Spicy Thai Peanut Sauce over Roasted Sweet Potatoes and Rice
Spicy Thai peanut sauce, drizzled over roasted sweet potatoes and bell peppers on a bed of rice. This is a healthy vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free recipe.
Updated by Kathryne Taylor on July 12, 2024
Please tell me that I am not the only girl who leaves her keys in the door. Or loses her car in parking lots. Or drops her wallet on the sidewalk. Distracted is my middle name, but committing all three of those mistakes over the past few weeks is a personal record.
I suppose I have to tell you the stories now, don’t I? I’ll start with the best one. A couple of weeks ago, I took Cookie outside before dragging myself to bed. I was exhausted—apparently so exhausted that I left my keys in my door when I shut it behind me. Dumb, right? The next morning, I woke up and searched around for my keys. I couldn’t find them in any of the normal spots. It finally occurred to me to check the door. Aha! Keys. Relief.
Then I walked down the front steps, looked over to my left, and saw my car. My car was parked in front of the fire hydrant with a white ticket flapping underneath the window wiper. That’s not where I parked my car, you guys. I walked over to my car with trepidation and peered through the windows.
Everything inside my car seemed to be in order. I got in and noticed that the seat had been scooted back a few inches. All I know about the thief (borrower?) is that he’s a few inches taller than me, drives a manual transmission and has an iPhone, apparently, since he took my cord with him. That leaves a lot of suspects.
I’m still wondering what that stranger did in my car. Maybe he just wanted to cruise around the neighborhood. Maybe he ran out of beer and decided to drive over to the gas station. Maybe he intended to steal it, but quickly realized that stealing my beat-up car was a waste of time and brought it back. Maybe he dropped off some drugs. Let’s hope not. I just wish he’d dropped off the stuff in my trunk at Goodwill while he was at it.
The other stories aren’t so exciting. I was thirty minutes late to Bev‘s baby shower (she’s having twins!) because I lost my car on The Plaza. Then my wallet fell out of my grandmother’s little black purse in between Sur la Table and the corner. Thankfully, a good samaritan found the wallet and brought it to customer service, which is what I would have done for him. All said and done, I’ve really lucked out in all of these situations. I have a sixty dollar ticket to pay but that’s not the worst that could have happened.
Sometimes I wish I had someone around to catch my silly mistakes in real time. I make a lot of them. I do have you all, though. You let me know when I list garlic twice in a recipe, or when there’s a little too much pumpkin in my pancakes. You leave feedback for me in the comments section and tweet/instagram/email me photos of the recipes you’ve made at home, which makes me super happy. Even if I don’t respond right away, know that I’m listening and glad you’re here.
This recipe, for example, was inspired by a convincing comment left on my sweet potato fries recipe. Carla said, “These are wonderful and are even more unbelievable with THAI SPICY PEANUT SAUCE. Sorry to yell, but these two things were born for each other. Ketchup, honey, mayo based sauces do not do them justice.”
She sounded like she was onto something, so I grabbed a bottle of San-J Thai peanut sauce at the store and roasted up some sweet potato fries. She was indeed onto something. I did my best to recreate San-J’s version based on the ingredient list. I switched from fries to roasted sweet potatoes and made it a full meal by adding jasmine rice, red bell pepper, cilantro and chives. Thanks, Carla!
Spicy Thai Peanut Sauce over Roasted Sweet Potatoes and Rice
Bold and spicy Thai peanut sauce drizzled over roasted sweet potatoes and bell peppers on a bed of rice. The sauce would also be great on stir-fries and salads, or as a dip for raw vegetables. This is a healthy vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free recipe.
Ingredients
Spicy Thai Peanut Sauce
- ½ cup creamy peanut butter
- ¼ cup reduced-sodium tamari or soy sauce
- 3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 2 tablespoons honey or maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
- 2 cloves garlic, pressed
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 2 tablespoons water
Roasted vegetables
- 2 sweet potatoes, peeled and sliced into 1 inch long, ½ inch wide chunks
- 1 red bell pepper, cored, deseeded, and sliced into bite-sized strips
- about 2 tablespoons coconut oil (or olive oil)
- ¼ teaspoon cumin powder
- Sea salt, to taste
Rice and garnishes
- 1 ¼ cup jasmine brown rice (or any variety of long-grain brown rice)
- 2 to 3 green onions/chives, sliced into thin rounds (green and white parts)
- Handful cilantro, torn
- Handful peanuts, crushed
- Sriracha/rooster sauce on the side (optional)
Instructions
- Prep: Bring a large pot of water to boil. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit with a rack in the middle and another rack near the top.
