Home > Recipes > Main Dishes > Chicken Recipes > Cashew Chicken
by Michelle
January 26, 2022
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4.89 (18 ratings)This homemade cashew chicken is incredibly easy, made in one pan, and is way better than takeout! Chicken breast sits in a quick 30-minute marinade then stir-fried and tossed in a luscious, thick garlic sauce with cashews and green onions. Serve with your favorite rice and vegetables!
Growing up, we didn’t live in an area with a lot of takeout options, so it was the occasional trip to McDonald’s or Pizza Hut. Getting things like Chinese food was not on our radar, so when I first tried it with a friend’s family in college, I devoured my cashew chicken and couldn’t wait to try more!
These days, my go-to order is General Tso’s, but this recipe that opened up the world of Chinese takeout to me will forever hold a special place in my heart, and I’m so excited to share this recipe with you!
The Ingredients You’ll Need
There are two main steps to making chicken with cashew nuts: the chicken marinade/stir fry, and the sauce. Here’s what you’ll need:
For the Chicken:
- Boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cubed
- Dry sherry or cooking wine
- Fresh ginger
- Cornstarch
For the Brown Sauce:
- Chicken broth
- Soy sauce
- Rice vinegar
- Sugar
- Cornstarch
For Finishing:
- Garlic
- Cashews
- Green onions
Quick Step-by-Step Instructions
This is a fabulously easy one-pan recipe that makes for a quick and easy weeknight meal. This is the rundown:
- Marinate the chicken: A quick 30 minutes is all it needs after being tossed with some sherry, fresh ginger, and cornstarch.
- Stir-fry the chicken: Brown the cubed chicken with vegetable oil in two batches and set aside.
- Make the Sauce: Stir-fry the garlic, cashews, and green onion, then add the sauce ingredients. Cook until the sauce thickens, then serve.
Slow Cooker Version
This cashew chicken converts to the slow cooker very easily!
To make this in a slow cooker, simply brown the chicken in step #3 (it does not need to be cooked the whole way through) and add it to the bottom of a slow cooker. Stir together the sauce ingredients, including the cashews and white parts of the green onion, and pour it over the chicken. Cook on low for 3 to 4 hours. Serve as suggested.
Cashew Chicken: Frequently Asked Questions
What is the origin of cashew chicken?
Cashew Chicken is a Chinese-American recipe that combines stir-fried chicken with cashews in a sauce that can be either thin or thick.
How is Springfield-style cashew chicken different than the traditional version?
This is a deep-fried version of the recipe; it was created by Chef David Leong, a Chinese immigrant living Springfield, Missouri, who was trying to find a way to bridge the gap between the authentic food of his homeland and local residents’ tastes.
What should I serve with cashew chicken?
It is most commonly served with rice (white or brown) and steamed or stir-fried vegetables. The most common choices are broccoli, snap peas, and water chestnuts.
You could also serve it over noodles and include a sweet fruit component, such as mango, pineapple, apricot, and orange.
If you like spicy meals, sprinkle on some red pepper flakes!
How to store leftovers?
Leftovers can be kept in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 4 days. Reheat in a microwave or on the stovetop.
More Homemade Takeout Favorites:
- Crispy Sweet and Sour Chicken
- General Tso’s Chicken
- Crab Rangoon
- Sesame Chicken
Cashew Chicken
Yield: 4 to 6 servings
Prep Time: 15 minutes mins
Cook Time: 15 minutes mins
Marinating time: 30 minutes mins
Total Time: 1 hour hr
This homemade cashew chicken is incredibly easy, made in one pan, and is way better than takeout!
