Paleo Chilli Chicken and Almond Satay

I can’t believe that in a couple of months it will have been a whole year since Ports and I got married, surrounded by a close group of family and friends on an island called Lombok in Indonesia. I know that everyone always says it but it really was the best day of my life and we have unforgettable memories that I find myself dreaming about daily. I mean it’s not often you can say that your father in law played you in on the ukulele and the priest was late for your wedding because there were some monkeys having a fight on the jungle road!
We adore Indonesian cuisine and chose to have traditional satay for our wedding feast. It was just delicious, with a wide selection of tender meats and fish accompanied by a variety of different dips. So, I decided to put my day dreaming in to action to create my own take on an Indonesian satay feast. I used chicken thighs which I marinated and served with an almond butter satay. They were utterly divine. Popped in a marinade for an hour or so, pan-fried and then finished off in the oven. Sheer perfection. I am really looking forward to some warm weather when we can whip out the bbq and create lots more of our own Indonesian satay memories.

What you need:
To make 4 large skewers

*Griddle pan or frying pan
*Non stick pan
*4 wooden / metal skewers (if wooden, they need to be soaked first for about 20 minutes in water)

Time to prepare: 20 minutes + 1 hr marinade time
Time to cook: 20 minutes

For the chicken marinade / skewers

*4 (550g / 19oz.) Chicken thighs, chopped in to bite-sized chunks
*1 tbsp Raw honey
*5 tbsp Olive oil
*1 Large garlic clove, crushed
*1 inch cube Ginger, finely chopped
*1 Small chilli, finely chopped and de-seeded
*1/2 lime, juice
*Pinch of sea salt

For the satay 

*2 tbsp Almond butter
*1 cup Coconut milk
*1/4 tsp Raw honey (do not add any more than this as it will be too sweet!)
*1/2 tsp Sea salt
*1 /2 tsp Pepper
*1/2 tsp Dried chilli flakes (OPTIONAL)

Directions: 

For the chicken marinade / skewers

• Preheat oven to 180°c
• Place wooden skewer in to a basin of cold water and leave to soak until ready to use
• In to a baking dish / bowl place the chopped chicken, olive oil, raw honey, crushed garlic, ginger, chilli and lime
• With your hands (time to get messy!) massage the mixture in to the meat until fully combined and then leave for at least one  hour
• WASH YOUR HANDS!
• Place chicken on to the skewers (about 5 pieces on to each skewer)
• On to a griddle pan / or frying pan over very high heat place your skewers (don’t add any more olive oil as they are already coated)
• Seal the meat on all sides for approx 4-5 minutes until golden brown
• Place in to the oven on a baking tray for a further 7-10 minutes until fully cooked through
• Serve immediately or allow to cool and then keep in an airtight container in the fridge

For the satay 

• In to a non-stick pan over medium heat place the almond butter, raw honey and coconut milk
• Bring to the boil and then simmer (you will see the mixture thicken)
• Add in salt, pepper and chilli
• Set aside and allow to cool
• Serve in a ramekin alongside chicken skewers
• Store in fridge for up to 1 week in a sealed container