A saucy chicken stir fry with cashews, this is a terrific combination of flavours. You’ll love how saucy this is, and how you can adapt this to your taste by using vegetables of choice. Try this with Hot and Sour Soup or Chinese Corn Soup with a side of Fried Rice for a homemade takeout experience!
This is a reader-favourite recipe included by popular demand in my debut cookbook “Dinner”!
Cashew Chicken
This is takeout made at home that truly stacks up to your favourite Chinese restaurant. No false promises here! Just read some of the glowing reviews from the many people who have tried this. 😇
You’ll have it on the table faster than ordering home delivery, it’s healthier (way less greasy!) and it’s versatile so you can add or switch the vegetables as you please. So much easier to just adapt this yourself rather than trying to explain what you want over the phone to your Chinese takeout place…… right?? 😉
The secret ingredient is Chinese Cooking Wine
Chinese Cooking Wine, also known as Shaoxing wine or Shaosing wine, is the secret ingredient that makes homemade Chinese food truly taste as good as take out.
It’s an alcoholic wine used for Chinese and other Asian cooking. Totally unpleasant to drink, salty, cheap as chips from Asian stores (~ $1.50 for a big bottle), lasts forever and you can read more about it here (if you’re so inclined).
While you’d never drink it straight, when used cooking, it completely transforms. It seasons the sauce, gives it depth of flavour and complexity, that “something something” to make it just like Chinese restaurants.
Substitutions for Shaoxing Wine
The best substitute is Mirin, or dry sherry – these produce virtually the same result. If you can’t consume alcohol, the best alternative is to substitute low sodium chicken broth for the water in the sauce.
Ingredients in Cashew Chicken
I promised quick and easy, and I exaggerate not! There’s not that many ingredients in the sauce (see photo above) nor in the stir fry itself (see below).
I like to use chicken thigh for stir fries because it’s juicier than breast and tenderloin. If I make this with chicken breast, I always tenderise it using a Chinese restaurant technique using baking soda (bi-carb). It’s super simple, see directions here: How to Velvet Chicken.
I make Cashew Chicken with green capsicum (bell peppers) and onion because they are the most common vegetables I’ve seen in Cashew Chicken. But feel free to add other vegetables into this. I’ve also seen it with red capsicum, celery, Asian Greens, broccoli, carrots and scallions/shallots.
Making Cashew Chicken
Cashew Chicken is very straight forward to make and also very forgiving (especially if you use chicken thigh).
Mix the Sauce, use a bit to marinate the chicken just for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, chop the vegetables, have a glass of wine, browse through the Asian Takeout recipe collection and think about all the other things you want to try one of these days…😊
When you’re ready to cook, have everything ready to go because it takes less than 5 minutes! Sauté garlic and onion (1 min), cook chicken and capsicum (3 min), add sauce, simmer 1 minute until thickens, serve over rice.
As with all my stir fries, this Cashew Chicken comes with plenty of sauce. There’s nothing sadder than when you’re left with a bowl of plain white rice with no sauce to eat it with. Right??!
Hope you enjoy! – Nagi x
PS For a healthy low carb option try Cauliflower Rice – 77% fewer calories and 87% less carbs than rice!
Watch how to make it
This recipe features in my debut cookbook Dinner. The book is mostly new recipes, but this is a reader favourite included by popular demand!
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Chinese Cashew Chicken
Ingredients
Sauce
- 1 tbsp cornstarch / cornflour
- 3 tbsp soy sauce , all purpose or light (Note 1)
- 1 1/2 tbsp Chinese cooking wine or Mirin (Note 2)
- 3 tbsp oyster sauce
- 2 tsp sesame oil
- Dash of white pepper (sub black)
Stir Fry
- 500g / 1 lb chicken thigh , skinless boneless, cut into 2.5cm/1″ pieces (Note 3)
- 2 tbsp peanut oil (or vegetable oil)
- 2 garlic cloves , minced
- 1/2 onion , chopped into 1.75 cm / 3/4″ pieces(yellow, brown or white)
- 1 green capsicum / bell pepper , chopped into 2 cm / 0.8″ pieces
- 6 tbsp water
- 3/4 cup roasted cashews , unsalted
Instructions
- Sauce: Mix cornflour and soy sauce until there’s no lumps. Then add remaining Sauce ingredients and mix.
