Chinese Cashew Chicken
My family and I love Chinese take-out, but we don’t love all the preservatives found in the recipes. A simple solution was to make my own. I started with a great recipe from Ree Drummond, The Pioneer Woman and altered it slightly.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
- 3 tablespoonslow-sodium organic soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon organic tamari sauce - if you don't have just use more soy sauce
- 3 tablespoons chopped fresh ginger
- 10 boneless, skinless chicken thighs cut into small cubes
- 1-2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 red bell pepper, cut into small cubes (for a mild pepper flavor use orange or yellow)
- 1 oz dry sherry, white wine or chicken broth (for deglazing)
- 3/4 cup whole roasted, unsalted cashews
- 1/3 cup water chestnuts, chopped
- 1-2 scallions, thinly sliced
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Directions
- In a bowl, combine the vinegar, honey, sesame oil, 1/4 cup of the soy sauce, 1 tablespoon of tamari sauce and 1 tablespoon of the ginger. Set aside.
- Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and sauté until cooked through 7 to 9 minutes.
- In the same skillet, stir-fry the garlic, peppers and remaining 2 tablespoons ginger. Deglaze the skillet with the sherry or wine and scrape up any brown bits.
- Add the reserved soy mixture and cook until the mixture begins to thicken about 1-2 minutes.
- Add the cashews and water chestnuts. Cook for another 1-2 minutes. You can add a little organic cornstarch to thicken if necessary.
- Serve garnished with the scallions.