Sweet and Spicy Cashew Chicken
Description
We regularly eat stirfrys in our house because they are a quick, healthy meal. For something like chicken, I keep meal-sized bags of cubed chicken in the freezer ready to use, and stirfrys are also a perfect meal to use up the vegetables in your fridge.
The actual stirfry however, is all about the sauce, and this one is one of our favorites and is straight out of the Best of Bridge. The original recipe uses red peppers, carrots and snow peas, but we had some red and yellow peppers, a few asparagus and some snap peas. The key is to have all of the vegetables at the same ‘cooking level’ – in this case, I partially cook the carrots so that I can add the whole bowl of vegetables at the same time and they will all get cooked the same amount. Also, if you’re interested in presentation, cut each vegetable type into different shapes – it makes for a very pretty dinner.
Ingredients
Update – both Katie and Cindy have commented on how good pork tenderloin is in this – and it is!
Sweet and Spicy Cashew Chicken
Sauce
1/2 c. EACH ketchup AND chicken broth
1 T. sugar AND 2 T. Worcestershire sauce
2 T. soy sauce AND 1 1/2 t. sesame oil
1/2 t. salt AND 1/4 t. cayenne pepper – or to taste
Whisk the sauce together in a small bowl and set aside.
Stirfry
2 chicken breasts, cubed (or 1, trimmed pork tenderloin, cubed)
1 T. corn starch AND 1/2 t. sugar AND 1/4 t. salt
In another small bowl, combine all 4 ingredients together and set aside. Refrigerate until you need it if it’s going to be a while before you start cooking.
2–3 T. cooking oil (I use Grapeseed oil for stirfrys)
3 T. minced ginger AND 2 T. minced garlic
1 small onion, chopped
about 4 c. chopped, assorted vegetables
cashews and/or toasted sesame seeds for sprinkling
Instructions
Heat a wok or skillet until it’s good and hot and add the oil. Once the oil is hot add the chicken mixture, the ginger, garlic and onion. Cook and stir until the chicken is no longer pink, then add the vegetables and cook for another 2 minutes. Add the sauce and cook until it comes to a boil. You can add the cashew here, or save them for a topping to keep them crunchy.
Serve over rice and garnish with cashews and toasted sesame seeds.
- Category: Chicken, Stir fry, Cashew
I also love this recipe. We don’t eat chicken, so I modify it and use tofu or deep fried tofu. My family also loves it. I serve it on soba noodles. Yum!
Great idea – thank-you so much for writing! – I really hope to continue to get feedback and everyone’s ideas.