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This colorful 20 Minute Garlic Butter Cashew Chicken is inspired by everyone’s favorite restaurant-style cashew chicken. Only this is made healthier, quicker, and with a few tweaks that make it unique and even more delicious. The chicken (or use ground pork) and cashews are cooked in a golden buttery sweet-spicy sauce until caramelized around the edges. Then served simply with steamed rice and plenty of green onions. The addition of butter along with double the ginger (fresh ginger and pickled sushi ginger) are the secrets. It’s saucy, salty, tangy-sweet, and has just the right amount of spice. This dish is sure to become a family staple!
There are some recipe concepts that I have written down in my notes for less than a few minutes before I’m writing the ingredients down and testing the recipe. And then there are recipes like this cashew chicken, where I’ve jotted down the idea, but then let it sit. I’ve stared at this title, cashew chicken, for weeks now. Then just this week I finally decided to make this dish.
I needed the quick recipe for dinner. I’ve been testing seafood dishes all day and I wanted to try one last dish before calling it a day. This was the perfect quick dish and for whatever reason, I was excited to make it.
Ingredients
Hoisin sauce
- Tamari or soy sauce
- Real maple syrup
- Apple cider vinegar
- Sriracha
- Black pepper and chili flakes
- Sesame oil
Cashew Chicken
- Ground chicken
- Arrowroot powder or cornstarch
- Paprika
- Broccoli
- Salted butter
- Garlic
- Chopped fresh ginger
- Cashews
- Pickled ginger
- Green onions
Oddly, I had a lot of confidence the dish would come together just as quickly as I needed it to. And that it would still turn out both pretty and delicious at the same time.
And you know what? I was right. Not only is this the easiest to prepare, but I love the colors, and even more importantly, the taste! Inspired by our favorite takeout style cashew chicken, but made very easily at home with ground chicken and zero frying!
So it’s healthy too! We love that.
The details
With a 20 minute start to finish cook time, this is fast, simple, and easy. You’ll start with the sauce. It’s hoisin sauce, tamari (soy sauce), maple syrup, vinegar, and sriracha.
Now the chicken. To keep the recipe quick cooking and avoid frying pieces of chicken, I love to use ground chicken. I toss the chicken with cornstarch, paprika, and black pepper. The cornstarch helps the chicken get crispy and gives it a slight “breading”.
Pan-cook the chicken, then toss in butter, garlic, and ginger. Add the cashews and let the butter caramelize and brown around the chicken pieces. This is key.
Next, pour in the sauce and add some pickled ginger. Let the sauce bubble up and then reduce down to coat the chicken. I toss in broccoli for some greenery and literally, that’s it. The dish is done.
You’ll need rice for serving, and I like to top this off with some extra sauce. I also love adding some green onions and sesame seeds.
Flavor is one thing this recipe is definitely full of, yet it’s still really simple. Sweet, spicy, tangy, and salty – all the right flavors and they all hit so well together.
Plus, I really appreciate all the fresh colors – the best kind of recipe! Great for spring and summer!
Looking for other quick weeknight dinners? Here are some favorites:
20 Minute Thai Basil Beef Rolls
Chili Crisp Chicken Mango Cucumber Rice Bowl
30 Minute Sticky Thai Meatballs with Sesame Noodles
Better Than Takeout Sweet Thai Basil Chicken
Thai Basil Beef and Lemongrass Rice Bowls
Lastly, if you make this 20 Minute Garlic Butter Cashew Chicken, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
20 Minute Garlic Butter Cashew Chicken
Servings: 4
Calories Per Serving: 761 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Watch the How-To Reel
Ingredients
Sauce
- 1/2 cup hoisin sauce
- 1/4 cup tamari or soy sauce
- 1-2 tablespoons real maple syrup
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 1 tablespoon sriracha
- black pepper and chili flakes
Cashew Chicken
- 3 tablespoons sesame oil (or olive oil)
- 1 1/2 pounds ground chicken
- 1 tablespoon arrowroot powder or cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 1/2 cups broccoli
- 3 tablespoons salted butter
- 3-4 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh ginger
- 1 cup cashews
- 1/3 cup pickled ginger
- 4 green onions, chopped
Instructions
- 1. To make the sauce. Combine all ingredients in a glass jar. 2. In a large skillet, combine the oil, chicken, cornstarch, paprika, and black pepper. Cook over medium heat, breaking up the meat as it cooks until browned, about 5 minutes. Add the butter, garlic, ginger, and cashews. Cook 2 minutes, until the butter browns and the chicken gets crispy.3. Pour over 2/3 of the sauce. Cook until the sauce thickens slightly. Then, add the broccoli and pickled ginger. Cook another 2-5 minutes. Remove from the heat.4. Serve the chicken, broccoli, and remaining sauce over bowls of rice. Top with sesame seeds and green onion. Enjoy!
