“Restaurant Style” Chinese Cashew Chicken

Submitted by AZ Food Critic

"I have had Cashew Chicken all over!...This recipe has the most authentic flavors I have ever tried. My favorite dish, before this recipe, I found on the Hawaiian Islands, in Maui. You will love this one! Better than Hawaii's."

 

• Ready In: 1hr 20mins
• Ingredients: 21
• Serves: 4

ingredients

• 1 lb chicken breast (boneless, skinless)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons rice wine
• 2 teaspoons fresh ginger (minced)
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch

• Sauce

• 1⁄4 cup hoisin sauce
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1⁄4 cup water
• 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon fresh ginger (minced)
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch

• Stir Fry

• 3 garlic cloves (minced)
• 3 green onions (sliced 1 inch on a diagonal)
• 2 carrots (peeled, sliced on a diagonal)
• 1⁄2 cup broccoli (roughly chopped)
• 2 stalks celery (sliced 1 inch on a diagonal)
• 1⁄4 cup onion (sliced)
• 1⁄4 cup red bell pepper (chopped)
• 1 (8 ounce) can water chestnuts (drained and sliced)
• 1⁄2 cup roasted cashews
• 4 tablespoons oil (for frying)

directions

1. Cube chicken into bite size pieces and place in a medium size mixing bowl.
2. Add the salt, rice cooking wine, ginger and cornstarch to the chicken cubes, using a fork to mix it in and adding the cornstarch last, mix again. Cover and marinate the chicken for 1 hour in the refrigerator.
3. Prepare the sauce ingredients while the chicken is marinating. In a small size mixing bowl, mix together the sauce ingredients and set aside.
4. Finely mince the garlic. Wash and slice the green onions on the diagonal into 1-inch pieces, chop the broccoli, slice the celery, carrots, onions and drain the sliced water chestnuts.
5. Roast the cashews in a heavy skillet over medium heat, shaking the pan continuously so that the nuts do not burn. Roast for about 5 minutes, or until the cashews are lightly browned. Remove from the pan and let cool completely.
6. Heat the wok or large size skillet over medium-high to high heat. Add 2 tablespoons oil. When the oil is hot, add the garlic. Stir-fry until aromatic (about 30 seconds). Add the coated chicken cubes. Stir-fry until they change color (about 5 to 7 minutes) and are cooked through. Remove from the wok or frying pan, keep warm.
7. Add 2 tablespoons oil to the same wok or skillet. When the oil is hot, add the stir-frying vegetables. Stir-fry until crunchy-tender (about 5 to 6 minutes), then push up to the sides of the pan. Add the sauce and the chicken. Heat everything through and then fold all together to completely coat with sauce. Serve the chicken and vegetables over prepared rice (Jasmine rice is the best) and the roasted cashews on top as a tasty garnish.
8. Makes 4 servings.

Reviews

[Anonymous]

This was a very good version of Cashew Chicken! I saw another recipe on here that called for ketchup, which didn't sound like it belonged in any Cashew Chicken I've ever had, so decided to give this one a try. I'm really glad I did, as this had a very good balance of savory and just a touch of sweet in the back to round out the flavor. Didn't have any broccoli so I substituted some baby corns and snap peas, but can see where the broccoli would make it even better. Thanks so much for posting this as it is now my gold standard to compare other recipes against. Very delicious!!!