Quick & Easy Cashew Chicken Recipe: A Delicious Weeknight Dinner Idea

Jump to Recipe. At my house we loooooove chinese! Let's be real... Chinese takeout is the ultimate comfort food. I started finding ways to make my favorite dishes when we moved away from our favorite Chinese Restaurant in Geneseo, IL. (I also figured out how to make my own sweet and sour sauce that is seriously fire... that's a recipe coming soon 😉).

Enter this Cashew Chicken recipe – your weeknight dinner hero. It's bursting with flavor, seriously easy to make (because #adultingishard), and way healthier (and probably cheaper) than takeout.

Plus, it's totally customizable – add some spice, throw in your favorite veggies, the world is your oyster sauce (see what I did there?). Or maybe you're just tired of the greasy takeout experience and the questionable delivery fees? Been there, done that!

It's a food group that pleases everyone, especially my picky middle-schooler. Who, thanks to her love of K-Pop, now loves anything Asian inspired.

This cashew chicken is savory, tangy and has just a hint of sweetness. You can also pump up the spice with added red pepper flakes if that's your thing.

Recipe: Cashew Chicken

Ingredients:

• 1 ½ T oil

• 2 T oyster sauce

• 2 t cornstarch

• 3-4 medium boneless skinless chicken breasts - cut into 1-inch pieces

• 1 red bell pepper - diced

• Half white onion - diced

• ½ cup cashews

• cooked white or brown rice - for serving
  

Sauce:

• 1/2 C soy sauce

• 1/4 C water

• 1 T rice vinegar

• 1 t mirin

• 2 T Brown sugar

• 1 t sesame oil

• 1 t crushed red pepper flakes

• 1 T minced fresh ginger

• 2 t minced garlic

maybe at end 1-2 T cornstarch + 1-2 T water

Directions:

Step 1: Coat the Chicken

In a bowl, whisk together 1/2 tbsp oil, oyster sauce, and cornstarch to make a thick paste. Add the chicken pieces and toss to coat completely. Set aside.

Step 2: Make the Sauce

In a separate bowl, simply stir together the soy sauce, water, rice vinegar, sugar, sesame oil, red pepper flakes, ginger, and garlic. (Pepper flakes are optional if you don’t like spice)

Step 3: Sear the Chicken

Heat the remaining 1 tbsp oil in a large skillet over high heat. Add the coated chicken and sear until golden brown and cooked through (about 5 minutes). Remove the chicken and set it aside, covered, to keep warm.

Step 4: Sauté the Veggies and Cashews

Add the bell pepper and onions to the pan and cook until the onions start to soften, around 2-3 minutes. Then, toss in the cashews and cook for another minute.

Step 5: Bring it Together

Pour the prepared sauce into the pan with the veggies and cashews. Once it starts bubbling, return the cooked chicken to the pan. Reduce heat to medium-high and simmer for a couple of minutes, letting the sauce thicken and coat everything… I usually do a cornstarch slurry.

Step 6: Serve Up!

Serve your delicious Cashew Chicken over white or brown rice, garnished