Cashew Chicken
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All the flavor of your favorite takeout, none of the fuss—this cashew chicken is quick, easy, and barely requires any prep. A weeknight dinner winner!
Craving that savory-sweet cashew chicken from your favorite Chinese restaurant? This version is quick enough for a weeknight and so much better than takeout. No wok needed—just a large nonstick skillet. Aside from the chicken, the only chopping you’ll do is some garlic and scallions. The rest comes straight from the pantry.
Just a heads-up: stir-fries cook fast, so have everything measured and ready to go before you start. And when prepping the chicken, keep the pieces on the larger side so they cook evenly and stay juicy.
“Quick and easy. My teenage son and his friends all raved how good it was. Thanks!rn”
What You’ll Need To Make Cashew Chicken
- Cashews: Roasted, unsalted cashews add crunch and a toasty, nutty bite that pairs perfectly with the savory sauce. If you’re toasting them yourself, keep a close eye—they can go from golden to burnt in seconds. You’ll know they’re ready when they smell fragrant and turn just a shade darker.
- Chicken: Boneless, skinless chicken breasts or tenderloins both work well here. Tenderloins are especially easy and stay tender in a quick stir-fry.
- Garlic & Scallions: Garlic brings bold, savory flavor, while scallions add both sharpness and fresh, bright color. Use the white and light green parts for stir-frying; save the dark green tops for garnish.
- Soy Sauce, Hoisin, Rice Vinegar & Water: This combo gives you that classic takeout-style sweet-salty-tangy balance. Hoisin brings sweetness and depth—go with a good brand like Lee Kum Kee or Kikkoman. Soy sauce adds umami, rice vinegar adds a little acidity, and water loosens the sauce just enough to coat everything evenly.
- Cornstarch: Helps the sauce cling to every bite and gives it that glossy, restaurant-style finish.
- Vegetable Oil & Toasted Sesame Oil: Use neutral vegetable oil for stir-frying, and finish with a drizzle of toasted sesame oil for its rich, nutty aroma. Be sure to use toasted sesame oil—the dark, fragrant kind—not the light, untoasted variety.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-by-Step Instructions
Step 1: Toast the cashews. Preheat the oven to 350°F and toast the cashews on a baking sheet until fragrant, about 5 minutes—they’ll crisp up as they cool.
Step 2: Make the sauce. While the cashews toast, whisk together the water, cornstarch, hoisin sauce, and soy sauce in a small bowl and set aside.
Step 3: Brown the first batch of chicken. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a large skillet over high heat and stir-fry half the chicken until lightly browned, about 3 minutes. (Browning the chicken in batches helps it sear instead of steam.) Transfer it to a plate.
Step 4: Cook the remaining chicken with aromatics. Add the remaining oil, chicken, garlic, and the white parts of the scallions to the pan. Cook until lightly browned, then return the first batch of chicken to the skillet. Lower the heat, add the rice vinegar, and cook for about 30 seconds, until it evaporates.
Step 5: Add the sauce and finish cooking. Pour in the sauce mixture and stir everything together. Let it cook for about a minute, or until the chicken is cooked through and the sauce thickens up.
Step 6: Finish with cashews and scallions. Off the heat, stir in the scallion greens, toasted cashews, and sesame oil. Adding the sesame oil at the end preserves its nutty aroma—and since a little goes a long way, you don’t need much. Serve with rice and enjoy!
More Asian chicken dishes you May Like
Cashew Chicken
Ingredients
- ¾ cup roasted, unsalted cashews
- ¼ cup water
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- ¼ cup hoisin sauce, best quality such as Kikkoman or Lee Kum Kee
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1½ pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts or tenderloins, cut into 1½-in (4-cm) pieces
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 6 medium cloves garlic, minced
- 8 scallions, white and green parts separated, sliced into 1-in (2.5-cm) pieces
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- ¼ teaspoon sesame oil
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).
- Place the cashews on a baking sheet in a single layer. Toast in the oven until fragrant, about 5 minutes. Set aside; they will crisp up as they cool.
- Meanwhile, prepare the sauce: in a small bowl, whisk together the water, cornstarch, hoisin sauce, and soy sauce. Set aside.
- Place the chicken pieces in a large bowl. Sprinkle with the salt and pepper and toss to coat evenly.
- In a large nonstick skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of the vegetable oil over high heat until very hot. Add half of the chicken to the skillet and stir-fry until lightly browned but not cooked through, about 3 minutes. Transfer to a plate.
