Cashew Chicken was never easier than this take-out fake-out. Laden with cashews, snow peas, and green onion, this Cashew Chicken is hands-free in the preparation and baked in the oven, making it a great weeknight quick fix.
Serve it atop Baked Rice and Quick Potstickers with Dipping Sauce for a fun Chinese-American-inspired dinner. You can stop eating out when you make take-out at home.
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We used to go to Panda Express almost on a weekly basis. It’s not far from our home, and if we ordered the “Panda Feast” and a couple small entrees, we really could let the kids “feast”.
Between high prices and food allergies, it’s just not in the cards. Thankfully, I can make Cashew Chicken just as easily at home. And for a mere fraction of the cost!
Why Make This
It’s good. This Cashew Chicken tastes just like what you might get at a Chinese-American take-out place. Next time the craving hits, this is the dish to make! Serve it with lots of hot cooked rice to soak up the yummy sauce.
It’s cheap. For less than $10 to feed four, this is a supreme bargain. The aforementioned feast is currently $30 at my local, so I can feed more people for about half the price.
It’s easy! This dish comes together in about 10 minutes, quicker if you use chicken tenders instead of chopped chicken. Mix all the elements and let it bake in the oven while you cook the rice and fry up some potstickers.
Ingredients
Here’s what you’ll need to make this easy, Sheetpan Cashew Chicken:
boneless, skinless chicken – I like to buy chicken breast, but if you prefer you can use thigh meat. Chicken tenders are super convenient. If you don’t want to chop the chicken, you can use them whole. Just adjust the baking time to suit.
snow peas – You can swap out the snow peas for any number of veggies, including celery, water chestnuts, broccoli, snap peas, celery, green beans, or chopped zucchini.
cashews – I like to use roasted unsalted cashews for best texture.
green onion – Green onions add a bit of fresh bite to Cashew Chicken.
chicken broth – You can use purchased or homemade chicken stock. In a pinch, feel free to substitute vegetable broth if that’s what you have.
soy sauce – You can use regular soy sauce or gluten-free tamari if you need to avoid gluten.
dry sherry – Dry sherry is a great substitute for rice wine that is often used in traditional cooking. You can use regular cooking sherry or a fancier bottle if that’s what you have.
cornstarch – Cornstarch helps thicken the sauce nicely, don’t omit it.
honey – Honey adds just enough sweetness to offset the soy sauce and sherry in the cashew chicken sauce.
garlic – You can use fresh or jarred garlic.
sesame oil – Sesame oil brings a lot of flavor. It can be a pricy ingredient, but you just need a little.
red pepper flakes – Red pepper flakes bring just a hint of heat to the sauce. You may adjust them to suit your preferences.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Here’s how to make Cashew Chicken:
- Preheat the oven to 425. Spray a 9 x 13-inch baking dish with cooking spray. In a small dish whisk together the chicken broth, soy sauce, sherry, cornstarch, honey, garlic, sesame oil, and red pepper flakes.
- Lay the chicken pieces in the prepared pan. Add the snow peas, cashews, and scallions to the pan.
- Pour the sauce over the chicken and vegetables in the pan. Stir gently to combine.
- Place the pan in the oven and bake until the chicken is cooked through and the sauce has thickened and bubbles, about 15 to 20 minutes. Sprinkle with sesame seeds if you like.
FAQs & Recipe Costs
Cashew Chicken has gluten usually based on the soy sauce. If you use gluten-free tamari, you can have your Cashew Chicken gluten-free. As always be sure to read all ingredients labels to make sure there is no additional gluten.
Kung pao chicken is spicier than cashew chicken. It also contains peanuts instead of cashews.
The sauce of cashew chicken generally contains chicken broth, soy sauce, and cornstarch for a thickener. Different recipes may call for sherry, oyster sauce, or ginger.
Recipe Costs
Knowing how much it costs you to prepare a recipe can help you decide if it’s the type of recipe to make regularly or one you might want to save for special occasions. Let’s crunch some numbers and see how this recipe pencils out.
