Description
Slow Cooker Cashew Chicken is a flavorful and comforting dish that beats takeout with its tender breaded chicken pieces cooked in a savory, tangy sauce loaded with cashews. Perfectly balanced with soy sauce, vinegar, and a hint of sweetness, this slow cooker recipe delivers a delicious meal with minimal effort.
Ingredients
Units
Scale
Chicken
- 2 pounds chicken breasts boneless skinless, About 4 pieces, cut into 1 inch pieces
- 3 Tablespoons Cornstarch
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 Tablespoon canola oil
Sauce and Extras
- 1/2 cup soy sauce low sodium
- 4 Tablespoons rice wine vinegar
- 4 Tablespoons ketchup
- 2 Tablespoons sweet chili sauce
- 2 Tablespoons brown sugar
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1 cup cashews
Instructions
- Coat the Chicken: Combine cornstarch and black pepper in a resealable food storage bag. Add the chicken pieces and shake well to coat each piece evenly with the cornstarch mixture.
- Brown the Chicken: Heat canola oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Brown the chicken pieces for about 2 minutes on each side until lightly golden. Then transfer the browned chicken to the slow cooker.
- Prepare the Sauce: In a small bowl, mix together the soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, ketchup, sweet chili sauce, brown sugar, minced garlic, grated fresh ginger, red pepper flakes, and cashews.
- Add Sauce to Chicken: Pour the prepared sauce over the chicken in the slow cooker. For softer cashews, add them during cooking; for crunchier cashews, add just before serving.
- Slow Cook: Cover and cook on LOW for 4 hours until the chicken is tender and fully cooked.
- Serve: Serve the cashew chicken hot, ideally over steamed rice for a complete meal. This recipe yields 6 servings.
Notes
- If the sauce tastes too salty, use low sodium soy sauce to reduce saltiness.
- If you prefer more sauce, you can double the sauce ingredients or increase by 1.5 times.
- For crunchier cashews, add them at the end of cooking instead of during the slow cook.
- Pair this dish with white or brown rice for a well-rounded meal.
- Make sure to cut chicken into uniform 1-inch pieces for even cooking.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving
- Calories: 360 kcal
- Sugar: 8 g
- Sodium: 580 mg
- Fat: 15 g
- Saturated Fat: 2.5 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 11.5 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 20 g
- Fiber: 2 g
- Protein: 32 g
- Cholesterol: 85 mg
