Roasted Chicken Thighs With Peanut Butter BBQ Sauce

By Kay Chun

Updated June 23, 2023

Roasted Chicken Thighs With Peanut Butter BBQ Sauce
Mark Weinberg for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Barrett Washburne.
Total Time
40 minutes
Rating
4(1,113)
Comments
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Peanut butter is the surprise guest in this spicy-sweet barbecue sauce, which cooks up in just 10 minutes. This versatile sauce, which adds nutty richness and depth, keeps for 2 weeks in the fridge and also freezes well. You'll have quite a bit: This recipe yields 2 cups of sauce. It's great to have on hand, doing double-duty as a sauce or a fantastic marinade for chicken or baby back ribs. (If allergies are a concern, substitute in almond butter for the peanut butter.) Serve with sautéed green beans, roasted broccoli or coleslaw. 

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Ingredients

Yield:4 servings

    For the Barbecue Sauce

    • 2tablespoons canola oil
    • ¼cup minced onion (about ¼ medium onion)
    • 2tablespoons tomato paste
    • ½cup natural smooth peanut butter
    • ¼cup low-sodium soy sauce
    • ¼cup distilled white vinegar
    • 2tablespoons turbinado or light brown sugar
    • 2tablespoons unsulphured molasses
    • 2teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
    • 1½teaspoons kosher salt
    • 1teaspoon black pepper
    • ½teaspoon smoked paprika
    • ½teaspoon cayenne

    For the Chicken

    • 2pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs
    • 2tablespoons canola oil
    • ¾cup barbecue sauce
    • Kosher salt
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)

756 calories; 40 grams fat; 7 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 21 grams monounsaturated fat; 10 grams polyunsaturated fat; 45 grams carbohydrates; 3 grams dietary fiber; 35 grams sugars; 54 grams protein; 1442 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Make the barbecue sauce: In a medium saucepan, heat oil. Add onion and cook over moderate medium heat, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 2 minutes. Add tomato paste and cook, stirring, until lightly caramelized and deepened in color, about 2 minutes. Whisk in the remaining ingredients and 6 tablespoons water. Simmer until flavors are combined, and the sauce is slightly thickened, about 5 minutes.

  2. Step 2

    Make the chicken: Heat oven to 425 degrees. Set a rack over a rimmed baking sheet.

  3. Step 3

    In a large bowl, combine chicken, oil and ¼ cup of the barbecue sauce and season with salt. Toss to evenly coat and arrange on the rack. Roast, using a brush to baste with the remaining ½ cup sauce every 10 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through and deep golden in color, about 30 minutes. Serve with the leftover sauce on the side, or store sauce in the refrigerator for later use.

Tip
  • Don’t worry if the sauce separates a little during cooking. (It’s just the natural oils in the peanut butter.) Once cooled, whisk the mixture to emulsify back together.

Ratings

4 out of 5
1,113 user ratings
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Comments

Cindy

I freeze tomato paste in 1TB dollops then put the frozen globs in a freezer bag. Need tomato paste? Gotcha covered - and without opening up one of those little cans!

Wes

You could slather this sauce on a 2x4 and I would enthusiastically eat it.

MMS

With so many peanut butters now labeled "natural" can NYTimes clarify if the product intended should be peanuts only, versus the various peanut butters that include sugar and salt (also labeled "natural")? Thanks!

Kara B

Made as directed with the exception of switching out the molasses for honey and using rice wine vinegar instead of white vinegar. When I tasted the sauce while it was simmering, it was delicious but I wanted a little more intensity. I added about 3 tbsp sriracha, a couple shakes of fish sauce, 3 frozen cubes of ginger, a couple small cloves of garlic minced, the juice of half a lime, and another 1/4 cup of water so it didn’t thicken too much. I let it continue to simmer with the extra ingredients for 10 more minutes, til it coated the back of the spoon. Marinated chicken thighs in half the sauce for about 4 hours, then grilled the thighs, basting them with the remaining sauce. This was probably the best grilled chicken I’ve ever made! The peanut butter lent such a nice background flavor to the bright, slightly sweet sauce. Served it with coconut basmati rice and steamed green beans. We will be making this on repeat!

The Culinary Herpetologist

Made this for a second time last week. Used hot honey instead of the brown sugar and added garlic. Much better.

Anapamu

This recipe is similar to my all-time favorite: Sam Choy's Hibachi Miso Chicken with Peanut Butter. Trust me, you’ll want to look it up! Pro tip: bake the chicken instead of grilling. You won’t regret it. Serve on a bed of jasmine rice and garnish with pineapple.

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