Grilled Lemongrass Chicken Skewers

These Thai-inspired lemongrass chicken skewers (also called satay) are packed with the bold, balanced flavors of lemongrass, ginger, and lime. It’s sweet, salty, sour, and just a little spicy. Grill them over hot coals, serve with a rich peanut sauce for dipping, and you’ve got a complete meal with a side of rice and a simple salad, or an impressive appetizer if you serve smaller portions.

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For a simpler spin, try our grilled pineapple chicken kabobs. It’s easy, flavorful, and perfect for quick weeknight dinners.

Here’s Why This Chicken Skewer Recipe Works

Serve hot or room temp: These skewers are just as good straight off the grill or as part of a make-ahead spread.

Lemongrass and lime bring brightness: These two balance the richness of the chicken and sauces with clean citrusy zing.

Chicken thighs stay juicy: Thighs are more forgiving than chicken breasts, they hold up well on the grill and stay tender throughout.

Double-duty marinade: Bold enough to flavor the meat deeply, but not too sticky to char and burn on the grill.

Questions and Answers

More Asian Inspired Flavors

Craving more Asian-inspired flavors? Try these next:

Beef Pho: A noodle soup built on deeply spiced, slow-simmered beef broth.

Thai Spicy Shrimp Rice Bowl: Jumbo shrimp, sautéed veggies, and mango over jasmine rice, all tied together with a bold, spicy peanut sauce.

Red Miso Glazed Sablefish: Rich, buttery sablefish meets a sweet-salty miso-sake glaze, balanced with a sharp wasabi emulsion.

Thai Chicken Skewers

These grilled Thai chicken skewers are fast, flavorful, and versatile. Serve them hot off the grill as a bold main with rice and veggies, or plate them smaller as an appetizer with plenty of peanut sauce and lime. However you serve them, they won’t stick around long.

Prep Time: 1 hour hr

Cook Time: 10 minutes mins

Total Time: 1 hour hr 10 minutes mins

4.95 from 38 votes

Lemongrass Chicken Skewers (satay)

By Pat Nyswonger

Juicy grilled chicken thighs marinated in lemongrass, ginger, garlic, and hoisin, then threaded onto skewers and charred to perfection. Serve with spicy peanut sauce, lime wedges, and fresh basil for a bold, Southeast Asian-inspired dish that works as a main or appetizer.

If you make this recipe, please leave a star rating and comment.

Servings: 4 servings

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Ingredients 

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For the Marinade:

• ▢ 1 stalk lemongrass, white part only, peeled and chopped finely
• ▢ 2 tablespoons grated fresh ginger
• ▢ 4-5 garlic cloves, minced
• ▢ 3 tablespoons honey
• ▢ 1 tablespoon tahini paste
• ▢ 2 tablespoon hoisin sauce
• ▢ 1 tablespoon fish sauce
• ▢ ½ teaspoon ground Chinese five-spice
• ▢ pinch cayenne pepper
• ▢ ¼ cup fresh lime juice, about 2 limes

For the chicken Skewers

• ▢ 4 boneless skinless chicken thighs
• ▢ 8 wooden skewers
• ▢ vegetable oil, for basting during grilling
• ▢ 2 fresh limes, for garnish
• ▢ fresh Thai basil leaves, for garnish

For Peanut Sauce

• ▢ spicy peanut sauce

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Instructions 

For the Marinade with Chicken:

• In a small dish, combine the marinade ingredients and whisk to combine thoroughly. Set aside.

For the Chicken:

• Use a meat pounder or rolling pin to flatten any thick parts of the chicken so the meat is close to the same thickness.
• Cut the chicken into 2-inch strips, add them to a shallow dish and pour the marinade over them, turning to coat both sides with the marinade. Cover the dish with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 4-5 hours, overnight if possible.

For the Thai Peanut Sauce:

• Make our spicy peanut sauce recipe (or use a storebought sauce).

When ready to cook the chicken satay:

• Soak the wooden skewers in cold water for 30 minutes to keep them from burning during the grilling process.

To Cook the Chicken Satay:

• Lift a chicken strip out of the marinade, allowing the marinade to drip off, thread the meat onto the wooden skewer, adding several strips. Place the completed skewer on a separate plate. Repeat with each wooden skewer dividing the chicken evenly between the skewers.
• Prepare your grill with enough coals to maintain a medium-heat. When the coals are ready, baste the chicken lightly with oil and place the skewers on the grill and cook for 3 to 4 minutes or until lightly charred and lift off the grill easily. Using tongs, turn the skewers and cook for an additional 3 to 4 minutes or until the chicken is again lightly charred and opaque throughout.
• Serve hot or room temperature, garnished with lime wedges, fresh basil, Thai peanut sauce and hot jasmine rice

Notes

Soak the skewers: Soaking wooden skewers in water for 30 minutes prevents them from catching fire on the grill.

Extra peanut sauce: This recipe makes more peanut sauce than you’ll need. Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 5–7 days.

Nutrition note: The peanut sauce is not included in the calculated nutrition information.

Make-ahead friendly: You can marinate the chicken and prep the sauce a day ahead to streamline cooking.

Nutrition

Serving: 2sticks, Calories: 382kcal, Carbohydrates: 35g, Protein: 32g, Fat: 12.7g, Saturated Fat: 4g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 15g, Cholesterol: 138mg, Sodium: 1092mg, Fiber: 3g, Sugar: 21g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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