- Roast the vegetables: On a large, rimmed baking sheet, toss the sweet potato with a generous tablespoon of coconut oil, the cumin and a sprinkle of salt. Arrange them in a single layer, and set aside.
- On a separate, smaller baking sheet, toss the bell pepper with about 1 teaspoon of coconut oil and a sprinkle of salt. Toss until lightly coated, and arrange them in a single layer.
- Roast the sweet potatoes on the middle rack for about 35 minutes, tossing halfway, and roast the peppers on the top rack for about 20 minutes, tossing halfway. The vegetables will be tender and caramelized on the edges when they are ready.
- In the meantime, cook the rice: Once the water is boiling, pour in the rice and give it a stir. Boil the rice for 30 minutes, then turn off the heat and drain the rice. Return the rice to the pot and cover the pot. Let the rice steam that way for 10 minutes. Remove the lid, fluff the rice with a fork and season with salt to taste.
- Make the sauce: In a bowl, whisk together the sauce ingredients. If the sauce is too thick or too spicy, whisk in a little more water.
- Serve: In bowls, divide the rice and roasted vegetables. Drizzle each bowl generously with sauce, and top with a sprinkle of green onions, cilantro and peanuts.
Notes
Storage suggestions: Leftover sauce should keep well, refrigerated and covered, for a couple of weeks. Wake up the flavors with a little bit of apple cider vinegar or tamari if necessary.
Make it gluten free: Tamari is a Japanese soy sauce that has a great flavor and is gluten free, unlike most other soy sauces. I like the San-J brand.
Make it vegan: Use maple syrup instead of honey for vegan sauce.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
Yum. Fabulous recipe. I love cooking healthy vegan foods and Thai foods.
Thank you Tanner, for your review.
YUM!!!! I added your crispy baked tofu to this recipe and my kids (4 and 6 years old) loved it! My version was not as visually pleasing as yours; my older son said: Mama, even though this doesn’t *look* very good, it tastes delicious! High praise from a kid who survives mainly on grilled cheese and mac ‘n cheese!
Thank you!!
Nice addition, Jessica! The taste is what matters, Jessica. I’m glad it well received by the kiddos.
I’ve made this recipe a few times now, most recently for friends last night. Always a hit!
Wonderful, Helen! Thanks so much.
super easy, delicious, and filling! Thank you for making a vegan meal so easy. it is also easily modifyable by adding veggies of choice or extra protein. I added broccoli. Really loved this meal!
I loved this recipe. We are not vegan, but prepare several vegan meals a week to give our digestive tracks time to digest meat and recover. This is one of my new favorites; a top 10
I’m so happy to hear that, Amy! Thanks for your review, I appreciate it.
What could I sub, if anything, for the apple cider vinegar?
Lemon juice would be a good alternative.
Haven’t made it yet but it sounds great. We aren’t vegetarians, and my sister suggested that some chicken would be good in this. I will probably try that, using chicken thighs and making extra sauce. I do appreciate all the good vegetarian recipes as I have many vegetarian friends, and I don’t mind eating vegetarian myself. Thanks.
Thank you, Kris for sharing! I know a lot of people add additional protein as they desire.
I’m normally not a huge sweet potato fan, but this is amazing! The sauce is addictive and goes really well with the sweet potatoes. Something about the texture of the potatoes mixed with the sticky, peanut butter-y goodness of the sauce makes this dish totally indulgent. I will definitely make it again, and I might even seek other some other sweet potato recipes!
I’m glad this one won you over, Amy! Thank for sharing and for your review!
We really enjoyed this! I accidentally added twice the amount of garlic and ginger to the sauce, and left out the red pepper cuz of the kids (someday I’ll be able to cook spicy food again I hope!!) and it was still delicious. Definitely a keeper, thanks!
Oh wow! I’m glad it was still good and not too overpowering, Laura. Thanks so much for your review.
Love this dish! Even my meat eating mother loved it. I wasn’t sure of the combo of red bell peppers and sweet potato but it totally works. Made great left overs. I fried the sweet potatoes because I burned the batch I put in the oven and didn’t have time to bake another batch. Came out great. Will definitely make again!
I’m glad you really liked the combination, Nicole! I appreciate your comment and review.
I love this recipe so much. I’ve made it twice and I actually added Kabocha Squash and Thai chili’s to it and used crushed cashews as a topping as I was out of peanuts. So amazing. Just bought your book too and am super excited!
I’m excited you got my book, too! Thanks for letting me know you loved this recipe, Janique!