4.89 (18 ratings)
Print Pin Rate
Ingredients
- 1½ pounds chicken breasts, boneless skinless, cut into 1-inch pieces
- 2 tablespoons dry sherry, or cooking wine, or omit
- 2 teaspoons minced fresh ginger
- 3½ teaspoons cornstarch, divided
- Coarse salt
- ½ cup (120 ml) chicken broth
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
- 2 teaspoons granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon + 2 teaspoons vegetable oil, divided
- 2 cloves garlic , minced
- ⅔ cup (75 g) unsalted cashews
- 2 green onions, white and green parts divided and thinly sliced
Instructions
In a medium bowl, toss the chicken with the sherry, ginger, and 1½ teaspoons cornstarch; season with coarse salt. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a small bowl whisk together the chicken broth, soy sauce, rice vinegar, sugar and 2 teaspoons cornstarch. Set aside.
In a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat, heat 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil. Add half of the chicken and cook until golden brown and cooked through, about 5 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a plate and cover with foil. Add 1 teaspoon of oil to the skillet and cook the remaining chicken (reduce the heat if the chicken is over-browning). Transfer to the covered plate.
In the same skillet, add the remaining teaspoon of vegetable oil. Add the cashews, garlic, and green onion whites. Cook, stirring constantly, until the garlic begins to soften, about 30 seconds. Whisk the sauce again to combine and add to the skillet along with the chicken. Cook until the sauce thickens, about 30 seconds. Serve over rice or noodles and top with the green onion greens.
Notes
- Chicken: You can substitute skinless, boneless chicken thighs for the breasts.
- Serving: Serve over rice or noodles, alongside your favorite vegetables. Classic sides are broccoli, snap peas and water chestnuts.
- Sweeten It Up! While not traditional, add fruit such as pineapple, mango, apricots, or orange for more complex flavors.
- Make it spicy: Add a sprinkle of red pepper flakes if you like your meals on the spicy side.
- Slow Cooker: To make this in a slow cooker, simply brown the chicken in step #3 (it does not need to be cooked the whole way through) and add it to the bottom of a slow cooker. Stir together the sauce ingredients, including the cashews and white parts of the green onion, and pour it over the chicken. Cook on low for 3 to 4 hours. Serve as suggested.
- Storing: Keep leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Reheat in the microwave or on the stovetop.
Calories: 412kcal, Carbohydrates: 11g, Protein: 43g, Fat: 20g, Saturated Fat: 6g, Cholesterol: 108mg, Sodium: 706mg, Potassium: 837mg, Sugar: 3g, Vitamin A: 60IU, Vitamin C: 3.6mg, Calcium: 24mg, Iron: 2.7mg
Did you make this recipe?
Leave a review below, then snap a picture and tag @thebrowneyedbaker on Instagram so I can see it!
Author: Michelle
Photography byDee Frances.
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72 Comments on “Cashew Chicken”
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Stephanie — Reply
I’m amazed by how fast this recipe was! And my entire family ate it!
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Lesley — Reply
Made this for dinner tonight and it was delicious! I doubled the sauce and it was soooo good.
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Donna Clarke — Reply
You always present such mouth watering pictures of the recipes that you make; and, I will definitely make this cashew chicken recipe. Thank you for posting it so beautifully.
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Florence Dickenson — Reply
Just wondering what a good marinade for the chicken is beforehand?
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Dee Frances — Reply
Wow! What an amazing recipe! Easy fast and so so delicious. Will definitely make this one over and over again.
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Shelley Calissendorff — Reply
I veganized it! But, it was super easy. I just replaced the chicken with vegan chicken substitute and the chicken broth with vegan vegetable broth. Also just because I wanted to, I doubled the green onion and the garlic. It was fantastic! If I make it in the future I will either half the amount of “chicken” or double the sauce because I like to have enough sauce that when served over rice, a lot of the rice can soak up a bunch of the sauce and that really wasn’t the case in this recipe. There was only just enough sauce to coat the “chicken” and the cashews. But the flavor was GREAT! Thank you, Brown Eyed Baker! :D
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Rem — Reply
I dont have rice vinegar at home, what could be a better substitue for this?
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Michelle — Reply
Hi Rem, Any other mild vinegar would work here, something like a white wine.
