Sichuan Cashew Chicken

Name: Sichuan Cashew Chicken
Yield: 2
Cuisine: Chinese
Ingredients: chicken breasts; egg whites; cornstarch; salt; vegetable oil; green bell peppers; bamboo shoots; cashew nuts; garlic; rice wine; monosodium glutamate; soybeans (daizu); soy sauce or tamari (for gluten-free); sugar; vinegar; salt

Submitted by GB REAM

Sichuan cashew chicken stir-fried with velveted chicken, toasted cashews, bamboo shoots, and green peppers in a soybean paste and rice wine sauce. Restaurant-style Chinese at home.

YIELD

2 servings

PREP

15 min

COOK

25 min

READY

40 min

This Chinese stir-fry uses the velveting technique that gives restaurant cashew chicken its signature silky texture. Diced chicken breast gets dipped in egg white and cornstarch before a quick fry in hot oil. That thin coating seals in moisture and creates a delicate crust that holds up against the sauce.

The sauce is where the Sichuan personality comes through. Soybean paste, soy sauce, sugar, and vinegar combine into a sweet-savory-tangy glaze that’s bolder and more complex than the gloppy brown sauce you’d get from a takeout container. The vinegar adds a sharp edge that cuts through the richness of the fried chicken and cashews.

Fry the cashews separately in moderately hot oil until lightly browned. They go from toasted to burnt in a blink, so pull them early. They’ll continue darkening off the heat.

Everything comes together fast in the final stir-fry. Garlic, bamboo shoots, and peppers hit the wok first, then the velveted chicken and cashews, a splash of rice wine, and the sauce. High heat, fast hands, done.

Chef Tips

Cut the chicken, peppers, and bamboo shoots to the same ½-inch size. Uniform pieces cook evenly and look professional.
Velvet the chicken in oil that’s hot but not smoking. Too hot and the coating burns before the chicken cooks through.
Have the sauce mixed and ready in a bowl before you start stir-frying. There’s no time to measure once the wok is hot.

Variations

Add dried Sichuan peppercorns to the sauce for authentic numbing heat (ma la).
Swap cashews for peanuts for a more traditional Kung Pao-style dish.
Toss in dried red chilies with the garlic for visible heat and smoky flavor.

Ingredients

OUNCES CHICKEN BREAST

LARGE EGG WHITE *

TEASPOON CORNSTARCH

PINCH SALT *

VEGETABLE OIL
for fying, to taste *

EACH GREEN BELL PEPPER

3 ½

OUNCES BAMBOO SHOOT
parboiled

OUNCES CASHEW NUTS

TEASPOON GARLIC
chopped

TABLESPOON RICE WINE

PINCH MONOSODIUM GLUTAMATE
optional *

Sauce

TABLESPOON SOYBEANS (DAIZU)
paste

TABLESPOON SOY SAUCE OR TAMARI (FOR GLUTEN-FREE)

TEASPOONS SUGAR

TABLESPOON VINEGAR

TEASPOON SALT

Directions

Dice the chicken breasts into ½ inch pieces. dip in the egg white and then in the cornstarch mixed with a pinch of salt.
Heat some oil until fairly hot and fry the diced chichen, drain.
Slice the peppers in half vertically, remove the seeds, stems and pith. cut into ½ inch squares.
Cut the parboiled bamboo shoots to the same size as the peppers. mix the sauce ingredients together in a bowl.
Fry the cashew nuts in moderately hot oil until they are lightly browned and crunchy.
Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in the wok and stir fry the garlic, bamboo shoots and the peppers and stir fry.
Add the chicken and cashew nuts, sprinkle with rice wine, and pour in the sauce. Stir fry all the ingredients briefly over a high heat and add a pinch of msg (optional) to heighten the flavor.