Thai Swimming Rama (Chicken with Peanut Sauce and Spinach)

With its creamy peanut sauce, tender chicken, and vibrant greens, Thai Swimming Rama (chicken with peanut sauce and spinach) is a delightful dish that will transport you to Thailand.

If you love peanut sauce and red curry together, this Thai swimming rama recipe will be your new favorite dish in no time! 

My authentic Thai homemade red curry paste is the perfect recipe for this classic Thai recipe. Also, use my 5-minute authentic peanut sauce if you are short on time and want a quick peanut sauce.

Jump to:

• What is Thai Swimming Rama?
• Why You'll love chicken rama in thai peanut sauce
• Swimming Rama, my kitchen secrets!
• How to make Thai Swimming Rama more flavorful!
• Thai Swimming Rama Ingredients
• Thai Swimming Rama (chicken with peanut sauce and spinach)
• Garnishing Options for Thai Swimming Rama
• Helpful Kitchen Notes and Tips for Making Thai Swimming Rama
• What to Serve with Chicken Swimming Rama
• Helpful Kitchen Tools for making rama chicken
• Thai Swimming Rama (chicken with peanut sauce and spinach)
• Substitutes
• Vegetarian Swimming Rama 
• Storage
• Frequently Asked Questions
• More  Authentic Thai Recipes You'll love
• Thai Swimming Rama (Chicken with Peanut Sauce and Spinach)
• Related
• Pairing

What is Thai Swimming Rama?

Thai Swimming Rama is a beloved Thai dish that features succulent boneless chicken breasts smothered in a rich and creamy peanut sauce. The chicken is served on a bed of sautéed greens, usually water spinach, which adds freshness and texture to the dish. This flavorful combination is traditionally served with steamed rice or noodles, making it a hearty and satisfying meal.

Prepare this easy and tasty recipe for your next dinner and enjoy a taste of authentic Thai cuisine in the comfort of your home.

Why You'll love chicken rama in thai peanut sauce

1. Bursting with flavors! Combining fish sauce, red curry paste, oyster sauce, tamarind juice, and sugar creates a harmonious blend of sweet, tangy, and savory flavors that will tantalize your taste buds.
2. The versatile protein options. While this recipe uses chicken breast, you can easily substitute it with your choice of meat, such as pork, beef, shrimp, tofu, or an assortment of vegetables to make it vegetarian to personalize the dish according to your preferences.
3. It's an easy weeknight dinner. With simple ingredients and straightforward instructions, Thai Swimming Rama is a convenient recipe for busy weeknights when you want a delicious meal without spending hours in the kitchen.

Swimming Rama, my kitchen secrets!

As always, there are many ways to make one thing, including this tasty Thai recipe. I've had a few versions of this recipe, mostly in Thai restaurants in the US, and have not been happy with most of them.

As I was testing this recipe, I realized it's because of how tasteless the meat and the vegetables are. The dish's sugary and spicy Thai peanut sauce is used to cover up the bland flavors. So I've developed a few tricks to add a tasty spin to this Thai recipe. 

How to make Thai Swimming Rama more flavorful!

What's unique about my swimming rama recipe? 

• My recipe uses blanched spinach AND broccoli as the main vegetables for this rama recipe. You can season the water slightly with salt to flavor the greens.
• Marinade the sliced chicken breast in Thai sauces, AND I added a touch of baking soda to help tenderize the meat.
• The secret to this recipe lies in how the meat is prepared. Panfrying the chicken separately until the meat is browned for extra flavors. The panfrying adds a depth of flavor to the recipe! 

Thai Swimming Rama Ingredients

You will need the following ingredients to make Thai Swimming Rama with chicken.

• Boneless, skinless chicken breasts. Chicken tenders work well for this recipe. Pork loins or crispy, firm tofu are excellent options.
• Baking powder. Uses to tenderize the chicken. Don't skip this part! (:
• Water. Water is used to loosen the baking powder in the chicken marinade.
• Salt. Use 1-2 teaspoons of salt in the water for blanching the vegetables. Optional if you want to keep the salt level down in your recipe. 
• Fish sauce. Go easy on the fish sauce for this recipe. Especially if using store-bought red curry paste. 
• Red curry paste. Mae Ploy brand curry paste is recommended, though slightly salty. Go light on the fish sauce if using Mae Ploy paste. Try making my authentic homemade Thai red curry paste with my recipe here. 
• Oyster sauce. The oyster is used to marinate the chicken for the added umami flavors.
• Brown sugar. White or palm sugar works well for this Swimming Rama recipe.
• Tamarind paste. Lime juice can be used as a substitute, but go slightly less if using lime juice. Learn more about tamarind here. Also, if you feel adventurous, make your own tamarind paste from pulp using this recipe.
• Oil. Use avocado, vegetable, canola, or coconut oil.
• Spinach or broccoli. See the below section on different vegetables that can be used. Use Spinach, Water spinach (or other greens of your choice)
• Coconut milk. Use full-fat coconut milk. Chao Koh or Aroy-D brands are recommended.
• Crushed peanuts. Use unsalted and roasted peanuts. Creamy peanut butter works too. 

