Cashew chicken stir fry is a simple yet flavorful weeknight meal that works great for reheat meal prep lunches! Made with a hoisin sesame sauce and served with broccoli and rice.
Stir fries are a great way to mix up your weekly meal prep, and offer a lot of flavor variations and options - from maple ginger cashew chicken to honey sriracha chicken stir fry, and this cashew chicken stir fry!
Cashew chicken stir fry is so simple to throw together, but delivers big on flavor! If you're looking for a classic meal that the whole family will enjoy, packed with healthy veggies, protein, crunchy cashews and fluffy rice - you're in the right place!
Best of all, you can meal prep it in two different ways: cook ahead and reheat, or prep the ingredients ahead and cook when you're ready to enjoy.
reasons you'll love this recipe
- the chicken cooks up to be so tender and delicious in the hoisin sesame sauce - even tastier than takeout!
- it works well for meal prep as reheat lunches, or you can prep the ingredients ahead and cook later
- it's a healthy, balanced meal that the whole family will enjoy
recipe video
Watch the video below to see how to cook this recipe! You can find more of my recipe videos on my YouTube channel.
Ingredient notes
- Chicken - we used boneless skinless chicken breasts for this recipe, but boneless skinless chicken thighs work interchangeably
- Broccoli - sauté or steam your broccoli! See how to prep and steam broccoli here!
- Rice - cook up a batch of Instant Pot jasmine rice, basmati rice, or even brown rice
- Cashews - for that signature flavor. You can omit, or swap for another nut such as slivered almonds.
- Soy sauce - can be swapped for soy tamari or coconut aminos. We prefer using low sodium soy sauce!
- Hoisin sauce - thick, savory and a bit sweet, hoisin sauce can be found in the international section of your grocery store.
- Cornstarch - can be swapped with equal volume arrowroot starch
step by step directions
Combine Sauce
In a ½ pint mason jar or salad dressing shaker, combine the hoisin sauce, soy sauce, rice vinegar, water, sesame oil, cornstarch and garlic. Shake until combined.
Cook Broccoli
Add 1 tablespoon olive oil to a pan and heat over medium heat. Add the broccoli and cook for 5-7 minutes, or until cooked to your liking. Transfer to a clean plate.
Cook Chicken
Add another 1 tablespoon olive oil to the pan and add chicken. Season with salt and pepper. Cook for 5-7 minutes, until cooked through and no longer pink.
Add Sauce
Shake up sauce, then pour over the chicken. Stir for 1-2 minutes, until sauce is thickened.
portion out
Remove from heat, sprinkle with green onions and cashews, and serve with the broccoli over rice.
Meal Prep
This stir fry works for meal prep in two different ways:
- prep ahead but don't cook - (3-4 days ahead; depends on the dates on your chicken) chop your veggies and chicken, shake up your sauce. This will save valuable time when you go to cook up your dinner.
- cook ahead - cook your stir fry, portion out with broccli and rice, and store in the fridge (up to 4 days) or the freezer (up to 3 months). Note that the cashews will soften if stored with the stir firy - store them seperately and add fresh if you want the crunch
FAQ
Absolutely! You could swap the rice for cauliflower rice, or zucchini noodles!
Sure! Just ensure that your hoisin sauce and soy sauce are gluten-free. Coconut aminos is a great gluten-free swap for soy sauce.
That would be delicious! See 7 chicken marinade recipes you can freeze here - and tips for freezing your chicken in a marinade.
Substitutions
This cashew chicken stir fry is a very flexible recipe, and can be easily customized to your liking! Here are a few variations you could try:
- swap the sauce for one of these 7 stir fry sauces
- swap protein for boneless skinless chicken thighs, tofu, or pork!
- swap rice for cauliflower rice, quinoa, or zucchini noodles
- broccoli can be swapped for cauliflower, a stir fry veggie blend, or pretty much any vegetable such as bell peppers, spinach, broccolini, or bok choy!
Storage
- Fridge - portion out with rice and broccoli, and store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
- Reheat - heat in the microwave until steaming hot.
- Freezer - freeze for up to 3 months.
- Thaw - in the fridge overnight before reheating in the microwave!
Did you make this? Tag me on social @sweetpeasandsaffron and be sure to leave a comment and rate the recipe!
Cashew Chicken Stir Fry
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts cut into 1 inch cubes; see note 1
- Salt + pepper
- 4-6 cups broccoli florets see note 2
Cashew sauce
- 2 tablespoons hoisin sauce
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce I recommend reduced sodium; see note 3
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 2 tablespoons water
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil see note 4
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch see note 5
- 2 cloves garlic
To serve
- ½ cup cashews
- green onions ¼ cup or to your preference
Instructions
- Combine- in a ½ pint mason jar or salad dressing shaker, combine the hoisin sauce, soy sauce, rice vinegar, water, sesame oil, cornstarch and garlic. Shake until combined.
- Cook broccoli- add 1 tablespoon olive oil to a pan and heat over medium heat. Add the broccoli and cook for 5-7 minutes, or until cooked to your liking. Transfer to a clean plate.
- Cook chicken- add another 1 tablespoon olive oil to the pan and add chicken. Season with salt and pepper. Cook for 5-7 minutes, until cooked through and no longer pink.
- Add sauce- shake up sauce, then pour over the chicken. Stir for 1-2 minutes, until sauce is thickened.
- Garnish- remove from heat, sprinkle with green onions and cashews, and serve with the broccoli over rice.
Tips:
- Swap protein for boneless skinless chicken thighs, tofu, or pork
- Broccoli can be swapped for cauliflower, a stir fry veggie blend, or pretty much any vegetable such as bell peppers, spinach, broccolini, or bok choy
- for gluten-free, swap for tamari, coconut aminos or liquid soy seasoning
- toasted or un-toasted sesame oil both work fine
- cornstarch may be substituted with an equal volume of arrowroot starch
- Fridge - portion out with rice and broccoli, and store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
- Reheat - heat in the microwave until steaming hot.
- Freezer - based on our experience, this recipe should freeze well, however, we have not tested this. You could try freezing with rice for up to 3 months.
- Thaw - in the fridge overnight before reheating in the microwave.
Nutrition Information
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Jennifer says
So good! Made and froze this in portions this weekend and just had the first one for lunch.
Ben | Sweet Peas & Saffron says
Hi Jennifer, so happy to hear this.😉
Thanks for sharing
Jennifer says
Have some chicken thighs right now that I need to use for some lunch prep and saw this. However, green onions and cashews appear in the directions, but not in the ingredients.
What are the quantities and any other details about these two ingredients?
Ben says
Hi Jennifer,
The green onions and cashews are garnishing to be added at the end. More information is listed on the recipe card.
Jennifer says
Ben, I see no information on the quantities for either garnish anywhere on the page -- not on the recipe "card" not in the step-by-step pictures, nowhere.
Denise Bustard says
Hi Jennifer, thank you for pointing that out! I've updated the recipe card with quantities.