These high-protein satay chicken smash tacos are crispy, saucy AND ready in less than 30 minutes. Packed with juicy ground chicken, a creamy peanut butter satay sauce and fresh, zingy toppings, they’re an easy, flavor-loaded meal you’ll want on repeat.
The viral smash tacos meet a takeout classic, and honestly, I’m surprised it’s taken me so long to combine these two! If you’re a fellow satay and peanut butter obsessive, you’re going to LOVE these.
The method remains as simple as ever. Mix your topping, spread it onto tortillas, pan-fry for a few minutes and load them up with all the goodies.
They’re as brilliant for quick weeknight meals as they are for entertaining and parties – set up a topping station and let everyone help themselves!
Why you’ll love the tacos
- Super speedy – I’m talking less than 30 minutes, from start to finish.
- High in protein, thanks to the ground chicken AND peanut butter.
- Easy to prep ahead of time.
- Great for weeknights or entertaining.
Ingredients
- Ground chicken. You could easily swap this for ground turkey, ground beef, pork or a plant-based alternative. If you can’t find ground chicken, just blitz 1 lb of skinless, boneless chicken thighs in a food processor to make your own.
- Peanut butter. Use high-quality, natural peanut butter for the best flavor and texture (peanut butter that lists only peanuts and salt in its ingredients). Smooth or crunchy work.
- Fish sauce. This won’t make your tacos taste fishy, I promise! It just lends a gorgeous, deep, savory flavor that salt alone can’t replicate. If you don’t want to use it, you can replace it with more light soy sauce. You’ll need this for the chicken mixture and the satay sauce.
- Tortillas. Wheat or corn tortillas both work. I’m using mini ones, but you could use larger tortillas if you prefer.
How to make them
Mix all the ingredients for your chicken topping – if you’d like to double-check the seasoning, just pan-fry a bit of the mixture and taste it at this point.
Spread a heaped spoonful of the mixture onto each mini tortilla, using the back of your spoon to smooth it into a thin layer.
Make the speedy peanut sauce, quick-pickle your cucumber and prep your toppings. Then pan-fry the tacos until lovely and golden, layer on all the toppings and serve with extra satay sauce on the side for dipping.
Watch how to make them
Got a question?
Yes! These work beautifully with ground turkey, pork or beef. You could also use a plant-based alternative for a vegetarian version (just skip the fish sauce and use more soy sauce in that case).
You can air-fry them, chicken side up, at 400°F/200°C for 5 minutes, but they won’t get quite the same crispy sear as in a pan. Drizzle or spray each taco with a little olive oil before air frying. Baking is possible, but less ideal – I recommend pan-frying for the best result. You can also cook them on an outdoor grill or BBQ.
They’re honestly great as a stand-alone meal, but you can bulk them out with a few sides if you like. Try this crunchy Asian-style slaw, green goddess salad or even crispy loaded wedges.
You can do this in a few different ways. The ground chicken mixture can be made two days ahead of time, then just stored in the fridge until you’re ready to top your tacos. The topped tacos themselves will keep well for 24 hours in the fridge – just use pieces of parchment paper to separate them when you store them in a container so they don’t stick together. The satay sauce keeps well for at least one week in the fridge once mixed, and the pickled cucumber can be made three days ahead of time. Store it in the fridge until you’re ready to serve.
Like this recipe? Try these smash tacos next
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High-Protein Satay Chicken Smash Tacos
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
Description
These high-protein satay chicken smash tacos are crispy, saucy AND ready in under 30 minutes. Packed with juicy ground chicken, a creamy peanut butter satay sauce and fresh, zingy toppings, they’re an easy, flavor-loaded meal you’ll want on repeat.
