Cashew Chicken (腰果雞丁)

Cashew Chicken (腰果雞丁)

While cashew chicken is considered a Chinese-American dish, if you would like to give this recipe a bit more of a traditional taste, you can add a tablespoon or so of hoisin sauce to the other sauce ingredients. This is a fairly quick simple stir-fry that makes a good weeknight dinner. If you are pressed for time, I recommend flattening the pieces of chicken with a mallet or the bottom of a glass to promote faster cooking. If you don’t enjoy spicy food, you can omit or reduce the dried chili peppers in this recipe.

Marinade: 

  • 2 teaspoons soy sauce
  • 2 teaspoons Shaoxing (rice wine) or dry sherry
  • 1 teaspoon corn starch
  • 1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
  • 1 pound chicken breast, cut into bite sized pieces

Stir-fry Ingredients:

  • 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 1 large red bell pepper, chopped
  • 1 bunch scallions
  • 3 tablespoons finely chopped garlic (about 4-5 cloves)
  • 3 tablespoons finely chopped peeled fresh ginger
  • 8 dried chili peppers (such as arbol)

Sauce:

  • 3/4 cup chicken broth
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce
  • 2 teaspoons cornstarch
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 1/2 cup roasted whole cashews

Method:

Mix the soy sauce, Shaoxing, corn starch, and sesame oil and marinate the chicken in it for at least 20 minutes.

While chicken marinates, chop scallions, separating white and green parts. Reserve the green scallion tops for garnish, and finely chop the white parts of the scallions for the stir-fry.

Heat a wok or 12-inch heavy skillet (not nonstick) over moderately high heat until a drop of water evaporates immediately. Add oil, swirling to coat, then stir-fry chicken until golden in places and just cooked through, 4 to 5 minutes. Transfer to a plate with a slotted spoon.

Cook chili peppers in oil until just beginning to blacken, then add garlic, ginger, and scallion whites to wok and stir-fry until fragrant, about one to two minutes. Add bell pepper, and stir-fry until peppers are just tender, 5 to 6 minutes.

Stir together broth, soy sauce, cornstarch, and sugar, then stir into vegetables in wok. Reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until thickened, 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in cashews, scallion greens, and chicken along with any juices accumulated on plate.