Sharing the perfect recipe to fully embrace grilling season: grilled coconut chicken with snap pea salad! It’s a really simple process to throw this together, yet the end result is bold, vibrant, and beyond flavorful. You’ll marinate the chicken in coconut milk with lots of garlic, ginger, chiles, lime, and cilantro. The chicken grills until slightly charred and juicy, while the marinade simmers into a creamy sauce. Served with the refreshing snap pea and avocado salad on the side…you cannot beat it!
grilled coconut chicken – the details
I’ve made this recipe a few times now and simply love how simple the process is – marinate the chicken, grill it, simmer the marinade to create a sauce, and mix up a quick snap pea salad. It’s a no-fuss kind of process that’s pretty fool-proof as well.
The key is the marinade, which is full of SO much good flavor. We’ve got sweet coconut milk, soy sauce for a rich salty bite, lots of tangy lime, ginger and garlic, a red fresno chile for some heat, and a handful of fresh cilantro.
You cannot go wrong with that combination of ingredients!
You’ll submerge chicken thighs into the marinade and let them sit for 1 hour in the fridge and then 30 more minutes at room temperature. Just like you want to bring any protein to room temperature before cooking, this allows the chicken to cook more evenly and become really tender.
The coconut milk tenderizes the chicken as it sits, and then doubles as the base for the sauce. While the chicken grills, you’ll transfer the coconut milk marinade right to a saucepan. After 10 minutes of simmering, it’s good to go.
All that’s left to do is toss together the crisp and refreshing snap pea salad! I added in some creamy avocado, scallions, and then more chile, lime, and cilantro.
It’s the perfect little something to serve alongside the grilled chicken. You can add rice or even some grilled potatoes to complete the meal!
If you’re looking for more summer chicken recipes, here are a few to try:
Strawberry & Avocado Grilled Chicken Salad
Spicy Thai Peanut Chicken
Grilled Chicken with Garden Panzanella
Grilled Coconut Chicken with Snap Pea Salad
marinated grilled chicken served with a creamy, flavor-packed coconut sauce and refreshing snap pea salad
servings: 4
Ingredients
Grilled Coconut Chicken
- 1 (13.5 fl oz) can coconut milk
- 2 tbsp reduced sodium soy sauce
- 6 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tbsp minced fresh ginger
- 1 red fresno chile, thinly sliced
- 1 tbsp lime zest
- 2 tbsp lime juice
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1 handful cilantro, plus more for garnish
- 2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken thighs
- cooking oil
- lime wedges, for serving
Snap Pea Salad
- ½ lb sugar snap peas, thinly sliced on an angle
- 1 avocado, pitted + diced
- 2 scallions, thinly sliced
- ½ red fresno chile, minced
- 2 limes, juiced
- ¼ cup cilantro leaves
- kosher salt
Instructions
Grilled Coconut Chicken
- Combine the coconut milk, soy sauce, garlic, ginger, chile, lime zest, lime juice, and salt in a large mixing bowl. Whisk to combine. Add the cilantro and chicken. Ensure all of the chicken is submerged. Cover the bowl.
- Marinate the chicken for 1 hour in the fridge. Transfer the chicken to room temperature and continue to marinate for 30 minutes.
- Heat the grill to medium-high heat. Brush with oil. Transfer the chicken from the bowl to the grill, draining off as much liquid as possible. Grill the chicken for about 8 minutes until slightly charred. When it easily releases from the grill, flip the chicken and finish cooking, about 5-6 more minutes.
- Meanwhile, transfer the marinade to a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Add 2 tablespoons of water. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes until slightly thickened.
- Serve the chicken with the coconut sauce spooned over top and the snap pea salad (recipe below) alongside. Garnish with cilantro and serve with lime wedges for squeezing.
Snap Pea Salad
- Combine the snap peas, avocado, scallions, chile, lime juice, and cilantro leaves in a mixing bowl. Toss to combine.
- Season with salt to taste.
shop the dish: grilled coconut chicken with snap pea salad
I made this tonight and the chicken was really yum!!! thank you!!! cant wait to try other recipes
I made this tonight and it was wonderful! One of the best chicken recipes I have ever eaten! I was only making a couple of servings so I only used half the can of coconut milk (but kept the other ingredients as written) and I let it marinate several hours. Will definitely be making this again!