This post was originally published on May 3, 2023
First bite impression, I thought this was good, but it grew on me as I ate my meal! I felt like this needed more of a fresh crunch, so I served it with the Taylor Farms Sweet Kale Crunch salad, which seemed like an odd pairing but it’s what I had on hand. Turns out, it balanced the plate perfectly! The entire family LOVED this. (Should I tell you that my 19 year-old son tasted it, said it felt like an Asian sloppy joe, and put it on a toasted hamburger bun with mayo? Or is that too upsetting to mention? Probably should keep that to myself, haha.)
Hey Sarah,
Thanks for the thoughtful feedback after trying this recipe, I’m happy to hear it was a win!
Happy Holidays!🎄🎁
I made this for my family and everyone loved it. I found it pretty easy to make. Thanks for this recipe!
Hey Jiji,
Awesome! Thanks so much for trying this recipe, I’m so glad it turned out well for you! Happy Tuesday! x
We love how easy and tasty this dish is. It’s a family favorite.
Hey Stephanie,
Yay! Love to hear this recipe always turns out nicely for you, thanks for making it so often!🌼
Definitely a keeper and company worthy! YUM!!
Hey Jody,
Fantastic! Love to hear this recipe turned out well for you, thanks so much for making it! xT
Made this for my boyfriend yesterday – SO easy & so good oh my god!
Hi Emma,
Fantastic!! Thanks a bunch for making this recipe and your comment! So glad to hear it was enjoyed! xx
Family and I love this dish. It’s delicious and comes together easily. I lower the spicy for the kids and add more broccoli.
Hey Stephanie,
Happy Sunday!! I appreciate you trying this recipe and your comment, love to hear it was a winner!!
Hello, you mention ground chicken or pork. Is there a reason you don’t suggest ground turkey?
Hey Belkys,
You could totally do ground turkey as well:) I hope you love this recipe, please let me know if you give it a try! xx
Such a good and quick dish but I will say, it goes from a 4 star to a 5 star as leftover the following days. The flavors just soak in so well! I joked that I’d make this dish to intentionally eat it the following day re heated 😅
Thanks so much, Jessica! I’m so glad to hear this dish was enjoyed, I appreciate you giving it a try! xxT
Hello! I love your recipes, but I could not get this crispy or with that deep carmelized flavor! It was a soppy mess. I didn’t overcrowd the pan…any ideas? I’d like to try with cubed chicken next time.
Hey Kari,
Thanks so much for trying this recipe, so sorry to hear you had some issues! I really find I get the best crispy chicken using a cast iron skillet and then the cornstarch that is used in step 2 should help to thicken and caramelize the sauce. Sounds like it may have needed to cook longer or on higher heat. I hope this helps! xT
Thank you! It could be my pan. 🙂
I’ve made this amazingly easy recipe TWICE this week! It is so quick to prepare! These ingredients create a delicious symphony of flavors. I made the recipe as written except added a quarter cup of chicken broth because I am a sauce girl. This will be a favorite go-to for a quick tasty meal. Thank you!!
Thanks so much, BeBe! So glad to hear this dish was enjoyed, I appreciate you making it! XxT
Very good! I added fresh ginger when cooking and then garnished with the pickled ginger. It would be nice if I can find a low sodium hoisen sauce as the sauce was a little salty. I put it over quinoa because thats what we has left over in the fridge. Better then anything you would get at a Chinese restaurant though!
Hi Dave,
Fantastic! Thank you so much for giving this recipe a try. I love to hear it turned out well for you! xT
Do you think this could work with diced chicken fillet instead of mince ?
Hey Julie,
Totally, that will work nicely for you! I hope you love this recipe! xT
Delish! The sriracha and pickled ginger make this dish! I was out of broccoli, digging through the veg bin. I had red and yellow peppers and zucchini, made for a delicious treat! The crunchy bits, oh my
Thanks so much, KJ! Love to hear this recipe was enjoyed, I appreciate you making it! xT