Savory and salty Cashew Chicken is very easy to throw together any night of the week! Chicken thigh bits combined with tender green bell peppers, crunchy cashews, and plenty of fresh green onions all served on a bed of white rice. 

Hi everyone! Here we are, at the end of March 2020, and the world looks quite different than it did a month ago. Heck, even just a couple weeks ago. We’ve been self quarantining ourselves for almost 2 weeks. My husband is working from home indefinitely and I’ve only left the house twice in the last two weeks to go to the grocery store. It’s definitely getting a little old, and I’m so ready to have our normal lives back. We won’t ever take anything for granted again. I miss taking Abbey to the store with me, meeting our friends for playdates, and going to the library for storytime. It’s funny how much you miss these little things when they’re taken away. I’m crossing our fingers that this all ends soon. 

Today I’ve got a delicious weeknight recipe that will only take you 30 minutes! If you wanted to save more time, cook the rice in your Instant Pot instead of on the stovetop. This tastes just like the restaurant version and has a nice veggie addition of the green bell pepper.

Try to find roasted unsalted cashews for this dish. The sauce is pretty salty on its own, and it might be overpowering if you use salted cashews! 

Here’s the recipe for cashew chicken: 

You can also find this recipe on the Mealime app.

Cashew Chicken

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• Author: Emily Weeks, RDN, LD
• Total Time: 30 minutes
• Yield: 4 servings 1x

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Ingredients

• 1 cup basmati rice
• ½ cup soy sauce
• 2 tbsp toasted sesame oil
• 4 tsp cornstarch
• 1 tbsp rice vinegar
• 1 tbsp brown sugar
• 4 green bell peppers, medium diced
• 2 lb chicken thighs, boneless skinless, sliced into 1/2-inch pieces
• 1 Tbsp sesame oil
• 2-inch piece ginger root, peeled and minced
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 small bunch green onions (scallions), sliced
• ½ cup cashews, roasted unsalted

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Instructions

1. Using a strainer or colander, rinse the rice under cold, running water, then drain and transfer to a medium saucepan. Add 2 cups water and bring the mixture to a boil over high heat.
2. Once the liquid comes to a boil, stir the mixture, cover the saucepan, and reduce the heat to low. Cook the rice until the liquid is fully absorbed, 15-18 minutes. Once done, remove the rice from the heat and let it stand, still covered, for 5 minutes.
3. Place soy sauce, oil, cornstarch, vinegar, and sugar in a small bowl; whisk to combine the sauce.
4. Heat a large skillet over high heat. Once the skillet is hot, add 1 Tbsp sesane oil and swirl to coat the bottom.
5. Add chicken and stir-fry for 3-4 minutes. Add ginger, garlic, and bell peppers; continue to cook, stirring often, until veggies begin to soften, 3-4 more minutes.
6. Pour sauce into the skillet. Reduce heat to medium-high and cook, stirring often, until the sauce thickens, 5-6 minutes.
7. Add cashews to the skillet and stir to combine.
8. Divide rice between bowls; top with chicken stir-fry and green onions.

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