Thai Swimming Rama (chicken with peanut sauce and spinach)

Part 1: Marinade the chicken

Step 1. Add the sliced chicken breast, oyster sauce, fish sauce, baking powder, and water in a medium bowl. Mix well and set it to sit to marinade for 15 minutes. Up to 1 hour if you have time.

Step 2. In a medium or large skillet on medium-high heat, add oil. Once hot, add the chicken and cook for 5-7 minutes until the chicken is lightly golden brown and cooked through. Add 1-2 tablespoons of cold water if the pan gets too dry, and lower the heat. Stir a few times. 

Step 3. Once the chicken is cooked, remove the chicken from the skillet and set aside to assemble later into a platter. 

Part 2: Blanching the vegetables

Step 1. In a medium soup or stock pot, add 4-5 cups of water, and bring to a boil. Add 1 teaspoon of salt to the water to help season the vegetables. The salt is optional but highly recommended. 

Step 2. Once the water is boiling, carefully add the broccoli to the water for 30 seconds. Use a skimmer to fish out the spinach, and set it on a plate.

Step 3. Prepare the spinach the same way as the broccoli. Set both vegetables on a plate until ready. 

Part 3: Prepare the rama sauce

Step 1. Crush the peanuts in a spice grinder or mortar and pestle until smooth. Set aside until ready.

Step 2. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, add coconut milk. Once lightly bubbled, add the red curry paste, and stir well in the pan. You'll get a delicious creamy salmon-colored curry sauce like the one below.

Step 3. Add the sugar and tamarind to the curry sauce, and cook for 1 minute.

Step 4. Add the ground peanuts, stir, and cook for 2-3 more minutes until the sauce thickens slightly. Stir often with a wooden spoon. 

Step 5. Remove the sauce from the stove and assemble your swimming rama!

Part 4: Assemble and Serve

This is the easy and fun part after all your hard work. Let's put all the pieces together!

Step 1. Add steamed jasmine rice on 3-4 platters or how many people you will serve. Add the blanched spinach and broccoli on top of the rice on each plate. 

Step 2. Arrange the chicken on top of the vegetables

Step 3. Add a generous peanut sauce over the chicken, vegetables, and rice. 

Step 4. Garnish with sesame seeds or crushed peanuts. See more (garnishing options below). Serve and enjoy!

Garnishing Options for Thai Swimming Rama

You can enhance the presentation and flavor of your Thai Swimming Rama with these garnishing options:

• Sprinkle sesame seeds and crushed peanuts for added texture.
• Add crushed peanuts for a more nutty crunch!
• Add thinly sliced green onion or red bell pepper for a colorful touch.
• crushed red pepper flakes (optional for my spicy food lovers!) (:

Helpful Kitchen Notes and Tips for Making Thai Swimming Rama

• If you are comfortable doing this, you can multi-tasked by making the sauce and blanching the vegetables simultaneously. Have two stove tops going at once while the chicken marinades. It will help speed up your kitchen time!
• Adjust the spice level by increasing or decreasing the red curry paste and crushed red pepper flakes according to your preference.
• If you prefer a smoother sauce, crush the peanuts into a paste with 2-3 tablespoons of water.
• Peanut butter is okay for this recipe, especially if you are short on time. Adjust the salt and sugar as needed if using peanut butter.
• If using rice noodles instead of rice, cook them according to the package instructions before serving with the dish.

What to Serve with Chicken Swimming Rama

Traditionally, Thai Swimming Rama is typically served with steamed white rice, rarely rice noodles, but there's no law against it, so give it a try if you must! (: Additionally, you can complement the dish with classic Thai side dishes such as Shrimp pad Thai or Thai vegetable stir fry.

Helpful Kitchen Tools for making rama chicken

• Medium saucepan
• Stainless steel skimmer
• Asian skimmer
• Spice grinder
• Large skillet or wok

Thai Swimming Rama (chicken with peanut sauce and spinach)

• Make it vegetarian. Add sliced bell peppers or other vegetables to the sautéed greens for added color and nutrients.
• For a gluten-free version, use tamari sauce instead of oyster sauce and ensure the curry paste and fish sauce are gluten-free.

Substitutes

• Protein substitute. Substitute the chicken with pork tenderloin, beef, shrimp, tofu, or your choice of protein.
• Nut allergies. If you have peanut allergies, use cashew nuts instead of peanuts. I haven't tried it with other nuts, but I recommend using cashew for the crunchy, creamy texture and taste.

Vegetarian Swimming Rama 

• For a vegetarian Swimming Rama option, use the following vegetables for this recipe. Broccolini, zucchini, kale, chard, water spinach, pea pods, bell peppers, and white or red onion.

• Use crispy fried or baked firm tofu instead of the chicken.

Storage

Thai Swimming Rama is best enjoyed fresh. However, if you have leftovers, store them in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 2-3 days. Reheat gently in a skillet or microwave before serving.

Frequently Asked Questions

More  Authentic Thai Recipes You'll love

• Authentic Thai chicken satay
• 5-minute Thai peanut sauce recipe
• Thai sour soup with fish
• The different types of Thai noodles
• Pineapple fried rice with yellow curry powder
• Pad Prik Khing with creamy coconut cream

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Pairing

These are my favorite dishes to serve with Thai Swimming Rama (chicken with peanut sauce and spinach).