- chicken breast – $2.69
- snow peas – $2.68
- cashews – $0.74
- green onion – $0.40
- chicken broth – $0.15
- soy sauce – $0.20
- dry sherry – $0.28
- cornstarch – $0.02
- honey – $0.21
- garlic – $0.05
- sesame oil – $0.36
- red pepper flakes – $0.01
While your costs may vary depending on where and how you shop, you can expect to pay about $7.79 for a big batch of Cashew Chicken, about $1.95/serving.
More Take-Out Fake-Outs
Tell us what you think!
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Easy Cashew Chicken
Equipment
- 9×13-inch baking dish
- large mixing bowl
Ingredients
- 1.5 lb boneless, skinless chicken breast cut into cubes
- 1 9-ounce package snow peas
- ½ cup roasted and unsalted cashews
- 4 green onion chopped
- ½ cup chicken stock
- 2 tablespoon soy sauce use gluten-free tamari if desired
- 2 tablespoon dry sherry
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1 clove garlic minced
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- ⅛ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- toasted sesame seeds for garnish (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425. Spray a 9 x 13-inch baking dish with cooking spray.
- Lay the chicken pieces in the prepared pan. Add the snow peas, cashews, and scallions to the pan.
- In a small dish whisk together the chicken broth, soy sauce, sherry, cornstarch, honey, garlic, sesame oil, and red pepper flakes. Pour this over the chicken and vegetables in the pan.
- Place the pan in the oven and bake until the chicken is cooked through and the sauce has thickened and bubbles, about 15 to 20 minutes. Sprinkle with sesame seeds if you like.
Notes
Nutrition
This post was originally published September 3, 2015. It has been updated for content and clarity.
Laurie
Hi do I cover this when I bake?
Jessica Fisher
No, it doesn’t need to be covered.
Annie
This is a simple and tasty dish. I doubled the sauce ingredients. I once tried using 2 pounds of chicken and the sauce didn’t thicken as well. Very nice recipe!
Jessica Fisher
Glad you liked it, Annie. Doubling can sometimes be tricky. Glad the sauce worked out for you.
Vanessa
They were both times boneless fresh breasts or thighs. I haven’t used tenders yet. It’s funny my oven over cooks he freezer lasagna and under cooks this recipe.
Jessica Fisher
The recipe was developed for tenders, so breasts would take longer.
Vanessa
I am making this for the second time tonight with chicken thighs. The first time I recall the chicken not being done after 15 minutes. Should I cover with foil? Increase the cooking time? What am I doing wrong? I so want this recipe to become a standard at our home.
Jessica Fisher
Hi Vanessa, I’ve not made it with chicken thighs, but I would definitely increase the cooking time. You don’t mention whether the things are bone-in or boneless. Twenty minutes should be sufficient for boneless thighs, longer if you have the bone in them.
Did you use thighs the first time? Were they frozen? Did they have a bone in them?
Amanda
I’ve baked this once before and it was amazing! I made a few tweaks to fit my taste: broccoli instead of snow peas, chopped up pieces of chicken breast, and rice vinegar in place of cooking sherry since I was out of it at the time but it still turned out delicious. Now here’s the big question: is there a way to make this into a crock pot recipe? I’m thinking of using whole chicken breasts or thighs so it doesn’t dry out and then doubling the broth. Maybe on HIGH for 3 to 4 hours? I’d love your thoughts on what might work well!
Jessica Fisher
I have not made this in the crockpot but I think what you suggest should work. Let me know how it goes!
Katie
Would peanuts work okay in this recipe? My husband is not a cashew fan.
Jessica Fisher
Yes, that would be fine.
melissa
Do you thaw the chicken tenders? Or do you put them in the oven frozen?
Jessica Fisher
The directions are for thawed. If you cook from frozen, you’ll need to increase the cooking time.
Julie
This was a huge hit for my family of 6! Each of us loved it. My 4 year old asked me to make it the next day! I did have issues with it thickening. I pulled out some sauce and added more cornstarch – which did the trick. Any thoughts on what I should do differently next time? Thanks for making meal time easier!
Jessica Fisher
I often will stir it a few times and give it extra time in the oven if I don’t think it’s thickened as much as I like.
