Enjoy this healthy 30 minute cashew chicken for a quick weeknight dinner. Chicken and cashews with plenty of veggies and a thick, sweet and savory sauce.
Do you ever get overwhelmed with real food? I sure do, which is why I make SMALL goals and work on them one at a time.
A few years ago, I made it a foodie goal to have soup for dinner once a week because it’s inexpensive and healthy (especially when you use Homemade Chicken Stock as the base), and it’s an easy way to use whatever is in the fridge.
Then my goal was to quit sugar. With the exception of the occasional batch of cookies, the required Christmas Sugar Cookies, and Homemade Kombucha, we’ve done this too.
A more recent goal was to incorporate more fast meals into our meal plan, like my 15 Minute Kung Pao Chicken Recipe, Homemade Alfredo, and now this cashew nut chicken recipe.
Don’t get me wrong – it’s not that I don’t love cooking. I wouldn’t be a FOOD BLOGGER if I didn’t. But there are some seasons and some nights that are just too full to spend hours upon hours in the kitchen.
That’s when I need easy quick weeknight meals, and this 30 minute chicken cashew recipe is perfect!
30 MINUTE CASHEW CHICKEN
Let’s talk about why this cashew chicken recipe is so great, shall we? I mean, beyond the fact that it’s a super easy dinner to make, it’s also…
- Ready in under 30 minutes. You literally toss everything together and bake! That’s it!
- Healthy. Lean chicken, mixed vegetables, and crunchy cashews are baked in a delicious sweet, and spicy sauce made with simple ingredients.
- Baked instead of made on the stove. I love getting the chicken cashew nut stir fry flavor without having to stand over the stovetop stirring!
- Keto-friendly. Just substitute the cornstarch (thickener) for almond flour.
- Gluten-free if you use a gluten free soy sauce (or coconut aminos) and dairy-free too! I love having allergy-friendly dinner options!
- Better than takeout! You don’t have to worry about the fillers, preservatives, and sodium common in Chinese takeout food with this chicken cashew recipe!
And of course, it tastes AMAZING!
EASY CASHEW CHICKEN INGREDIENTS
With 4 main chicken cashew ingredients (and only a few ingredients for the sauce), this chicken and cashews recipe is simply delicious!
- Skinless chicken breasts. We pound these out to ¼” thick and cut them into strips so they’re easy to eat. You can use boneless skinless chicken thighs cut into bite-sized pieces.
- Vegetables. I used a combination of bell peppers, carrots, green beans, and peas, but this is one of those recipes where you can clean out the fridge, or even use frozen mixed veggies.
- Cashews. These roast up nicely while the dish bakes for a golden, nutty flavor. Stick to unsalted cashews, so the dish doesn’t turn out overly salty.
- Green onions. Some get mixed into the dish, and some for garnish. You can omit these if you aren’t onion fans, but they add a bit of extra oomph to the recipe.
The cashew chicken sauce is where the magic happens! Somehow a very ordinary list of pantry staples becomes delicious saucy goodness when you combine it all together with cornstarch.
HOW TO MAKE 30-MINUTE CHICKEN AND CASHEW NUTS
Step 1. Preheat the oven to 350F.
Step 2. Spray a 9” x 13” glass pan with cooking spray or grease with a butter wrapper.
Step 3. Combine chicken and cashew nuts along with vegetables in a greased 9×13 glass pan. Add onions.
Step 4. In a small bowl, whisk together the ingredients for the sauce: chicken stock, soy sauce (or liquid aminos), vinegar, sriracha, cornstarch, honey, garlic, and sesame seed oil. Pour over the vegetables and chicken.
Step 5. Bake for 25-30 minutes, until the sauce, is bubbly and the chicken is cooked through.
Step 6. Let cool slightly for about 5 minutes for the sauce to thicken.
Step 7. Garnish with sliced green onions and sesame seeds. Salt and pepper to taste.
Serve warm over Instant Pot Brown Rice or Coconut Rice! YUM!
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. I don’t recommend freezing prepared cashew chicken, because the cornstarch in the sauce will separate out. You can freeze many of the ingredients ahead of time though, and even starting from scratch, this easy weeknight chicken dinner comes together fast!
CHICKEN & CASHEW NUTS SUBSTITUTIONS
The sauce for chicken & cashew nuts is totally forgiving. If you splash too much soy sauce, or you used up the last bit of homemade apple cider vinegar the previous week and it’s white distilled until payday…it’s all good!
Did the honey pour out too quickly, or do you have hot sauce rather than sriracha? No worries.
Out of chicken breast? Chicken thigh is ok to use too if that’s what you have on hand!
Substitute away, my friends, and enjoy the flavor variations.
Note: I have seen some Chinese cashew chicken recipes call for store-bought hoisin sauce, oyster sauce, and chili garlic sauce, even brown sugar rather than honey.
If you have these flavors on hand and you’d like to experiment, I’m sure this recipe will still taste delicious. Just be sure to double-check that the sauces are free of preservatives. You might just find a new takeout-replacement family favorite!
SERVE WITH CHICKEN CASHEWS
In my opinion, the only way to serve chicken and cashews is over rice. But which rice? That’s up to you!
CHICKEN AND CASHEWS FAQS
How do I prep the chicken for chicken cashews?
As I mentioned, we’re using chicken breasts in this recipe. You’ll pound them out into thin little cutlets, so they cook evenly and can be cut with a fork or poked with a chopstick.
Have you ever seen knives at a Chinese restaurant? Didn’t think so.
What vegetables can I use for cashew chicken?
I used a combination of what I thought should go in a ‘chicken stir fry-ish’ recipe based on what I had in the kitchen. That turned out to be green bell peppers, carrots, frozen peas, and frozen green beans.
Next time I think I’d like to try cauliflower or red bell peppers, just to add more color besides green. Some recipes call for water chestnuts or zucchini, which would be tasty as well! Really though, anything you have will work. You can use fresh or frozen or a mix of both like I did.
Are the cashews in cashew chicken healthy?
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WATCH HOW TO MAKE 30 MINUTE CASHEW CHICKEN
30 Minute Cashew Chicken
Enjoy this healthy 30 minute cashew chicken for a quick weeknight dinner. Chicken and cashews with plenty of veggies and a thick, sweet and savory sauce.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 4-6 1x
- Category: Main Meals
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F.
- Spray a 9” x 13” glass pan with cooking spray or grease with a butter wrapper.
- Place the chicken pieces in a single layer in the pan.
- Top with the cashews and 4 cups of vegetables.
- Add all the white onions and about half the green onions on top. In a small bowl, whisk together the ingredients for the sauce: stock, soy sauce (or liquid aminos), vinegar, sriracha, cornstarch, honey, garlic, and sesame seed oil.
- Pour over the vegetables and chicken.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes, until the sauce, is bubbly and the chicken is cooked through.
- Let cool slightly for about 5 minutes for the sauce to thicken.
- Garnish with sliced green onions and sesame seeds. Salt and pepper to taste.
Notes
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. I don’t recommend freezing prepared cashew chicken, because the cornstarch in the sauce will separate out. You can freeze many of the ingredients ahead of time though, and even starting from scratch, this easy weeknight chicken dinner comes together fast!
