My version of cashew chicken is actually based off of this Cheesecake Factory copycat recipe, which is lovely and reminds me that although haters like to hate, I should probably get back to the Cheesecake Factory for a feast ASAP. Great job, Sabrina. comment icon 200 more comments I made it essentially the same as her cashew chicken recipe, but just a little easier, and with a shorter ingredient list. And what resulted was glorious. We’re talking about bite-sized pieces of chicken, breaded and fried into a nice little crisp, tossed with a quick, sticky-sweet, soy-and-garlic sauce, all brought together with a handful of cashews. Ideally this would be served over a pile of hot, steaming rice with a side of something of the vegetable variety (steamed or roasted broccoli is a fave). But more practically, you won’t even get that far before you start popping bites of chicken straight out of the hot pan. There is a 100% chance that anyone who is in a 10-mile radius will come running into your kitchen when they smell the garlic, ginger, and soy in the sauce as it hits the pan. It’s a good moment.
In This Post: Everything You Need For Cashew Chicken
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Ingredients To Make Cashew Chicken
While this is somewhat of a clear-the-counters-and-put-on-your-apron kind of recipe, it doesn’t take as much effort or ingredients as you’d think. Here’s what you need:
Chicken Dry ingredients (flour, cornstarch, the usual) Batter (you’ll make this, but it’s easy! promise!) Vegetable oil for frying Cashews Sauce (soy sauce, hoisin sauce, vinegar, ginger, etc.) Green onions to top it off
If you really want to up the sesame flavor, you could even add a swish of toasted sesame oil too!
How To Make Cashew Chicken
First, you’ll have to put a little bit of prep work in – cube your chicken, get the dry ingredients in a bowl and mix the batter for frying, and maybe even whisk together your sauce now if you want to really make this seamless. Then, you’re going to start making magic happen.
Deep-Fried Vs. Stir-Fried
Traditionally, there are two ways to make cashew chicken: stir-fried in a pan or wok, or deep-fried, the latter of which is happening here. I love love love the crispy, delicious, deep-fried bits of chicken and how they cling to the sauce here, but if you want to eliminate the deep-frying of this recipe, that is an option. What I’d do instead: skip the batter and just stir fry the chicken in a pan, and then add the sauce at the end. Easy. HOWEVER if you are choosing to deep fry, I have a small tip for you to make it a littttttle easier: toss all your chicken together into the flour, then stir up all the floured chicken together into the batter. From there, I dump about half of it into the pan of hot oil – it’s going to stick together and feel very wrong, but you can work quickly and use two forks to break the pieces apart. And repeat with the other half batch.
Other Necessary Takeout-Style Recipes
15-Minute Lo Mein (a takeout favorite!) Coconut Curry Ramen (easy, vegan, and sooo delicious) Sesame Noodle Bowls (twirlable noodles that are perfect for meal prep) Black Pepper Stir Fried Udon (simple, sticky, delicious noodles) Rainbow Vegetarian Pad Thai (our favorite takeout order – made vegetarian)
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4.7 from 77 reviews
3/4 cup flour 3/4 cup cornstarch 1 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon paprika 3/4 cup cold water about 1/2 cup vegetable oil for frying 1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into small bite-sized pieces 1 cup cashew halves
Sauce:
1/2 cup hoisin sauce 1/4 cup soy sauce 2 tablespoons white vinegar 1 tablespoon sriracha (optional) 1/4 cup granulated sugar 2 cloves fresh garlic, grated a small piece of fresh ginger, grated
Type of Pan: Personally I like to use a nonstick for this to avoid the chicken getting stuck to the bottom of the pan. Caramelization and Stickiness Level: If you like extra browning, caramelization, chewiness, and stickiness, let everything cook in the pan together for more like 5 minutes instead of 1 minute. Personally I like the texture of the sauce at 1 minute, but it does look really pretty with that caramelization. Leftovers: They get a tad bit soggy but I still really enjoyed them. For best results, brown the chicken in a nonstick skillet for a few minutes to get some browning / crisping on the outside.