Second Cookie & Kate recipe this week. I wasn’t 100% sure about the combo, but I love all the ingredients, especially savory peanut butter (yet can’t stand sweet lol).
This turned out AMAZING! I didn’t add the red pepper flakes because any time I use them on a family meal, the kiddos refuse to eat it. Instead I used some Asian chili garlic sauce to give it a hint of heat.
The potatoes were great the peppers were great, the sauce was great. I started my rice in the instant pot when I put my potatoes in and it was all done at the same time. It was the perfect balance of sweet & savory.
The kids both loved this dinner and I’ll definitely be making it again.
Where is the spice in this recipe, please?
The spice? Do you mean the sauce? The spice comes from the red pepper flakes.
Absolutely wonderful! The sauce is amazing! I make lunches ahead of time in case I”m called to sub and portion them out. I worked today and SO looked forward to lunch. Even reheated in the micro, it was fantastic, thanks for the recipe!
Thank you for sharing, Michelle! I’m happy you liked it.
This meal was fantastic. Crispy, well seasoned potatoes, soft brown rice contrasting with the crunch of the peanuts, all topped off with a creamy peanut butter sauce. The wife loved it, the kids loved it, even the pet fish loved it. All in all I would recommend this meal to anyone out there who likes to eat food. Even if you’re just gonna poo it out later anyway.
Thanks again for the recipe!
Great to hear the kids loved it too, Will! I appreciate the review.
This meal was fantastic. Crispy, well seasoned potatoes, soft brown rice contrasting with the crunch of the peanuts, all topped off with a creamy peanut butter sauce. The husbands loved it, the kids loved it, even the pet fish loved it. All in all I would recommend this meal to anyone out there who likes to eat food. Even if you’re just gonna poo it out later anyway.
Thanks again for the recipe!
Thank you for the recommendation on this recipe, Will! I appreciate the review.
This is such a great recipe. I made it for the second time last night and it was even better than I remembered. The flavors go so well together, and I love the added crunch from the peanuts. Thanks for another great recipe!
You’re welcome, Erin! Thanks so much for the review.
Haven’t tried this recipie yet but it sounds divine!!
Would it be possible to substitute butternut squash for the sweet potatoes? Or do you think it would throw off the balance of flavours?
Thanks
Sweet potato could be a nice substitute, Michelle!
Fantastic! We love this recipe!
I’m happy to hear that, Carolyn!
This is delicious! I also roasted shallots and used quinoa instead of rice since that is what I had on hand. One of my new favorite recipes!
Hi Kate,
This dish is fabulous. My husband liked it so much and tells everyone about it. We were asked to bring the main dish to a small group meeting/potluck. It was a hit. Kudos to you. Thank you so much. We are 10 weeks into vegan lifestyle. This helps so much.
Brad and Becky
Great dish to share with a group! Thanks for sharing, Rebecca.
Kate
This is a general comment. I have been following your blogs for about a year and everything I have made has been phenominal. I never used to try a new recipe especially for my family until I tried it on my husband & I first but now I have NO DOUBT that it will be good and regularly try new things all the time.
I have never commented on things before but I’m going to start now!
thanks again
ps
I love all your REAL LIFE stories I can relate to keys lost and things left in unusual places:) Sometimes I feel like I just lose my mind, well misplace it I guess.
Thanks for commenting! I’m happy to hear you love the recipes and content with them, Christine.:)
This was soooo delicious and really didn’t take too long. I used almond butter instead of peanut butter because I prefer it for savoury dishes, and I made coconut rice instead of plain. Definitely can’t wait to have an excess of sweet potatoes so I can make this again!
Thank you for sharing, Hayley!
So delicious! I sauteed, then pressure cooked sweet potato in the Instant Pot, and did the red peppers on the stove. The peanut sauce is wonderful. I’ll use it for lots of things. Thank you!
Thank you for sharing!
Excellent! Our daughter is vegan and was coming for dinner with her husband. Decided it wouldn’t hurt us to all eat vegan for dinner. We all loved it very much and my husband wants me to make it again.
I’m happy it was a hit with everyone, Melinda!
Sauce is delicious, but this is too much starch. This dish could definitely benefit from adding vegetables beyond a single bell pepper. Could’ve been great!
Thank you for your feedback, Anthony.
Great recipe! Super simple but with a ton of flavor. Made this for two meat eaters and got rave reviews from it! Thanks for the recipe.
Great recipe! I didn’t read all the way through and baked the potatoes and a kabocha squash whole but then sort of filleted them with strips of bell pepper sprinkled with cumin, salt and pepper and sautéed with a lime and garlic . Sliced up and added sauce on top with cilantro and green onions . Worked out even though it was sort of a deconstructed version. Served one batch with rice and romaine and other with rice. This is delicious no matter how you build it!