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Aubrey — Reply
I just tried this…amazing!! I added some sesame oil too. Super yummy :) Do you have the nutrition info for it?
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Michelle — Reply
Hi Aubrey, I’m glad you liked it! I do not calculate the nutritional information for recipes.
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Deen — Reply
I am a big fan of Springfield Cashew Chicken (if you’ve never had it, “google” it and make it sometime.) I don’t have a deep fryer right now, though, so I went with this recipe. It was nice! Very similar to the above, but less fattening, I’m sure. I’ll keep this on rotation!
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Cheryl — Reply
I made your recipe and it was EXCELLENT! Definitely a hit in our household! Thank you so much!!!! :)
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Sarah Boye — Reply
I just made this with Quorn chicken, snow peas, carrots, and red bell pepper. SO GOOD! I haven’t had cashew chicken in almost 12 years and I didn’t realize how much I missed it! Thank you!
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Jessica — Reply
I found this recipe and have made it many times now! My family, all ages, love it. I use Sprite instead of sherry and I add snow peas as well. This is a winning recipe every time! Thank you!
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Shy — Reply
What a wonderful recipe !!! made this yesterday & it was so good ,,, looking to try more from ur site ..Thank u Michelle :)
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Erin — Reply
I love making Chinese at home (sweet and sour, lettuce wraps), but I had yet to do this dish until tonight – delish! Thank you for sharing this.
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KitchenArtistry — Reply
Wonderful detail on the 1st photo – We’d love to have you feature this photo at kitchenartistry.com
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lexmilo — Reply
My husband and I just enjoyed another one of your recipes! This is delicious! We love sauce, so I doubled the sauce recipe and let it boil a bit longer. Thanks for making our Saturday night in perfect! Also, HERE WE GO STEELERS!
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brie — Reply
i just made this for dinner. AMAZING.
i had no idea i could make chinese food at home…how silly of me!
this was such a fabulous recipe! thank you for sharing!!!
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a frog in the cottage — Reply
where there are cashews there is pleasure !! have you ever try chiken korma !! yummy !!
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starralex76 — Reply
This is the kind of recipe that keeps me coming back to your site: simple, colorful, and easy to cook. Not to mention – gorgeous recipe
See AlsoHong Kong Chicken Recipe -
Brittany — Reply
This looks so simple! I will definitely have to try it!
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cspurlock — Reply
YUM! We made this for dinner tonight & what a treat it was! Thank you for posting! I subbed Sun Crystals sugar packet for the 2tbsp of regular sugar. I also used red quinoa instead of serving with rice. It was crowd pleaser!
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KC — Reply
Delicious! Thank you!
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Laura Witts — Reply
This recipe is hands down awesome!
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Mark — Reply
Looks great. Way better than most of the Asian food I eat out. Thanks.
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Molly — Reply
Thanks for the excellent recipe! I only recently came upon your blog after being referred by a friend, and this is the first recipe I have tried (but will not be my last!). I made it tonight and it was wonderful, my whole family enjoyed it. I added veggies; carrots, celery, and water chestnuts (because that’s what’s in our favorite take-out dish) and doubled the sauce to accommodate (probably upped it to about 6 servings). I think it’s better than our favorite take-out and undoubtedly healthier (I like that I know exactly what’s in it)! The only complaint was from my 5-year-old who wondered where the crab rangoons were! Thanks again!
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Amy Nielsen — Reply
I made this Friday night for dinner and it was amazing! Finally, a recipe for Chinese food that is actually better than our local takeout. Thanks!
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Sortachef — Reply
Great flavor combo, Michelle. Last time I had cashew chicken at a restaurant it was so darned salty; your recipe reminds me I can do this at home!
And your photos are absolutely stunning… Thanks! -
AGS — Reply
I know this is by nature a flavorful dish, but not spicy. Would adding chili paste destroy the balance of the current flavors. My husband and I enjoy dishes that allow us to get some “tingling” on our tongues!
