Easy & Delicious Cashew Chicken Stir Fry: A Family Favorite Recipe
There’s an undeniable charm and efficiency to stir-frying that has captured my heart, making it a cornerstone of my kitchen repertoire. My blog is a testament to this culinary love affair, featuring a vibrant and ever-growing collection of stir fry recipes for pork, chicken, and beef. I’m constantly experimenting, creating new flavor combinations, and refining techniques to bring you the best possible homemade stir-fries. While I often develop my own recipes, this particular dish, a delightful Cashew Chicken, comes with a special story, born from the spirit of culinary community.
This recipe was a chosen gem for The Secret Recipe Club, an exciting initiative we launched last month. The club, now boasting nearly 50 enthusiastic participants, is a fantastic way for bloggers to explore each other’s culinary creations and introduce their readers to new voices in the food world. For this round, I had the pleasure of being assigned to an old friend, Barb from Mom’s Fridge. Having known Barb online for many years through my previous website, FamilyCorner, I can vouch for her expertise and passion for cooking. I was genuinely thrilled to delve into her blog and discover a recipe that would become a new family favorite.
Crafting the Perfect Cashew Chicken Stir Fry
From Barb’s wonderful selection, I chose her Cashew Chicken recipe. While staying true to its delicious essence, I adapted it to fit my family’s needs and my preferred stir-frying method. The first major change was doubling the recipe – a necessity when feeding six hungry mouths who adore stir-fry as much as I do! I also personalized the vegetable selection, opting for snow peas and celery, which add a delightful crunch and vibrant color, instead of the original’s suggestions. These choices not only enhance the texture but also contribute to a balanced and nutritious meal.
My stir-fry technique typically involves a specific order of cooking to ensure each ingredient reaches its peak flavor and texture. I begin by infusing the oil with aromatic garlic and fresh ginger, creating a fragrant foundation. Next, the marinated chicken is stir-fried to a perfect golden brown, ensuring it’s tender and juicy. The vegetables, like the crisp snow peas and celery, follow, cooked just until tender-crisp. A crucial step, in my experience, is adding the green onions last. This prevents them from becoming mushy and allows their fresh, sharp flavor to shine through at the end. This systematic approach ensures every component of the stir-fry is cooked to perfection, contributing to a harmonious and incredibly satisfying dish.
This Cashew Chicken was an absolute triumph. It was not only incredibly delicious but also surprisingly easy to prepare, making it an ideal choice for a quick weeknight dinner. The rich, savory sauce, combined with tender chicken, crunchy cashews, and fresh vegetables, created a symphony of flavors and textures that delighted everyone at the table. The convenience of being able to whip up such a fantastic meal in under 30 minutes is truly invaluable for busy families. It reaffirmed my belief that homemade Chinese food can rival, and often surpass, restaurant quality.
My boundless affection for stir-fries, along with my deep appreciation for Mexican cuisine, often makes me ponder if I was perhaps destined to be Chinese or Mexican! Both culinary traditions offer a wealth of vibrant flavors, fresh ingredients, and efficient cooking methods that resonate deeply with my cooking philosophy. This Cashew Chicken, with its blend of savory, sweet, and umami notes, perfectly embodies the dynamic and satisfying experience I seek in every meal.
Join The Secret Recipe Club!
If you’re a food blogger looking to expand your culinary horizons, connect with a vibrant community, and discover new recipes, The Secret Recipe Club is for you! It’s a fantastic opportunity to share your passion, be inspired by others, and introduce your readers to diverse cooking styles. To participate, you’ll need a blog with a good selection of recipes for other members to choose from. Intrigued? You can click right here to read all about it and sign up! We’d love to have you join our growing family of food enthusiasts.
Cashew Chicken
adapted from Mom’s Fridge
More Irresistible Stir Fry Recipes to Try
If you’ve fallen in love with this Cashew Chicken, you’re in for a treat! Stir-fries are incredibly versatile, offering endless possibilities for quick, flavorful meals. Explore more of my favorite Asian-inspired dishes:
- Mongolian Beef: A classic takeout favorite, perfectly recreated at home.
- Sesame Chicken: Crispy, sweet, and savory chicken that’s better than any restaurant version.
- Moo Goo Gai Pan: A lighter, yet equally flavorful, chicken and mushroom stir-fry.
- Chinese Pepper Steak: Tender steak and bell peppers in a rich, savory sauce.
- Teriyaki Chicken and Rice: A simple, comforting dish that’s always a hit.
- Kung Pao Chicken: For those who love a little spice and peanuts in their stir-fry.
- General Tso Chicken: Another beloved dish, featuring crispy chicken in a bold, tangy sauce.
Each of these recipes brings its unique flavors and textures, promising a delightful culinary journey right in your own kitchen. They are designed to be approachable for home cooks, ensuring that you can enjoy authentic Asian flavors without needing to leave your house.
Cashew Chicken
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Ingredients
- 15 ounces boneless chicken breast fillets about 3 large, cut into bite sized pieces
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 2 teaspoons sesame oil
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 5 tablespoons canola oil separated
- 2 cup cashews
- 1 teaspoon fresh ginger minced
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 3 stalks celery leaves and ends removed, cut into thin slices
- 1 cup onion peeled & cubed
- 6 oz snow peas
- 6 green onions cut into 1″ pieces
- 3 teaspoons cornstarch
- 1 ½ tablespoons Hoisin sauce
- ¾ cup chicken stock
Instructions
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Place chicken pieces into a bowl. Add cornstarch, stir to coat. Mix together salt, sesame oil, soy sauce, and sugar. Add to the chicken and stir to combine. Set aside to marinate.
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Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a wok and quickly stir fry cashews until golden brown. Remove to paper towels to drain.
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Add 1 tablespoon of oil to pan. Add the garlic and ginger and stir fry for 1-2 minutes. Add 1-2 more tablespoons of oil and fry chicken for 3 to 4 minutes. Add snow peas, celery and cubed onion. Stir fry 3-4 more minutes.
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Add cashews and green onions and stir fry another minute or so.
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Mix cornstarch, Hoisin sauce and chicken stock. Pour this sauce over chicken. Mix well and cook until the sauce thickens.
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Serve over rice.
Nutrition
The recipes on this blog are tested with a conventional gas oven and gas stovetop. It’s important to note that some ovens, especially as they age, can cook and bake inconsistently. Using an inexpensive oven thermometer can assure you that your oven is truly heating to the proper temperature. If you use a toaster oven or countertop oven, please keep in mind that they may not distribute heat the same as a conventional full sized oven and you may need to adjust your cooking/baking times. In the case of recipes made with a pressure cooker, air fryer, slow cooker, or other appliance, a link to the appliances we use is listed within each respective recipe. For baking recipes where measurements are given by weight, please note that results may not be the same if cups are used instead, and we can’t guarantee success with that method.
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