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. 🤓
Thank you so much for this wonderful recipe.
My wife and I absolutely loved it.
We did velvet the chicken and it was plump, tender and tasty.
Served it with homemade fried rice and will definitely add this to our favorite list.
That’s so great to hear Mick! Thanks for sharing your feedback – N x
I’ve scanned this recipe on other sites, I made yours, adding a few more Chinese veg, amazing!!! Tastes like the real deal take out, and I’m making it again tonight, well done and thankyou!!!
That’s terrific to hear Dona! Thanks for letting me know you enjoyed this – N x
Looks delicious! Do you prefer using breast your thigh when you make it? Thanks 🙂
Hi Summer! I always choose thigh over breast where I can 🙂 N x
Hands down the best recipe for an authentic Chinese meal ever!
I followed the exact recipe and was very happy with the result.
If a friend popped around unannounced and tried some, they would think I ordered take out. It was that good!!
Do the velvet the Chicken when making sweet and sour dishes?
BEST COMPLIMENT EVER!!! I velvet chicken breast always for Chinese recipes 🙂 Not thigh, but ALWAYS breast! N x
Oh. My. God! Thank you so much for this recipe! I’ve loved chicken and cashew since I was a kid, and I’ve always had to fall back on take aways whenever I get a hankering as all the recipes have been daunting for someone who hates to cook. This is so simple and straight forward, especially the velveting! This will be a staple here from now on. Thank you!
That’s terrific! So pleased you enjoyed this Krysia – N x
Is there any non-alcoholic substitute for the sherry?
Chicken broth will be fine 🙂
What a terrific recipe, quantities were just right, I might use light soy next time instead of normal as was a touch too salty for my tastes. The family loved it and that chicken really was so soft and delicate. Gorgeous. Thanks
That’s so great to hear Tara! Thanks for letting me know you enjoyed this! N x
Grateful to have found your blog because of this recipe. It was the only cashew chicken recipe I found where the ingredients sounded Chinese. Outstanding results! We had leek instead of onion and I added jicama matchsticks at the end. I didn’t have green bell pepper, so I added a red pepper that looked like a jalepeno but had thinner flesh and was not hot. Looking forward to your other recipes!
Delicious recipe! I think I was a little heavy handed with the sauces so it was a bit too salty. Will definitely be trying the velveting technique with other types of meat, including steak in future. One query, how much onion overall should be used, one half or a whole?
That’s wonderful to hear Amanda! Thanks for letting me know! Regarding the onion, it should be 1/2 an onion. 🙂 Typo. Fixed! N x ❤️
This was so good. Added some broccoli as I didnt have any capsicum. Can’t believe how much it tastes like Chinese takeaway just better.
So pleased to hear that Natalie! Thanks for letting me know – N x ❤️
This is an excellent recipe! Thanks!!
Helloo nagi 🙂
At chinese restaurant they serve hot sauce and a sweet sour sauce with the cashew plate…can that be homemade??
Do you mean on the side???
Yess on the side! I think i can use sriracha chillisauce aside or does it have to be included while cooking it?
Made this last night. Even my very picky 13 year old loved it!
That’s terrific to hear Brian! So glad you enjoyed this, thank you for letting me know! N x
I am going to make this recipe this weekend. Thank you for the velveting tip. I will try this on steak also.
Hope you love it Brenda!
This is so good! Made it on Monday & again tonight…Thursday!
That’s so terrific Beth! Thanks for letting me know! N xx ❤️
Nagi – I whipped this up for lunch today, my only tweaks were to add a little bok choy and a few shiitake mushrooms.
My wife was delighted – it was the first time I’ve velveted the chicken and it turned out wonderfully!
Very good recipe and not fussy at all!
This is really good! I’ve shared with my kids who loved it as well. Tonight is husbands birthday & this was his request.
I’m so pleased you enjoyed it Beth! N xx
Omg Nagi this is AMAZING!!!
I love cashew chicken but rarely get it as my husband ‘thinks’ he doesn’t like nuts in food. So of course I completely ignored his preference and made this for dinner tonight 😅 …and guess what?! he loved it!! haha
This recipe is a keeper thank you for sharing it 😊
BA HA HA! That is TOO FUNNY!!!!! So glad he enjoyed it – N xx
Crazy good! Can you use this “velveting” technique on pork as well?
Thank you!
I made this for dinner last night and it was AMAZING!! Almost identical to my favourite Chinese restaurants version! Thank you!
Yes yes YES!!! So glad to hear you enjoyed it Karen! N xx