Hilary J
I tried this for the first time last night. It was a huge hit! My boyfriend isn’t a huge fan of Chinese food but even he was raving about it. I love how quick, easy and versatile this recipe was. I used chicken thighs and green beans and it was perfect. I just increased the cooking time by 15 mins. This is definitely going into my dinner rotation!
Jessica Fisher
Yay! Thanks for the feedback and specifics on chicken thighs, too. I’m sure that will help others!
MgMama
Tried this for dinner tonight. I substituted green beans for the snow peas becuase its what I had. It was tasty! Lacking a bit in salt though. I used low sodium soy sauce so maybe next time, I’ll season the chicken separately first. Also, we really liked the sauce, but there wasn’t much of it, so I’ll probably double it next time. Also, left out the sherry since I didn’t have it.
Jessica Fisher
Glad you enjoyed it.
Matt R.
I really like this recipe! Thanks for sharing. However I mostly buy split chicken breasts or whole chicken as they are way cheaper than tenderloins, any recommendations on cooking time for the larger portions? Should I cut the chicken breast thinner to allow it to cook faster?
Matt R.
I buy whole chicken and cut it into its respective smaller parts. By larger portion I am referring to chicken breast.
Jessica Fisher
Yes, slicing the boneless, chicken breast into three or four slices should work perfectly. I have been avoiding Foster Farms lately which is the only brand my stores seem to carry, so I end up getting the frozen tenders at Trader Joe’s which are comparable in price.
Ellen
Wow this was delicious and so very easy! I made it twice once with chicken and once with tofu and mushrooms. I lstir fried the tofu then added the sauce and baked as directed. The tofu one was my favorite. The chicken one was my husbands! Thank you!
Jessica Fisher
Great to know about the tofu! So glad you liked it! Check out the book for more of the same easy recipes.
Val
Do you know any good substitutes for sesame oil? I for some reason have an issue with sesame.
Jessica Fisher
I don’t. It’s really for the flavor, so you could just omit it. It won’t have the same taste, but that’s okay.
Heather M
Oh this looks delicious! Unlike your family, mine LOVES when I cook asian food. It’s a very regular feature in our house. I cook w/some variety of asian flavors a few times a week. This will be featured next time I shop (no cashews or snow peas right now). YUM!
Jessica Fisher
I hope it passes muster!
TSandy
Amazon carries the coconut aminos. Another winning recipe Jessica. I added it to next week’s menu to try.
Jessica Fisher
Great! Let me know what you think!
Roberta
This looks delicious! Unfortunately, I can’t have soy since the cancer diagnosis last year. I’ve heard that coconut aminos can be used as a substitute for soy sauce, but I’ve never tried them. Have you? Do you have any idea where to find them? TJs doesn’t carry them.
Jessica Fisher
I have some, but I haven’t tried it yet. I bought them from Thrive Market.
Jessica Fisher
Not sure if you’ll check back to the post; another reader says she gets them from Amazon.
Danielle L Zecher
I can’t have soy either. I recently tried the coconut aminos in a stir fry and loved it. The flavor is a little different, but it’s really good, and definitely the closest thing to soy sauce. I haven’t made this recipe yet (I have to get the sherry and sesame oil first), but I’m planning to make it using the coconut aminos.
I ordered mine on Amazon, but then found that it was cheaper at the grocery store, so that’s where my next bottle will come from.
Jessica Fisher
Thanks for the tip about coconut aminos!
MgMama
I use coconut aminos as a replacement for soy sauce. The small bottle is expensive! But it works with little to no taste difference
Kara W
How long do you normally cook this? 10 min? 15 min? 20 min?
Jessica Fisher
Good catch. I forgot to add that part. Oops. 15 to 20 minutes. I edited the recipe.
Erica
What can I use in place of the sherry? I don’t usually keep that in my pantry. Thanks!
Jessica Fisher
A little more chicken broth would be fine. I love using sherry in cooking. Adds just a little bit of extra flavor.
Lmac
This looks delicious. I prefer the chicken cut up into bite size pieces. Would that work here, or would the chicken come out too dry?
Jessica Fisher
That should be fine. Just check it at ten minutes baking to see if the smaller pieces are done.
Judith
This looks like a WINNER! Thank you!
Jessica Fisher
I hope you like it!