Cashew Chicken

4.96 from 23 votes

This is my ultimate Cashew Chicken recipe! What makes cashew chicken so delicious? For me, it's the tender chicken and savory sauce! This recipe is so much better than takeout and you're going to LOVE IT!

Prep Time15

Cook Time15

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Chinese

Servings:

Author: Chris Joe

Equipment

Ingredients

Chicken

1 lb chicken thigh cut into 1" pieces
1 tbsp light soy sauce
1 tsp dark soy sauce
1/4 tsp white pepper
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1 tbsp shaoxing wine
1 tbsp neutral oil I used avocado oil
1/2 tbsp cornstarch

Sauce

2 tbsp light soy sauce
1 tsp dark soy sauce
1 tbsp hoisin sauce
1 tbsp rice vinegar
1 tsp sesame oil
1/2 tbsp sugar
1/4 tsp white pepper
1/4 tsp msg optional
1/2 cup chicken stock high quality
1/2 tbsp cornstarch

Cashews + Aromatics

1/2 tbsp ginger minced
5 cloves garlic minced
4 oz cashews
6 scallions chopped, whites and greens separated

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Cut chicken thigh into 1" pieces and marinate with light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, white pepper, kosher salt, shaoxing wine, neutral oil, and cornstarch for 15 minutes.
In a small bowl, mix together your sauce by combining light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, hoisin sauce, rice vinegar, sesame oil, sugar, white pepper, msg, chicken stock, and cornstarch.
Chop your scallions, separating the whites from the greens, then mince garlic and ginger and set them aside along with your marinated chicken and sauce.
In a large pan or wok, heat 1 tbsp of neutral oil over medium heat and add your cashews. Cook for about 1 minute or until toasted and fragrant. Remove and set aside in a bowl.
In the same pan, heat 3 tbsp of neutral oil over high heat, then add your marinated chicken and cook for 4-5 minutes until cooked through. Remove and set aside in a bowl.
In the same pan, heat 2 tbsp of oil over high heat. Add garlic, ginger, and scallion whites, and fry for 30 seconds until fragrant. Add back the cooked chicken and mix to combine. Add the premixed sauce and continue stirring over high heat until the sauce has thickened (about 1-2 minutes).
Once the sauce has thickened, add back your toasted cashews and scallion greens. Mix to combine and serve with freshly steamed white rice!

Notes

Shaoxing wine - If you don't have it and/or can't find it, you can substitute with mirin, sherry, or even chicken broth.

neutral oil, for frying - My favorite neutral oil is avocado oil, but you can also use canola or vegetable oil! I don't use olive oil when cooking Chinese food for two reasons: 1. It has a low burning point and 2. The flavor profile does not work with the flavors of Chinese cooking.

hoisin sauce - Hoisin sauce has a sweet, salty, and slightly fishy flavor- it's thick and smooth, similar to barbeque sauce in texture. If you don't have it, you can substitute with oyster sauce.

rice vinegar - If you don't have rice vinegar on hand, you can substitute with apple cider vinegar, rice wine vinegar, or champagne vinegar.

Prep Your Ingredients BEFORE Cooking - The key tip for any dish like Cashew Chicken, which cooks extremely fast once you start, is to have all of your ingredients prepped and portioned near your pan or wok BEFORE you begin cooking. Otherwise, if you take the time during cooking to prepare your next ingredient, you run the risk of overcooking or even burning your dish! Have your premixed sauce, garlic/ginger, scallions, chicken, and cashews in separate bowls so they are easily accessible during the cooking process.

Toast Cashews Evenly - When toasting your cashews in the pan or wok, make sure to keep them moving - this helps each cashew's surface area hit the pan or wok and get evenly toasted. This will ensure that you don't have some raw cashews in your finished Cashew Chicken!

Cook Your Chicken in Batches - When cooking your chicken, you want to brown them for the best flavor and texture (especially since the chicken will have been. marinated for at least 15 minutes). Depending on the size of your pan or wok, you may need to cook your chicken in batches. If you overcrowd your pan or wok, the oil will not get hot enough to brown the chicken properly. You want to avoid this at all costs, as you want each bite of Cashew Chicken to have taste great AND have great texture!

Storage and Reheating - You can store Cashew Chicken in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Because Cashew Chicken is not coated in a batter, you won't have to worry about trying to restore the crispy texture of the dish - I recommend reheating this in the microwave or in a hot pan/wok for a couple minutes (add a little bit of water if you want to loosen up the chicken pieces that stuck together in the refrigerator).

Nutrition