- Marinate: Transfer 2 tbsp Sauce to chicken, mix to coat. Set aside for 10 minutes+.
- Cook: Heat oil over high heat in a wok or heavy based skillet. Add the garlic and onion, cook for 1 minute.
- Add chicken and cook for 2 minutes. Add capsicum and cook for 1 minute.
- Add Sauce and water. Bring to simmer and cook, stirring, for 1 minute or until Sauce thickens.
- Stir through cashews, remove from stove. Serve immediately with rice – or for a low carb, low cal option, try Cauliflower Rice!
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
Originally published October 2015. Updated post with new photos, better video and most importantly, Life of Dozer section added! No change to recipe.
More Chinese takeout favourites
- Chow Mein
- General Tso’s Chicken
- Sweet and Sour Pork
- Crispy Honey Chicken
- Beef & Broccoli
- Chop Suey (Chicken Stir Fry)
- Spring Rolls
- Prawn (Shrimp) Stir Fry
- Chinese BBQ Pork (Char Siu)
- See ALL Chinese Takeout recipes
Life of Dozer
Wow, it’s true. You really can make anyone look intelligent with glasses. 🤓
This recipe reminded me of my late grandma’s cashew chicken growing up. I’m so glad I can cook this for my family and share my favorite childhood comfort food. So delicious!!!!
I had Charlie’s sauce in the fridge from the last cook and this came together in literally 20 minutes. Thank you so much for these quick and easy but very tasty meals.
Hi Nagi,
Well, you did it again! Another winning recipe. I made this tonight for my husband and I and it turned out fabulous! The chicken was so tender after following the instructions on how to velvet the chicken.
This will definitely be made again at our house. Thanks so much.
Just made your recipe and it was just perfect! wanted to add additional vegatables but finally didn’t and that was it!
I just toasted the cashews a little bit before adding a keep a little bit of crunch.
So simple but sooo delicious!
Greetings from Croatia!
Enjoyed it but it seemed to be missing intensity of flavor. I use extra chicken so it may have thinned the sauce too much. Next time I may double the sauce but not use the full amt. I used Broccoli as I hate peppers of all kinds. And I will use mirin next time bec I always enjoy the aroma of it and the sweetish overlay OTW a good basic dish.
Perfection. I used red capsicum and snow peas.
This was tasty added extra vegetables and used noodles. Not too salty.
This was delicious, and so simple. I think it would be great with carrots and mushrooms too.
Delicious! Added heaps more veggies and served with noodles that I chuckled in the wok to soak up the saucy goodness.
Tastes amazing, and I love how easy to follow all the recipes are
Absolutely the best chicken and cashews ever and especially the next day when the flavours really came out 👍
This was so delicious and super quick and easy to make. The perfect week night meal. Will definitely be making it again.
Next time I might dilute the sauce with a little more water to make it slightly less thick and more saucy but that’s a personal preference. Love it!
“There’s nothing sadder than when you’re left with a bowl of plain white rice with no sauce to eat it with”
😂 True story.
Wow! This is delicious! Made as is, used mirin. Will definitely make again.
Awesome thanks 😊 we just had it for dinner. Fast easy and delicious 😋
I added both and it was great!
How much broth did you add
Absolute perfection! This tasted incredible. Great instructions and simple enough that my 15 year-old son cooked this with little guidance from me.
That was so good, I made a batch for my lunch and hubby’s work lunches today. Skipped the garlic and green capsicum and added carrots, cauliflower and broccoli. Superb and easy. I also used chicken breasts and did the velvetting technique.
When say 1.75 cm onion pieces, is that slices or chunks?
This is a family staple in our house, even for the fussiest eater. I use red capsicum instead of green and add broccoli and carrot for more veg. It’s a winner 👌
This was so good. I 1.5x the recipe and used 3 bell peppers and added water chesnuts. Used your recipe to velvet the chicken beforehand and it was a game changer! Definitely coming back to this recipe.
I love your recipes and this was no exception. It is easy to make and tastes fresher than take out. Loved it!!
Hi Nagi and Dozer. Tonight’s dinner was Chinese cashew and chicken. The family was amazed at how quick it was to prepare. Flavourful. Thank you. Used chicken tenders.