What’s For Dinner Tonight? Cashew Chicken

Yesterday, home and looking to procrastinate from things I really had to do, I was flipping through some of my old recipes that I haven’t look at for years and got the urge  – the cooking urge that is.

I cook all the time, but sometimes I just get this unexplainable need to create in the kitchen – be it a new recipe, or some food thing that I have recently seen and have been tasting in my head for days and the craving to try it has overcome me.

Am I the only one who tastes things in her head on a regular basis?

Hence the Cashew Chicken and tonight’s dinner. The idea of a delicious easy stir fry with great Asian flavors and crunchy toasted cashews, just got the better of me. I could just taste the savory garlic and sweet  teriyaki chicken infused with that perfect amount of ginger tang . (Yum, yum yum – can’t you just taste it…see what I mean the cooking urge..lol)

So I got out my handy- dandy favorite kitchen pot – the wok – out, and the Cashew Chicken was born.

Even as I was cooking this recipe, I knew that this recipe was going to be better than what I was tasting in my head (which was pretty darn good as it was). Twenty minutes later, and a few bites into this dish, I knew I had a keeper and a great new What’s for Dinner Tonight dish for my weekly menu!

Cashew Chicken

Ingredients

1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch pieces
3 tablespoons teriyaki
2 tsp. minced, peeled, fresh ginger (or 2 1/2 tsp ginger powder)
3 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch
coarse salt
1/2 cup chicken broth
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoons rice vinegar
2 teaspoons sugar
1 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil (you can use vegetable oil if you don’t have)
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 red pepper, diced
1 yellow pepper diced
1/2 cup sliced mushrooms
2/3 cup unsalted cashews, toasted
2 green scallions, white and green parts separated and thinly sliced

Directions

In a large nonstick skillet pan on a med-high heat, toast the cashews for 1 1/2 minutes. Remove and set aside.

In a medium bowl, toss chicken with teriyaki, ginger, and 1 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch; season with salt. Refrigerate 30 minutes. In another bowl, combine broth, soy sauce, vinegar, sugar, and 2 teaspoons cornstarch. Set sauce aside.

In a large nonstick skillet, heat 1 tablespoon oil over medium-high heat. Add half the chicken and cook until golden and cooked through, about 5 minutes. Transfer chicken to a covered plate. Add 1 teaspoon oil to skillet and cook remaining chicken (reduce heat if chicken is over-browning). Transfer to plate.

To same skillet, add 1 teaspoon oil , garlic, peppers, mushrooms,  & scallions. Cook covered, stirring constantly, until garlic and peppers soften, about 8 minutes  Whisk sauce and add to skillet along with chicken. Cook until sauce thickens, about 30 seconds.

Top with cashews and serve with Spanish rice or noodles.