Cashew chicken

Adapted from Grace Young, Stir-Frying to the Sky’s Edge

Cashew chicken is a common dish in many Chinese restaurants. Most westernized versions, however, are heavy and unrefined. A true Cantonese cashew chicken is served in a very light sauce seasoned with ginger.

This recipe is easy to make and serves as a great introduction to the art and alchemy of a good stir fry. We’ve adapted this recipe from Grace Young’s superb book, Stir-Frying to the Sky’s Edge, which we thoroughly recommend as a kitchen essential for the cook who is interested in starting to make great stir-fry dishes at home.

Time

20 minutes total

Difficulty

easy

Special requirements

wok

Yield

800 g (servings 2 –4)

Ingredients

Weight

Volume

Procedure

Garlic, minced

10 g

1 tbsp

Soy sauce

5 g

1 tsp

Rice wine

6 g

1 tsp

Salt

2 g

½ tsp

Sugar

0.8 g

⅛ tsp

Cornstarch

4 g

1 tsp

Combine in a medium bowl an mix thoroughly.

Chicken thigh, skinless and boneless, cut into 0.5" / 1.3 cm cubes

400 g

1 lb

Add to marinade A and stir to combine.

Chicken broth

60 g

¼ cup

Soy sauce

5 g

1 tsp

Rice wine

36 g

2 tbsp

Cornstarch

4 g

½ tsp

Combine in a small bowl and set aside.

Heat an empty wok over high heat until a bead of water vaporizes within 2 seconds of contact.

Peanut oil

12 g

1 tbsp

Ginger, peeled and finely chopped

16 g

2 tbsp

Add to wok and stir fry for 10 seconds.

Push the ginger up the side of the wok.

Add chicken pieces B and spread evenly in a single layer. Leave undisturbed to let the chicken sear, 1 minute.

Stir-fry until the chicken has fully changed colour but not cooked through, another 1 minute

Peanut oil

12 g

1 tbsp

Add to wok and allow to heat for 10 seconds.

Sugar snap peas, strings removed

70 g

½ cup

Carrots, thinly sliced to around 0.1" / 2 mm

70 g

½ cup

Celery, thinly sliced to around 0.1" / 2 mm

70 g

½ cup

Roasted cashews, unsalted

70 g

½ cup

Salt

1 g

¼ tsp

Add to wok and stir fry until the sugar snaps are bright green, 1 minute.

Re-stir the broth mixture C and swirl it into the wok.

Stir-fry until the chicken is just cooked through, about 1 minute more.

Original: 2010. Adapted: 2014.

Notes

Good quality cashews go a long way to enhancing the final quality of this dish.

If you can’t find roasted cashews, you can roast them yourself by rolling them around in a dry fry pan over medium heat until they are lightly golden, around 5 minutes.

You can make this in a skillet if you don’t have a wok. Follow the same instructions.

This will comfortably serve 2 to 3 people as a main meal, with rice; or 4 people as a smaller dish in a multi-course meal.

You can reduce the fat content by reducing the oil to 8 g in D and E as well as halving the amount of cashews to 35 g.

(Chef notes) Modernist version:

* Make infused oil of ginger instead of ginger pieces (won’t burn in oil)

* Pressure marinate chicken pieces in iSi (include baking soda?)

* Dry vegetable surface by leaving in fridge exposed after prepping

* Sous vide chicken pièces in marinade to 67°C / 153°F

* Thicken bag juices + sauce C with xanthan; lower amount of chicken stock to 20 g (chicked juices will substitute) and leave out the cornstarch

* Dry cooked meat thoroughly

* Brown chicken pieces in wok in ginger oil then remove from wok; heat wok to 230°C / 446°F, measure with infrared thermometer

* Stir fry the vegetables and nuts in wok (reheat to 230°C / 446°F); leave for 1 minute without disturbing and repeat 1 more time

* Add sauce to wok with vegetables and simmer 1 minute.

* Remove wok from heat then add meat and stir to combine and gently reheat. Serve immediately with a garnish of coriander?

Making ahead

Prep the vegetables and store in the fridge uncovered for up to 24 hours. If storing for longer, seal in an air-tight container for up to 3 days.

Trim the chicken pieces of all unnecessary fat and store covered with a clean dish cloth for up to 24 hours. If storing for longer, cover with plastic wrap and store for up to 3 days.

Food pairings

Rice

Nutrition

Serving size 400 g; calories 592.6 kcal, kilojoules 2482.2 kJ, protein 43.8 g, carbohydrates 21.3 g, sugar 5.9 g, fat 34.5 g, saturated fat 6.9 g, unsaturated fat 33.8 g, trans fat 0 g, fiber 3.6 g, cholesterol 178 mg,

Type stir-fry

Author bhsimon

Yield

Servings

–

Serving size 200–400 g

Serve	Per serve
Energy (kcal)	592.6
Energy (kJ)	2482.2
Protein (g)	43.8
Fat (g)	34.5
Carbs (g)	21.3
Sugars (g)	5.9
Fiber (g)	3.6
Sodium (mg)	1092.3
Cholesterol (mg)	178

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