I had a friend who was married to a Indonesian man ... and boy ... COULD HE COOK!!! When Helen telegraphed that Jules was cooking it seemed like the whole neighborhood was there ...
He encouraged me to buy an Indonesian cookbook ... which I have and use to this day. But the peanut sauce was a little complicated, had ingredients I can only find on Amazon and in specialty food shops, and is full of sugar ... not a good match for my Paleo diet ...
So instead I created this ... a simple air-fried version with a simple marinade that doubles as the sauce ... and takes maybe all of 25 minutes total (prep AND cooking to do PLUS marinating the chops ... I prefer overnight). Use half the sauce for the marinade and half for the dipping sauce,
Or thin out the sauce and use as a salad dressing for crunchy cucumber or shredded cabbage. It has all the punch of the Indonesian original with none of the sugar and uses a splash of coconut milk instead of water for a creamy-textured richness.
It has coconut aminos instead of soy sauce (but you can use the Gluten Free version too), Paleo-friendly honey or maple syrup for a tad of sweetness, and smoked paprika/red pepper flakes for an optional little kick. I used more coconut milk to thin it out, but you can also use water.
Selamat Makan (that's Bon Appetit in Indonesian).
AuthorJill PlaceCategoryDairy-Free, Entree, Fab'n Fast Paleo, Food-Sensitive, Gluten-FreeDifficultyBeginnerMy friend's Indonesian husband Jules could cook like nobody's business, and his peanut sauce was legendary, but it called for hard-to-find ingredients and a lot of sugar. This is my simplified, Paleo-friendly take: juicy air-fried pork chops with a creamy coconut-lime peanut marinade that doubles as a dipping sauce or salad dressing. Just 25 minutes of hands-on and cook time. Selamat Makan!
Whisk together. Use half on pork chops.
Warm the sauce over low heat for about 5 minutes ... thin with coconut milk and water as needed.
As a salad dressing, add 3-4 Tbsp more water and a squeeze of lime juice. Splash a little more coconut milk for creaminess. Whisk well until smooth and creamy.
Coat well with half the marinade; refrigerate 2 to 4 hours or overnight.
Preheat air fryer to 400 degrees F. Line basket with parchment paper.
Shake off excess marinade ... don't overload or it will burn.
Air fry 12-14 minutes, flip at 7 minutes with tongs.
Cook until internal temperature with an instant-read thermometer is 145 degrees F; rest 5 minutes before eating.
Serve with cauliflower rice or brown jasmine rice, sliced cucumber or shredded cabbage with peanut or other Asian salad dressing, fresh chopped cilantro and a lime wedge, and a sprinkle of red pepper flakes for extra heat if desired.
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