Crispy Thai Cashew Chicken
by This post may contain affiliate links.
Gluten free cashew chicken is marinated in a delicious Thai chili sauce, then coated in crushed cashews & baked into sweet, spicy, crunchy chicken bites!
While visiting my brother in Washington D.C. about a month ago, he put in a request for a couple of new recipes.
One of those requests was for a new recipe using Trader Joe’s Cashew Meal. He and his girlfriend Liz love using the cashew meal in another recipe they found online and wanted a new recipe that incorporated the ingredient.
When I returned home from the trip, I came up with this delicious Thai Cashew Chicken Recipe and set off to Trader Joe’s to pick up the cashew meal and prepare the dish.
When I arrived at Trader Joe’s I found out that their cashew meal had been discontinued literally that week. What are the chances?!
No worries, I thought, cashew meal is simply ground cashews. I picked up some whole cashews, came home and let my trusty food processor do the work!
What my brother likes about cashew meal, as opposed to almond meal, is that sweetness you get from the cashews.
That sweetness balanced perfectly with the spicy Thai chili chicken marinade in this recipe.
These crunchy little chicken bites have great flavor and a nice crispy texture, yet they’re baked instead of fried, and gluten-free, making them the perfect healthy alternative to fried chicken nuggets!
Crispy Thai Cashew Chicken Ingredients
- 2 tbsp sriracha
- 2 tbsp chili paste
- ¼ cup gluten free soy sauce
- ¼ cup honey
- 1 tbsp fish sauce
- 1 tbsp fresh lime juice
- 2 tsp fresh garlic (crushed)
- 1 tsp fresh ginger (grated)
- 1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts (sliced into small strips)
- 2 cups cashews
Crispy Thai Cashew Chicken Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Whisk the sriracha, chili paste, soy sauce, honey, fish sauce, lime juice, garlic and ginger together in a medium bowl.
Set ¼ cup of the sauce aside. Add the chicken to the remaining sauce.
Place in the refrigerator to marinate for 15 minutes.
Place the cashews in a food processor and blend into a fine crumb consistency.
Remove the chicken from the refrigerator and dredge in the crushed cashews.
Place the breaded chicken on an oiled wire rack on top of a baking sheet.
Place in the oven to bake for 30-35 minutes.
Remember that ¼ cup of sauce you set aside? Yup, that’s for serving on the side and dipping these delicious little bites into!
This chicken can be served on it’s own, on top of a salad, or over rice. I tried it each way, and honestly couldn’t pick a favorite. I loved it each way!
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Crispy Thai Cashew Chicken
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp sriracha
- 2 tbsp chili paste
- ¼ cup gluten free soy sauce
- ¼ cup honey
- 1 tbsp fish sauce
- 1 tbsp fresh lime juice
- 2 tsp fresh garlic, crushed
- 1 tsp fresh ginger, grated
- 1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, diced into small cubes
- 2 cups cashews
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Whisk the sriracha, chili paste, soy sauce, honey, fish sauce, lime juice, garlic and ginger together in a medium bowl.
- Set ¼ cup of the sauce aside.
- Add the chicken to the remaining sauce.
- Place in the refrigerator to marinate for 15 minutes.
- Place the cashews in a food processor and blend into a fine crumb consistency.
- Remove the chicken from the refrigerator and dredge in the crushed cashews.
- Place the breaded chicken on an oiled wire rack on top of a baking sheet.
- Place in the oven to bake for 30-35 minutes.
Nutrition Facts
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5 Comments on “Crispy Thai Cashew Chicken”
I substituted sweet Thai chili sauce for the chili paste and honey.
I think next time I will dredge them in egg prior to the cashews as many of my cashews fell off.
Served with lo mein.
Tasty tasty!
Excellent!
These turned out great! The sauce had the right amount of spice to it and the chicken remained moist. I did about half in the cashew dredge and the other half in corn flakes (not sure how many carbs that added 😉 ) I would say that I did prefer the ones rolled in corn flakes just because of how amazing the crispy texture paired with the delicious flavour of the chicken.
Hi Alison, Thanks so much for sharing! For those that aren’t gluten-free, the corn flakes sound like a delicious option 🙂 So glad that you enjoyed it!
YUM. This chicken looks seriously good.. I love how its baked and not fried especially!