Ingredients
For the tacos –
- 1lb (500g) ground chicken
- 2 scallions, finely chopped
- 1-inch piece of ginger, grated
- 4 garlic cloves, crushed
- A handful of cilantro leaves, chopped
- 2 teaspoons fish sauce
- 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1 tablespoon light soy sauce
- 12 mini tortillas
- Olive oil
For the satay sauce –
- 1/3 cup natural peanut butter
- 1 tablespoon light soy sauce
- 1/2 tablespoon sesame oil
- 2 teaspoons fish sauce
- 1 tablespoon sweet chilli jam
- 1/3 cup water
For the toppings –
- 2 tablespoons sweet chili jam
- 1 cucumber, diced
- 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- A handful of cilantro leaves
- 2 scallions, finely sliced
- Sesame seeds
Instructions
- Make the chicken topping. To a mixing bowl, add 1 lb of ground chicken, 2 chopped scallions, the grated ginger, crushed garlic, chopped cilantro, 2 teaspoons of fish sauce, 1 teaspoon of red pepper flakes and 1 tablespoon of soy sauce. Mix well to combine.
- Press the topping onto your tacos. Scoop up a heaped spoonful of the chicken mixture and spread it onto a tortilla, using the back of your spoon to smooth it into a thin, even layer. You can go right to the edge of the tortilla. Repeat with the rest of the mixture.
- Make the quick pickled cucumber. To a small bowl, add the diced cucumber, 1/4 teaspoon of salt and 1 tablespoon of rice vinegar. Toss to combine, then set aside.
- Make the satay sauce. To a small bowl or jar, add ⅓ cup of peanut butter, 1 tablespoon of light soy sauce, ½ tablespoon of sesame oil, 2 teaspoons of fish sauce and 1 tablespoon of sweet chili jam. Use a fork (or a small whisk if you have one) to mix the ingredients into a thick paste. Slowly pour in ⅓ cup of water, mixing as you do, until the sauce reaches the consistency of double cream. Set aside. PRO TIP: Add more water if you’d like the sauce runnier, and remember it will thicken up as it sits.
- Cook the tacos. Set a large frying pan or skillet over high heat. Drizzle the pan with a little olive oil, then add your topped tacos, chicken side down, onto the pan. Use a fish slice to really press the tacos into the pan – this ‘smashes’ the tacos and ensures they cook quickly, and that the meat sticks to the tortilla. Cook for four minutes, then flip and cook for a further minute to crisp up the tortilla. Remove from the pan and repeat with the remaining tacos.
- Top and serve. Drizzle the cooked tacos with some of the satay sauce, then spoon over the pickled cucumber. Drizzle with more sweet chili jam, then scatter with the sliced scallions, cilantro and the sesame seeds. Serve with the remaining satay sauce on the side for dipping.
Notes
INGREDIENT NOTES: Swap ground chicken for turkey, pork, beef or a plant-based alternative. You can also blitz 1 lb of skinless, boneless chicken thighs in a food processor to make your own ground chicken if it’s tricky to find. If you don’t want to use fish sauce (I promise it won’t make the tacos taste fishy!), swap it for more light soy sauce. It’s best to use natural peanut butter, with just peanuts and salt in the ingredients list, for the right flavor and texture (either smooth or crunchy work well!)
PREP AHEAD: You can get ahead in a couple of ways. The ground chicken mixture can be made two days ahead of time and stored in the fridge until you’re ready to cook. The topped (raw) tacos themselves will keep well for 24 hours in the fridge – just use pieces of parchment paper to separate them when you store them in a container so they don’t stick together. The satay sauce keeps well for at least one week in the fridge once mixed, and the pickled cucumber can be made three days ahead of time. Store it in the fridge until you’re ready to serve.
MEAT NOT STICKING? Make sure you’re either using a non-stick pan and ensure there’s a decent drizzle of oil in the pan. You also need to make sure it’s nice and hot when you add the tacos, and you need to firmly press down on them in the pan to ‘smash’ and seal the meat to the tacos. If the meat doesn’t stick, don’t worry too much. It doesn’t make a difference to the finished tacos.
- Prep Time: 10
- Cook Time: 15
- Category: meat
- Method: stove top
- Cuisine: american
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 3 tacos
- Calories: 521
- Sugar: 17.9g
- Sodium: 790.4mg
- Fat: 28.8g
- Saturated Fat: 6.2g
- Unsaturated Fat: 20.7g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 40.4g
- Fiber: 4.5g
- Protein: 30.9g
- Cholesterol: 107.5mg
Absolutely incredible, the whole family loved these! They were so fresh and zingy and I’ll definitely be making them again!