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Move over take-out! Slow Cooker Cashew Chicken is the new favorite in town. It’s tender, tangy, sweet, and spicy. It has something for everyone.
I promise this is one of the best recipes you’ll make in your slow cooker all year.
The 4 Top Reasons This Recipe Is So Good
- The sauce is tangy with just the right amount of heat.
- The chicken turns out moist and fork tender.
- The cashews give this dish a great little crunch.
- It’s so easy!
Ingredients
Chicken Breasts – I used boneless skinless chicken breast.
Cashews – I prefer the cashew halves over the whole cashews for this recipe.
Rice Wine Vinegar – I find that rice wine vinegar is sweeter and lighter than white vinegar which tends to be stronger and bolder.
Soy Sauce – I always use low sodium soy sauce in any recipe that calls for soy sauce.
Scallions – The scallions in this recipe are for garnish. I also used white sesame seeds (not pictured) for garnish.
How To Make Slow Cooker Cashew Chicken
- Dice the bell pepper into chunks and ginger into small pieces. Set them aside.
- Cut the chicken into cubes and toss the cubed chicken pieces with the cornstarch.
- Cook the chicken chunks in extra virgin olive oil until they are browned on all sides. You will need to do this in batches.
- Add the following ingredients directly into the slow cooker – soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, brown sugar, sweet chili sauce, red pepper flakes, chopped ginger, and ketchup.
- Mix the sauce, add the chicken, and cook on high for 3-4 hours. Add the bell pepper when there is 1 hour of cooking time left.
- When the time is up, stir in the cashews.
- Serve with white rice and garnished with sliced scallions and white sesame seeds.
Frequently Asked Questions
Absolutely! If you are a dark meat lover, you can easily substitute the chicken breasts with boneless skinless chicken thighs. You can even use lean pork, like pork tenderloin if you prefer.
When you toss the meat into cornstarch and then cook it on high heat, the cornstarch serves to seal in the juices and help maintain moisture. It also works as a barrier so the meat doesn’t burn quickly. And probably one of the most important functions in this recipe is that it thickens the sauce as the meat and sauce cook together in the slow cooker.
Yes, I would say this recipe is a bit on the spicier side. But you can certainly tone it down by reducing the amount of red pepper flakes or not using them at all. It will still taste fantastic.
Yes, it’s very adaptable to cooking in the oven. Simply follow all of the steps until you get to the point where you start adding ingredients to the slow cooker. Preheat the oven to 375° and cook the chicken and sauce in a shallow baking dish for 45-50 minutes. Add the veggies 1/2 through the cooking time.
Krazy Kitchen Mom Tips
- Buying fresh ginger – Fresh ginger is sold in large clumps called fingers and is sold by weight. Believe me when I tell you that your local market doesn’t expect you to buy a pound of ginger, especially when most recipes call for 1-2 teaspoons or tablespoons. Simply break off the amount of ginger you need. At the checkout, it will be weighed and you’ll be surprised to see that you just bought $0.25 cents worth of ginger.
- Peeling fresh ginger – Peeling fresh ginger is easy. Simply use a teaspoon, start at one end of the ginger piece, and slide the spoon down it lengthwise. The skin peels right off.
- Storing fresh ginger – You can store whole pieces of ginger in your refrigerator for 3-4 weeks. Store it in a small zip-top bag in the vegetable crisper.
- Freezing fresh ginger – you can also freeze fresh ginger by peeling it and chopping it and storing it in a freezer zip-top bag for up to 6 months.
- Add more veggies – this recipe is very adaptable for veggies lovers. You can add broccoli, edamame, celery, and even water chestnuts. I recommend adding the veggies 2/3 of the way through the cooking time so they keep some of their natural crunchiness.
More Easy Recipes You Might Like
- Easy Weeknight Pepper Steak
- Sweet and Tangy Amish Macaroni Salad
- Grilled Chicken Caprese Chicken
- Homemade Bruschetta
- Fresh Mango Salsa
Slow Cooker Cashew Chicken
Ingredients
- 2 lbs. boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 1 green pepper
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil substitute canola oil
- 3 tbsp corn starch
- 1/2 cup soy sauce low sodium recommended
- 4 tbsp ketchup
- 1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
- 2 tbsp brown sugar
- 2 tbsp sweet red chili sauce
- 1 teaspoon fresh chopped ginger
- 1/2 – 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1 cup whole cashews or cashew halves
- 1 tbsp chopped scallions for garnish optional
- 1 tbsp sesame seeds for garnish optional
Instructions
- Dice the bell pepper into chunks and ginger into small pieces. Set them aside.
- Cut the chicken into cubes and toss the cubed chicken pieces with the cornstarch.
- Cook the chicken chunks in extra virgin olive oil until they are browned on all sides. You will need to do this in batches.
- Add the following ingredients directly into the slow cooker – soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, brown sugar, sweet chili sauce, red pepper flakes, chopped ginger, and ketchup.
- Mix the sauce, add the chicken and cook on high for 3-4 hours.
- Add the bell pepper when there is 1 hour cooking time left.
- When the time is up, stir in the cashews.
- Serve with white rice and garnish with sliced scallions and sesame seeds.
Love the flavors going on in this dish (all of my favs!) plus the crunch from the nuts!!
We’ve been using our slow cooker a lot as it’s so cold here. This dish looks so delicious, I can’t wait to try it!
Am looking for when the cashews go in and don’t see it.
Add them at the end of the cooking time.