5-Ingredient Cashew Chicken Ready in 20 Minutes
Tastes like takeout. Takes 20 minutes. Uses 5 ingredients.
It's one of those nights where you're already mentally exhausted before you've even opened the fridge. This cashew chicken is your answer. It hits all the notes of the takeout version — savory-sweet sauce, tender chicken, crunchy cashews — without a delivery wait or a pile of dishes. Five ingredients, one pan, about 20 minutes. The sauce does the heavy lifting, the cashews make it feel special, and you'll feel like you actually cooked something real tonight. Because you did.
Ingredients
- 1.5 lb boneless skinless chicken thighs — cut into 1-inch pieces; thighs stay juicier than breasts here
- 1 cup roasted salted cashews
- 0.33 cup hoisin sauce — the backbone of the sauce — find it in the Asian foods aisle
- 2 tbsp soy sauce — low-sodium works fine
- 3 unit scallions — sliced; whites and greens separated
- 1 tbsp neutral oil — vegetable, canola, or avocado oil
- 0.25 cup water — to loosen the sauce
Method
- 1 Pat chicken pieces dry with a paper towel and season lightly with a pinch of salt and pepper.
- 2 Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering, about 1 minute.
- 3 Add chicken in a single layer. Cook undisturbed for 3–4 minutes until golden on the bottom, then stir and cook another 2–3 minutes until cooked through.
- 4 While chicken cooks, whisk together hoisin sauce, soy sauce, and water in a small bowl or measuring cup.
- 5 Add the scallion whites to the pan and stir for 30 seconds.
- 6 Pour the sauce over the chicken and stir to coat. Let it bubble and thicken for 1–2 minutes.
- 7 Remove from heat and stir in the cashews so they stay crunchy.
- 8 Scatter scallion greens over the top and serve immediately over steamed rice.
Variations
- Vegetarian Swap — Use extra-firm tofu (pressed and cubed) instead of chicken. Press it well, pan-fry until golden on all sides before adding the sauce, and follow the rest of the recipe as written.
- Faster Swap — Use pre-cut chicken tenders or rotisserie chicken. With rotisserie, skip the searing step — just warm the shredded chicken in the sauce for 2 minutes.
- No Hoisin? — Mix 2 tbsp soy sauce, 1 tbsp honey, and 1 tsp sesame oil as a rough stand-in. It won't be identical but gets you in the same ballpark.
Notes
Don't skip patting the chicken dry — it's the difference between a golden sear and steamed, pale chicken. If your sauce thickens too fast, splash in a little more water. Leftovers reheat okay but the cashews will soften, so store them separately if you're planning ahead.
Equipment that helps
- Large skillet or wok — A wide, heavy pan gives the chicken enough surface area to sear instead of steam, which is key to getting that golden crust fast.
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