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Michelle — Reply
I actually haven’t ever used chili paste, but I don’t think it would hurt to try a little and see how it tastes! You could also try adding a couple pinches of red pepper flakes to the sauce.
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Shelby — Reply
This looks delish and I will definitely have to try the recipe!
I too love to make dishes (mostly asian & Indian) that I like to eat out – at home. I started last year with General Tso’s Tofu, Honey Walnut Shrimp (Grumpy’s Fav), Black Pepper Chicken, and I love Jaden’s recipes on her blog – especially the Garlic Scallion Noodles (served with shrimp) and Ground Beef with Beijing Sauce – all I have blogged and totally loved. I am sure I am going to love yours too! -
Cherissa — Reply
Michelle! Thank you so much! I made this for dinner tonight- we all LOVED IT! even our 8 year old! She ate the last bits of chicken right out of the pan when we were cleaning- thankfully she saved me the cashews! I didn’t have any Ginger or sherry so I omitted both and just added a bit of minced garlic whole cooking the chicken! This was super easy and quite possibly my new favorite dinner! Loved it! After dinner I said to my boyfriend, “you know who you have to thank for this?” He immediately said, “the Brown Eyed Baker??”… DUH! Thanks again!
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Deborah — Reply
I love it when I find a good at-home Chinese recipe. This sounds wonderful!
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ChefAnn — Reply
Made this for dinner last night. Fabulous! And yes, I am like you …. don’t venture much into Asian cooking, but when I do, I always think “now why don’t I do this more often?” I might add a bit of sesame oil to the sauce, but otherwise would not change a thing. Somewhere in my archives, I have a delicious shrimp and green onion stir fry recipe that I need to dig out!
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Tessa — Reply
Yum. Your picture makes me hungry! My husband loves Chinese food, so I’m always looking for new recipes. This one’s on the list.
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Maria — Reply
Great flavors going on here! Kuddos on a killer dish:)
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Skylar — Reply
Looks delicious! I love both cashew and almond chicken, great stir fries
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Beth — Reply
Thanks Michelle. Looks amazing! We’ll definitely have to try this next week.
General Tso is my favorite chinese dish (aka the only one ive ever had) but looks like you cant go wrong with cashew chicken.
@Katrina–Im also a veggie, but i either just omit the chicken from my recipes or use Quorn fake chicken and adjust the cooking time. Have you tried that?
Michelle–along those lines, you’d be able to substitue vegetable broth for chicken broth, correct?-
Michelle — Reply
Thanks Beth! General Tso’s is my favorite too, and usually my standard takeout order, go figure we’d have the same favorite ;-)
And yes, you could definitely sub vegetable broth. Let me know how you guys like it!
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Courtney — Reply
yummy this looks really good!
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Maria — Reply
That looks fantastic! Great recipe that I’d love to try.
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Janalyne — Reply
Cashew chicken is one of my favorites as well. This recipes looks delish..and pretty simple as well! Can’t wait to try it.
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Darla @ Bakingdom — Reply
Yay!! I’m super stoked to make this! Thank you!!!
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Jen @ My Kitchen Addiction — Reply
Yum! This is a tasty resolution. :) Loving this recipe.
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Margaret — Reply
I have just made a couple of Asian dishes. Now I have another one to add to the list. I love this out, knowing I can make it at home is fantastic!! And it looks fantastic.
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Rachel — Reply
We love asian food, but it is usually take out. I can’t wait to try this dish, it sounds awesome! My husband makes a delicious Kung Pao chicken
http://4everyoungfam.blogspot.com/2009/12/christmas-eve.html -
Katie — Reply
I will definitely be making this, we love all Asian food. I know you are a peanut butter lover, so may I recommend you try the Thai Honey Peanut Chicken from the pioneer woman’s tasty kitchen blog? it’s delicious. My favorite sneaky easy Asian “cheats” are chili garlic sauce- it’s so easy to add zip, the ginger people’s minced ginger or ginger paste in a jar- just like fresh but oh so easy, and fish sauce to give good depth to any stir fry or noodle dish. Enjoy your adventures, I look forward to seeing and trying these recipes!
