Chicken with Cashew Nuts
کاجو والا چکن
Chicken with cashew nuts is the mild, elegant dish on a Pakistani Chinese menu, often ordered for elders and anyone avoiding chili. Tender chicken and crisp vegetables are tossed in a light brown sauce, and a handful of golden, toasted cashews adds crunch and a buttery richness. It's a quick stir-fry that comes together in under fifteen minutes once everything's chopped.
- ⏱ Total: 32 min
- Prep: 20 min
- Cook: 12 min
- Easy
- Serves 4
Method
Tap a step when it is done.
Mix the chicken with the egg white, 1 tablespoon of cornflour and 1 tablespoon of soy sauce. Leave for 15 minutes.
Toast the cashews in a dry karahi over medium-low heat for 3–4 minutes, shaking the pan, until golden. Tip them onto a plate.
Heat 2 tablespoons of oil on high heat and cook the chicken for 3–4 minutes until just done. Lift it out.
Add the remaining oil, garlic and ginger and stir for 20 seconds. Add the onion, capsicum and carrot and stir-fry for 2 minutes.
Add the remaining soy sauce, sugar, white pepper and water, bring to a boil and thicken with 1 teaspoon of cornflour mixed with a little water.
Return the chicken and cashews, toss for a minute, and finish with spring onions. Serve with rice.
Kitchen notes
Add the cashews at the very end so they stay crunchy; left in the sauce, they soften quickly.
Toast cashews on low heat and keep them moving. They go from golden to burnt very quickly.
The mild choice
Every Pakistani Chinese order needs balance. Alongside the fiery Szechuan and the tangy Manchurian, there’s usually one gentle dish, and chicken with cashew nuts fills that role well. It’s savoury rather than sweet or hot, and the cashews make it feel special without making it heavy.
Toasting makes the difference
Raw cashews are soft and bland; toasted, they turn crisp, golden and buttery. Toast them first in a dry pan over low heat and set them aside, then add them back right at the end so they keep their crunch.
Cut everything to match
For a stir-fry like this, cut the chicken and vegetables into similar bite-sized pieces, roughly the size of a cashew, so every spoonful gets a bit of everything and it all cooks at the same rate.
Serving
Serve with plain rice or fried rice, and pair it with a spicier dish such as chilli chicken or Szechuan chicken so there’s something for everyone.
Questions people ask
Can I use roasted salted cashews?
Yes. Skip the toasting step and reduce the soy sauce slightly, since the nuts add salt.
Is this dish spicy?
No. It has only white pepper, which gives gentle warmth. Add a few dried red chilies with the garlic if you'd like some heat.
What can I use instead of cashews?
Peanuts or almonds both work. Toast them the same way.
Nutrition (estimate, per serving)
- Calories
- 400
- Protein
- 32 g
- Fat
- 23 g
- Carbs
- 16 g
