Coconut Rice

January 31, 2012 by jessfuel 4 Comments

Nick and I both love Thai food and (besides sushi) it’s one of the things we missed most while living in BFE, Oklahoma. Luckily, Meridian has not one but TWO Thai places! Both of which we’ve already visited, and both of which have pretty tasty food.

But there are two problems. 1. Town is kind of far away. 2. One of the places is actually in a little town outside the city and they allow smoking inside. WHAT!? Did they miss the fact that it’s 2012? How is this even still legal? Nick asked me why the owner would ever allow such a thing when it clearly would hurt their business. Unfortunately, in Hicksville, Mississippi, I think the opposite is true.

So, since I don’t enjoy my tom yum with a side of lung cancer, I’ll keep trying to recreate the flavors at home.

This recipe came from Betty Crocker. Last time I checked, Betty was as American as they come, and I doubt she’s ever set foot in Asia. Salsa seemed kind of weird in a Thai dish, but you never know, I’ve seen stranger ingredients. So I went with it.

Thai Peanut Chicken with Coconut Rice

(adapted from Betty Crocker)

  • about 3 lbs bone-in chicken (I used all breasts)
  • 1 1/2 cups chunky hot salsa
  • 1/2 cup peanut butter
  • 1/4 cup lime juice
  • 2 tbsp soy sauce
  • 2 tsp grated fresh ginger
  • 1 cup dry long grain brown rice
  • 1 can light coconut milk
  • 3/4 cup water
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/4 cup chopped peanuts
  • 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Place chicken skin-side down in a 9×13 inch pan. In a medium bowl, mix salsa, peanut butter, lime juice, soy sauce and ginger. Spread sauce over chicken.

Cover with tin foil and bake 30 minutes. Meanwhile, combine rice, coconut milk and water in a pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer about 50 minutes, until liquid is absorbed.

After 30 minutes, turn the chicken pieces over and spoon pan sauces over chicken. Bake uncovered 20 to 30 minutes longer or until chicken is cooked through.

Serve chicken and rice sprinkled with peanuts and cilantro.

Sorry, Betty, but I wouldn’t really call this Thai. I’ll give you American-Thai. Kind of like how Taco Bell is “Mexican”. Yes, this chicken was DELICIOUS! (Is anything Betty makes not?) But though I could taste the peanut butter, cilantro, and other Thai flavors, the salsa was definitely the strongest. It was interesting, and yummy, but we may need a better name for it!

Ohh, almost forgot. The smoky restaurant we went to was super authentic, both to Mississippi and to Thailand. It was authentic Mississippi in that the restaurant is in a double-wide trailer and the decor looks like a flea market threw up on it. (I’m not kidding. This is where I live, people.)

But it was authentic Thai, too. Everyone in there barely spoke English and you could tell everything was made fresh from scratch, with love. The meals came with a little pickled cucumber salad, which I’d never seen before.

Then I noticed this Betty Crocker recipe suggested serving with a vinaigrette-dressed cucumber salad. So I guess it’s a Thai thing! I served my chicken and rice with my own take on cucumber salad (thinly sliced cukes, green peppers and onions marinated in vinegar, a little sugar, s&p). The fresh crunch of the cucumber really went great with the richness of the meal!

You Might Also Like:

Buffalo Chicken Quinoa Mac and Cheese
BBQ Chicken and Cornbread Pie
Thai Shrimp Salad with Coconut Curry Dressing
Chicken Tzatziki Salad

Share this:

  • Share
  • Twitter
  • Pinterest
  • Facebook
  • Email
  • Print
  • Reddit

Filed Under: Chicken & Poultry Tagged With: chicken, thai

« Pumpkin Quinoa Pancakes
Quinoa, Feta and Walnut Salad »

Comments

  1. Jen says

    January 31, 2012 at 3:12 pm

    Try this : http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2011/03/the-food-matters-cookbook-spicy-fried-rice-with-bean-sprouts-recipe.html

    Its my favorite faux-Thai recipe & is super quick to throw together if you already have cooked rice & chicken. <3

    Reply
    • jessfuel says

      January 31, 2012 at 5:00 pm

      pinned! =)

      Reply
  2. Jen says

    January 31, 2012 at 3:13 pm

    ps. love your new blog look!

    Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Homemade Chicken Pad Thai Recipe | Flying on Jess Fuel says:
    March 11, 2014 at 3:21 pm

    […] not brand new to cooking Thai-inspired dishes. In fact, I’ve made quite a few of them. But until now, I’ve never made our favorite: Pad […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Fueling my Navy Pilot, one meal at a time…

Welcome to Flying on Jess Fuel! I love to cook and share my recipes and adventures in the kitchen with everyone. Take a look around... you might just find tonight's dinner!

Search Flying on Jess Fuel

Subscribe via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to Flying on Jess Fuel and receive notifications of new posts by email.

ABOUT JESS

Jess is home cook, foodie and proud Navy wife. She grew up in Boston and now lives on the West Coast. She loves to blog, travel, read and write. When she's not working or blogging, she can be found running or relaxing with a glass of wine. Read More…

Check out these healthy recipes!

Dilly Cucumber Bites
Kale and Black Bean Enchiladas with Avocado Cream and Homemade Enchilada Sauce (Vegan)
Banana Almond Chia Seed Pudding

*Click Here* to read Flying on Jess Fuel’s Privacy Policy.
This site contains affiliate links, meaning that if you make a purchase through them, we will receive a small commission.

Copyright © 2021 · Foodie Child Theme by Shay Bocks · Built on the Genesis Framework · Powered by WordPress

loading Cancel
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Email check failed, please try again
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.