Whole Roast Chicken Peanut Coconut Sauce

Gai Ob Nam Kati

• 3 lb roasting chicken
• 1 onion, roughly chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
• 1 tablespoon chopped lemon grass
• 4 red chillies, fresh or dried
• 6 tablespoons roasted peanuts or peanut butter
• 1 teaspoon pepper
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 2 tablespoons fish sauce
• 1 teaspoon shrimp paste
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1 cup coconut milk
• fresh red chillies, finely sliced into rings
• fresh cilantro

Roast chicken at 350°F until tender (1/2 to 2 hours). 
Prepare sauce during the last 15 minutes of cooking. 
With a blender or food processor, make a paste from onion, garlic, lemon grass, chillies, peanuts, pepper, sugar, fish sauce, and shrimp paste. Heat oil in a large heavy-based saucepan. 
Fry paste briefly. 
Add coconut milk. 
Stir well and simmer for 5 minutes until sauce is thick enough to coat chicken. Place roasted chicken in saucepan. 
Carefully coat with sauce. 
Simmer a few minutes more, being careful not to break up the chicken. 
Remove to a serving plate. 
Spoon over remaining sauce. 
Garnish with chilli rings and chopped cilantro. Serves 4  

Adapted from Thai Cooking Class, Miller & Lake, p.73  

This can be used as a dipping sauce for spring rolls and satays, and it can be mixed with noodles or other dishes.