So tasty!! The peanut sauce is the bomb!
I just whipped this up for lunch and it is so good and comforting I have to comment! I didn’t have red pepper or any toppings, no matter. It was still so delicious. I have no doubt that when I make it again with the additions it will be over the top. I plan on serving this with whole wheat spaghetti noodles to win the kids over. I also think anyone wanting to avoid grains at all in this recipe could just double the red pepper and add broccoli and it would be wonderful! Thank you so much, I look forward to introducing many more of your vegan recipes into my life. This recipe is very forgiving if you’re not in the mood to measure ; )
I’m not a huge fan of cumin so I used Garam masala. It was soooo delicious! I’m making it for the 2nd time today. Adding broccoli because yes I am that mom, and serving over cauliflower rice for me and basmati brown rice for the others.
Thank you for sharing, Jennifer!
This is absolutely delicious! The place and temp and time for the roasting are exactly right for my oven. My husband enjoyed the leftover peanut butter sauce for dessert :-). Will make this lots this winter. Thank you!
You’re welcome!
This recipe was easy and delicious!
Made this today! DELI IOUS! It has definitely started to ease our transition to trying out vegetarian. (My husband even forgot his skepticism briefly!!) thanks for posting it.
You’re welcome, Mary! Thanks for sharing.
Just made this for lunch. I give it a 11/10. My husband said you can’t get food this good, out! It’s fabulous and so easy to put together.
I love that! Thanks for sharing, Mardi.
Hi,
I love your recipes.
can I use the peanut sauce as a warm dip or sauce? Just wondering if the consistency will stay the same.
Thanks,
Monique
Hi! Love this meal, although I’m wondering if there is a difference between ACV in the US compared to Australia (where I am)? I accounted for the different sized tablespoons in US/Australia, but the satay sauce tasted only like vinegar rather than satay! Going to remake the sauce tonight once i’ve bought some more peanut butter! Thanks!
Hi Rachel, I’m not sure on that! Let me know if you find out something.
My daughter and daughter-in-law are both vegan and they really loved this dish. Thank you for helping my vegan cooking repertoire.
You’re welcome! I’m happy to hear they all enjoyed it.
The peanut sauce is divine! We put it over sweet potatoes and roasted broccoli and skipped the rice and served it with Gimme Some Oven’s lemongrass chicken (since we’re not vegetarians) and it was a knockout meal.
Thank you for sharing, Sadye!
This recipe is a definite go to.
This was one of the first vegan recipes we tried and it has become a favourite. Thank you for sharing. Love the peanut sauce.
I substituted noodles in place of rice and tossed it in the sauce. Along with the veggies, I added some broccoli….and it was mind blowing….thank you for the yummy recipe.
Love everything about your website!
This recipe is so good I texted it to a bunch of friends! Another hit. It is tied with the spinach artichoke enchiladas for my favorite recipe on your site!
Very tasty, we will be adding to our repertoire! Although no surprise, we pretty much cook 90% of our meals from your site/cookbook. Thanks and hope you are doing well and staying healthy!
It’s been ages since I made this, and I forgot how amazing and comforting it is!
I added more bell pepper, broccolini, and edamame to get in more veggies and cut down on the rice. I also added the juice of a lime and a tablespoon of red Thai curry paste to the sauce because I wanted more spice.
Hello! I love this recipe so much that I ate it almost every day for a full year. I figured since you brought so much joy into my life, I should share my (obviously very positive) thoughts on this recipe. It’s good! So good! And it’s so filling! You can also add tofu (love the smoked firm tofu) so a little extra protein.
It’s so easy! And so tasty. You gotta make it.
This may be the best meal I’ve ever made! Wow!!
Delicious. Started my vegan diet a few days. Perfect way to begin. Easy to make. Prepared in less than an hour. Quite tasty. I’m a Thai lover. Perfect peanut sauce. Next time I’ll make it a little hotter.
haa, u loose keys like WOMAN…try look in dog next time…i make peanut sauce and put on genitals FOR DOG ahahaha Spicy sauce give dog bowel problem, THIS YOUR FAULT…clean my rug
This is one of the best dinners I have ever made! It is so delicious and not too difficult to make! Yum!
So good! I switched cauliflower and carrots for the red pepper since that’s what I had on hand, and mixed in fresh spinach at the end. I could drink the peanut sauce by itself, it’s that tasty. This is such a hearty meal, definitely adding it to the rotation!