5 Minute Peanut Sauce! Peanut butter, brown sugar, red chili garlic sauce, rice vinegar, water, lemon, garlic, salt. They meet up for a little dance party in your food processor. You dance while they dance. And Done. Your veggies, your spring rolls, your noodly dishes, your grilled meats, and your face will thank you.
This 5 Minute Peanut Sauce was inspired by TOO many snow days and my constant craving for Thai food. Oooor maybe I just really like the peanut sauce that always comes with my Thai food take-out and I really just want to dip all my snacky vegetable foods in it. I’m not sure which.
The Thai food and peanut dipping sauce cravings are a real thing lately. No, I’m not pregnant. You thought it for a brief second didn’t you. Stop it. But srsly, what’s not to love about Thai food and its peanut sauce accessory. Especially if I don’t have to cook and the magical Thai food fairies just deliver it to my front door or because I called my hubby and asked him to bring home Thai take-out…again. Can’t get enough Thai. Or the peanut sauce. I’m not pregnant.
A Snowpocalypse came to town. Did you hear about this in your neck of winter’s wonderland? In the Pacific Northwest, Snowpocalypse is what our news media calls it in Portlandia when 1-3 inches of snow sprinkles on us. All the city stops when that first snowflake hits the ground and we fuurrreaak out. I’m talkin’ snow plows forgot how to snow plow, kids couldn’t get home from school until it was past their bedtime, and people abandoned their cars on the freeways only to have their car towed away leaving one to wonder how the tow truck could make it on the roads but the snow plows couldn’t. And that’s when the Thai food peanut sauce cravings hit me like a blizzard of fury. Do I venture out with my kidlets into the great white frenzy only to abandon my car on the side of the road along with all the other snow shocked commuters to trek miles uphill both ways through the snowy foray for the precious peanut sauce? Nope, sounds too cold and I want need the sauce now.
Can I just drink the peanut sauce? Ooooh, what about chapstick?!?! Maybe I should market a peanut sauce chapstick. Is that going overboard with the sauce? Okay, maybe. No, but really, what do you think? Would you buy a peanut sauce chapstick? Clearly not if you’re allergic to peanuts. Eek, that would be so SO bad for your lips. Sorry peanut allergy person. It’s soy free though! Where are my soy free peeps?! (fist bump) Soy free peeps I’ve got your back on this sauce because you and I know that peanut sauce always has soy in it. Why why WHY? Let’s leave it out this time mmmkay?
5 Minute Peanut Sauce with only 8 ingredients. A perfect snack option when it’s snowpocalyptic outside and you’ve already overdone it on the Christmas cookies. Push the cookies aside (just for now), get out all your veggies, and have a peanut sauce veggie dipping party. Your body and mind will thank you for the veggies, your mouth will thank you for the peanut sauce, and your lips will thank you for the sauce smeared all over them (because you’re thinking that peanut sauce chapstick might not be a bad idea after all).
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5 Minute Peanut Sauce
Prep Time: 5 mins- Total Time: 5 mins
Yield: About 1 cup
Category: Sauce
Method: Food Processor
Cuisine: Asian
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Pin RecipeDescription
A quick and easy 8-ingredient peanut sauce that comes together in 5 minutes! Perfect with spring rolls, grilled meats, noodles, or just as a dip for veggies! Vegan & soy free.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup peanut butter (crunchy or creamy – you pick!)
- 1 Tbs brown sugar
- 1 Tbs rice vinegar
- 2 Tbs fresh squeezed lemon juice
- 3 Tbs sweet red chili sauce
- 2 garlic cloves (medium sized)
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 3 Tbs hot water
Instructions
- Combine all the ingredients in a food processor until they are blended smoothly together and you’ve reached your desired consistency (see notes).
- Dip, eat, enjoy!
Notes
I like to add the water last so I can control how thick or thin the sauce is (ie. thicker for dipping or thinner for noodle dishes).
If you prefer your sauce to be a little more spicy, add more of the red chili sauce. Prefer it to be sweeter? Add more brown sugar.
This peanut sauce can be stored in a covered container in the refrigerator for about a week.
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I make this all the time! We use it as a dipping sauce, thin it down a bit more for sauce for”thai noodles” (as my toddler calls it). Every other peanut sauce I’ve made has separated, this stays together and is so quick to make (side note – we don’t do peanuts in my house, works really well with almond butter too!). Delicious and easy – what’s not to love!
★★★★★
Woah, this was good and so simple. I’ve been making different peanut sauces for almost 20 years actually and this is the best I’ve had. Thanks for creating and sharing.
★★★★★
Yay! I’m so glad you loved it and I’m so humbled by your sweet compliment!
I will never ever buy peanut sauce again!!!!
Used it for dipping sauce with egg rolls and it was awesome.
Thanx for sharing 🙂
Thanks so much Alexandra! I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
it’s tasty thank you
My pleasure Mona, I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Hi Jenna! Thanks for sharing and I love that the kiddos enjoyed it too! Chicken satay with fries dipped in this sauce sounds awesome!
This is delicious and SO easy! We discovered our favorite fry shop has Chicken Satay, but no peanut sauce (but does have nearly every other dipping sauce imaginable). I whipped this up to go with the satay and fries – so flavorful, fast and yummy. I had everything on hand, even though I wasn’t planning on making it, which is always a big plus in my book. Even both toddlers ate it!
★★★★★