Cashew Chicken

A few weeks ago, we purchased a wok, courtesy of our friend +Karen Kerr,  from wokshop.com.  We have been experimenting with the wok and last night we made Cashew Chicken.  Here is the recipe:

Serves: 4 

MARINADE:
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon Chinese rice wine
1 teaspoon corn starch

CHICKEN:
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch cubes

Cooking SAUCE:

2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon Chinese rice wine
2 tablespoon oyster sauce or hoisin sauce
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon chili sauce (optional)

2 tablespoons peanut oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 small yellow onion, chopped
2-3 broccoli florets, cut into bite size pieces

1/2 cup snow peas

1/2 cup salted roasted cashews

Instructions

Marinate the chicken.  In a medium bowl, stir together the soy sauce, rice wine and cornstarch, until the cornstarch is dissolved. Add the chicken and stir gently to coat. Let stand at room temperature for 10 to 15 minutes.

Prepare the sauce: In a small bowl, mix together the soy sauce, rice wine, oyster/hoisin sauce, sesame oil, and chili sauce (if using). Set aside.

Heat a wok or large skillet over medium-high heat until a bead of water sizzles and evaporates on contact. Add the peanut oil and swirl to coat the base. Add the garlic and stir-fry until just aromatic, about 20 seconds.  Add the marinated chicken and stir-fry for until cooked.  Remove the chicken from the wok and keep warm.

Add the onions and cook until translucent.  Add the cashews and cook for 1 minute.  Add the broccoli and the snow peas and cook for 2-3 minutes.

Pour in the sauce and stir to coat the vegetables.  Let the sauce simmer for 2 minutes to thicken and then add the chicken.  Stir fry the chicken and vegetables for 1-2 minutes.  Serve over rice.

Cook’s Notes:

I used dark soy sauce and hoisin sauce making this recipe.  I also used chili sauce for the cooking sauce.  The original recipe used less oyster/hoisin sauce and the recipe could have used more.  When I make this again, I will use the amounts listed above to make more sauce to coat the chicken and the vegetables.