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RavieNomNoms — Reply
I love love cashew chicken! Although I love cashews just in general!
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LauraB @ foodsnobstl — Reply
Oh boy, now I want Chineese for lunch!
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Lisa @ the Cooking Bride — Reply
Oh, yum! Chinese food is always a big hit at my house. Will be trying this!
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Becca @ Crumbs and Chaos — Reply
Looks delicious! I really want to learn to make great Chinese at home…this looks like a great place to start!
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Keeley — Reply
I just bookmarked this post! I like Everyday Food, too and one of my favorite Chinese-style recipes is from that magazine.
My favorites are:
Chicken Stir-Fry With Green Beans
http://delkeelife.blogspot.com/2010/11/chicken-stir-fry-with-green-beans.htmland
Lighter General Tso’s Chicken
http://delkeelife.blogspot.com/2010/09/lighter-general-tsos-chicken.html -
Amy @ What Jew Wanna Eat — Reply
I will definitely be trying this cashew chicken! Homemade Chinese food is the best. I just made Moo Shu Pork and it turned out fab! http://whatjewwannaeat.com/2011/01/02/moo-shu-pork-with-mandarin-pancakes/
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Cantstopbaking — Reply
YUM. Can’t wait to try this!
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Cornelius the Pig — Reply
We tried making cashew chicken once and weren’t very happy with the recipe. Yours looks really authentic though! Since cashew chicken is Cal (the cow)’s favorite, I think we’ll definitely be giving this a try.
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elizabeth — Reply
I made cashew chicken last night! It’s one of the boyfriend’s favorite dinners and it’s ridiculously easy to throw together. My version is a lot simpler and I’ve been looking for a way to up the flavor. I’m definitely going to give your recipe a try soon.
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Kath — Reply
I was wondering what to do with some chicken breasts I have in the refrigerator….I may have just found it! Thank you!
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Belinda @zomppa — Reply
This is totally one of my favorite dishes – and why go out for greasy food when you can do it well at home? Thanks!
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stephanie — Reply
i just started experimenting with chinese food, too! my first stop? cashew chicken: http://thekosherfoodies.com/dinners/cashew-chicken/ what a coincidence!
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Evan Thomas — Reply
I love cashew chicken, and this looks too good for words. Pass a fork.
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Kathleen — Reply
At my house, your sweet and sour chicken recipe is the number-one dinner request. Even picky kids say “yay” when they know we are having this for dinner!
I am printing this cashew chicken recipe to expand our repertoire. Thanks Michelle! -
Kelly @ JAX does design — Reply
Mmmmm, looks and sounds like a yummy recipe! I love all Asian foods, and my absolute favourite food is Thai. Still looking for the perfect Pad Thai recipe….
My favourite make-at-home Chinese food recipe is ginger beef. I’ve made some modifications to the recipe over time, and I think it’s perfect now! :-)
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Kristin — Reply
I love cashew chicken! I’m going to have to try this one. My favorite do-at-home Chines recipe is this one: http://pursuitofvegetables.blogspot.com/2010/11/stir-fried-beef-broccoli-and-yams.html. It’s a perfect quick meal.
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AliGirl Cooks — Reply
I make Chinese food at home quite often. This is a great recipe to add to my collection!
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Katrina — Reply
Cashew chicken is an old favorite of mine. Since going vegetarian, I don’t eat it anymore, but I’ll give this a try for my boyfriend. I’m sure he’ll love it!
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Blog is the New Black — Reply
I love cashew chicken! This looks amazing. Def trying it for dinner soon!
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The Housewife — Reply
I love this! But then I love anything with cashews in it. I make a traditional indian cashew chicken curry, so its fascinating to see an chinese version!
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Justeen @ Blissful Baking — Reply
I am also a huge fan of cashew chicken! Love all of the different flavors and textures in the dish. This looks delicious!
