I’m sorry if you have been waiting for me to post some new recipes. I have been spending a lot of time researching, learning, and making changes to make this blog successful. Hopefully you’ve noticed the face lift that I have given to the blog. I’m still working on figuring out a logo (I’m open to ideas and suggestions) but the problem is I’m not very artistic and I don’t want to pay an arm and a leg for someone to design one for me.
I’ve also been trying to practice and improve my food photography and editing skills. I’m a bit of a perfectionist so it’s been hard to improve and then look back at older photos because I think: “What the heck! That looks like crap!” and then want to remove the post until I can make the food again and take a new picture. So yeah, a lot of my recipes are on the menu for the near future (but I’ll leave them posted so you can enjoy the food and see how much I’ve improved). 🙂
Sometimes Asian dishes sit heavy in my stomach (especially when eating at buffets) but this cashew chicken is pretty light since it is cooked in just a tiny bit of oil. I also like that it has some fresh crisp veggies to add color and a refreshing taste. If you want to go even healthier use brown rice. My husband isn’t a huge fan of it so I just sneak it in by doing a mix of half white and half brown (and he thought it was great!). Oh and it takes less than 30 minutes to make!
Cashews are delicious in this Cashew Chicken recipe but if you happen to be allergic or you just don’t like nuts (say what!?) you can totally leave them out since they are only sprinkled on top just before serving.
Cashew Chicken
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1/3 cup chicken broth
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon hoisin sauce
- 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce, divided
- 3 teaspoons sesame oil, divided
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into 1-inch pieces
- 1 1/2 cups fresh snow peas
- 1/2 cup shredded carrots
- 1 8 ounce can sliced water chestnuts, drained
- 1/2 cup salted cashews, toasted
- 1 green onion, chopped
- sesame seeds, for garnish
- 2 cups cooked rice, for serving with chicken
Instructions
- In a small bowl, mix together cornstarch, broth, sugar, vinegar, hoisin sauce, ginger, salt, and 1 tablespoon soy sauce. Set aside.
- Heat 2 teaspoons sesame oil in a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken and 1 tablespoon soy sauce and stir-fry for 7-8 minutes until pieces are cooked through. Remove from pan and cover to keep warm.
- Add 1 teaspoon sesame oil to the pan along with the snow peas and carrots and stir-fry over medium-high heat for 1 minute or until they are crisp-tender.
- To the pan, stir in water chestnuts, chicken, and sauce. Bring the mixture to a boil and cook until sauce has thickened (about 1 minute).
- Sprinkle chicken with cashews, green onions, and sesame seeds and serve over rice.
Recipe Source: adapted from Taste of Home (no Sherry, ground ginger instead of fresh, shredded carrots instead of whole, more cashews, added green onion and sesame seeds, didn’t marinate chicken…)
Ashley says
Tried this recipe for dinner tonight – super quick and delicious. My husband thought it was restaurant quality. Will definitely be making this again!
Melanie says
Yay! I’m glad you both liked it. And isn’t it the best when your husband tells you your cooking is restaurant quality! 🙂
Judi says
I loved your header with the pomegranates. In fact I thought your page looked great and professional and I love your photos! Of course, I haven’t done the research you have been doing to make a blog successful! I just do my blog for my own record keeping and for my family and friends 🙂 who all live far away! Are you having some good traffic? I am enjoying watching your blog evolve though and I am a big fan of your blog! Have a great weekend Melanie!
Judi 🙂
Melanie says
Thanks Judi! I think you are one of my biggest fans and I really appreciate your support and all your comments.
My traffic has been okay. It’s been pretty steady which is good but I would like to see a gradual increase. Traffic spikes when I get photos on foodgawker but I need to work on promoting my site to get consistent followers. It’s going good though. I just need to be patient. 🙂