How to Make Satay Indoors

Satay outside is still the best, though. Use charcoal.

Satay is a favorite Indonesian barbecue. Just the sizzling sounds and the tasty wafts of smokin' chicken on the shish kabob will bring out the neighbors you didn't know you had.

But it's cold in Southern California right now. Trust me, though we know the cold comes every winter, we're never prepared. What to do with all that meat? Bring the party inside.

We recently procured a Hamilton Beach indoor grill. It was a gift for racking up all those points when using our debit card from the credit union. Something's got to work in our favor, right? In any case we decided to test it. The grill came out of the box, plugged into the electrical outlet and voila ... indoor barbecue. Do open the window near your grill. Even the dog thought it was summer. Here's the recipe:

Satay (or Saté)

You'll need:

10 lbs. chicken thighs (don't use the legs; cut away all the fatty parts of the thighs)

Ingredients for Marinade Sauce:

⅔ C. soy sauce

1 Tbsp. lemon juice

2 tsp. ground coriander

1 large onion, chopped

2 tsp. chicken bouillon

7 cloves of garlic*

Ingredients for the barbecue sauce (yes, more sauce: brush on while barbecuing)

1 bowl (medium size breakfast cereal bowl) of sweet soya sauce

3 Tbsp. sugar (we tried raw this time and it was pretty tasty)

2 Tbsp. lemon juice (we used the juice of real lemons, like from our tree)

2 Tbsp. vegetable oil

1 Tbsp. granulated garlic powder

Cut chicken into bite-size cubes. Mix ingredients of marinade sauce together and marinate the chicken. Refrigerate overnight. Put about 5 pieces of chicken cubes on each bamboo skewer. Then mix the ingredients of the barbecue sauce and baste chicken generously while on the barbecue. We use a paint brush ... a clean one.

*Did you know that garlic is good for virtually any disease or infection? It improves circulation, maintains healthy cholesterol and blood pressure levels. Garlic is a natural antibiotic and immune system stimulant. So eat up.