Thai Coconut Peanut Chicken
I was puttering around the house one morning, fretting over what I could possibly make for dinner. I was not smart and did not pull anything out of the freezer to thaw. In addition, heading out to the store just was not on my list of to-dos for the dinner. I vacillated over just having sandwiches or not even caring. I feel guilty about those choices and thought what could I put in the crockpot that would thaw and not turn out weird. I remembered a recipe I had come across that might work and pulled it out. It was for a Skinny Thai Peanut Chicken in the crockpot. I noticed while looking it over that there were a few things I did not have, but possible substitutes just might work, so I set about really creating my own, but using the recipe as a guide for amounts and combinations. Worried about whether this was going to work, about half-way through the process, I went upstairs to check on it, stir it up and then take a taste. Oh my goodness.....it worked and worked so well, I didn't want to wait for dinner. But I did wait. This is really great. Try it. Tom put it on the regular rotation list! Cant wait to make it for the kids the next time they are home.
A shout out to RachelSchultz.com for the inspiration! Here it goes....
Thai Coconut Peanut Chicken – Crockpot Style
2-3 cups cooked chicken (or 4-5 boneless, skinless chicken thighs)
1 red or green bell pepper, diced
1 sweet onion, diced
¾ c chunky peanut butter
1-2 T lime juice (one whole fresh lime, squeezed) – can use key lime juice as a substitute
1 can (13.5 oz) coconut milk
3 T soy sauce
1 -2 t cumin (depending on your taste)
1 T cilantro
1-2 T crushed red pepper flakes (depending on your taste)
Rice
Chopped Green Onion
Chopped lightly salted peanuts
Chopped fresh cilantro
Layer into the crockpot the following:
Chicken
Onion
Green/Red Pepper
In a small bowl add peanut butter, lime juice, coconut milk, soy sauce, cumin, cilantro (tube) and red pepper flakes. Whisk together until well combined. Taste and adjust your seasonings accordingly. Pour over the chicken and vegetables in the crockpot.
Place the lid on and cook on low setting for 3-4 hours. Make sure to stir your mixture at least once during the cooking process, to incorporate the flavors and distribute for even cooking. You should have a nice “gravy” that will work well served over rice.
Serve over rice with the green onions, peanuts and fresh cilantro as garnish.