- Add the remaining tablespoon vegetable oil to the skillet; then add the remaining chicken, garlic and white parts of the scallions. Stir-fry until the chicken is lightly browned but not cooked through, about 3 minutes. Return the first batch of chicken to the pan. Turn the heat down to medium and add the rice vinegar; cook until evaporated, about 30 seconds.
- Add the sauce mixture to the chicken; cook, tossing, until the chicken is cooked through and the sauce is nicely thickened, about 1 minute. Remove from the heat. Stir in the scallion greens, cashews and sesame oil. Serve immediately.
Pair with
Nutrition Information
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
Gluten-Free Adaptable Note
To the best of my knowledge, all of the ingredients used in this recipe are gluten-free or widely available in gluten-free versions. There is hidden gluten in many foods; if you're following a gluten-free diet or cooking for someone with gluten allergies, always read the labels of your ingredients to verify that they are gluten-free.
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This is my go-to recipe when we’re in the mood for something Asian but I don’t want to spend a lot of time prepping ingredients. It’s so easy and delicious! After making it the first time I now cut the chicken into about 1″ pieces, just because we find it easier to eat that way. And the first time I used salted cashews we had on hand and the dish overall was really salty (and we like salt 🙂 so now I keep unsalted on hand and it’s perfect. SO good!
Hi I was sent this recipe and I read it over it but haven’t made it yet. What’s the purpose of cooking half the chicken with oil taking it out then cook the other half of chicken with garlic etc. And then adding the half cooked other half of chicken back with rice vinegar?
Hi Aloe, You cook the chicken in two batches so you don’t crowd the pan. Hope that clarifies and that you enjoy the dish if you make it!
Oh I see, thanks for the reply. Does crowding the chicken change the taste or texture at all? What if I have a very large cookware?
Crowding the pan is more likely to cause the chicken to steam instead of developing that nice golden exterior. Also, things cook more evenly if they’re not crowded into a pan. Hope that clarifies!
Enjoyed first time making cashew chicken. Appreciated the step by step on roasting the cashews.
Jenn – this recipe is another winner from your website. I have made so many of your dishes and desserts and have sent many of my friends and family members to your site for your recipes. I’m not sure how this particular recipe is not turning out for some people but maybe it’s because they’re not using the right ingredients. The only thing I do differently is add two red bell peppers and an onion, which I sauté at the beginning, and double the sauce to pair the dish with your Perfect Basmati Rice recipe. And it comes out perfect every time! A regular request from hubby and my three teenagers. I’m going to try this again tonight with shrimp instead of chicken. I can’t find anything in the comments about adapting the recipe to this change. Do you have any recommendations or should I just follow the recipe as is? Sometimes shrimp can make a dish watery!
So glad you like this, Trena! I think this would work nicely with shrimp; I’d pat it dry with paper towels to remove any moisture. The cooking time for the shrimp may be a touch shorter than the chicken so make sure not to overcook it. Please LMK how it turns out!
Prepped the chicken, scallions and garlic beforehand. Followed the recipe as written, served over rice and had a delicious meal in under 20 minutes! May add broccoli next time. Love the flavor and simplicity. Another fabulous recipe, Jen!
I made this with the addition of diced carrots and celery as the only alteration. It was not the best Cashew Chicken I’ve ever had, and I’ve eaten this dish in restaurants across the country. The sauce is too dark and pungent and overpowers the taste of the chicken. It is also unnecessarily complicated. IMHO there is no reason the vinegar and sesame oil can’t go in the sauce mix. I gave the recipe three stars because it is accurately written, but I won’t make it again.
I followed the recipe exactly and it was very average at best. My family asked me to never make it again. My husband said the only way this dish would be similar to take out cashew chicken is if next time you actually buy some good take out cashew chicken to pour over this one…ha ha ha.
This did not taste like any restaurant cashew chicken I’ve ever had. I was so disappointed because I was expecting a savory brown sauce that I’ve always gotten with cashew chicken not a really salty sweet stir fry sauce.
Fantastic. Better than my favorite take out place. I really wanted to take a picture, but it was to delicious to wait. Thank you!
We enjoyed this very much. It’s a keeper!
By the way, 4 tablespoons of hoisin sauce equals one fourth cup. It’s easier and faster to measure out one fourth cup.
I scaled this down to dinner for two, using one chicken breast and half of the other ingredients. It turned out exactly as shown in the recipe. I’m not sure what the chicken breast weighed, but it would be much less than half the weight of the full recipe. So I wonder if more sauce would be required if making the full order.
It’s easy to make and tasted good, though another time I might substitute another TBS of soy sauce for one of the Hoisin. I served a bit of Chinese hot sauce on the side, which perks it up a notch.