Cashew Chicken stir-fry

I want to talk about menu planning.  As someone who loves to cook and eat healthy meals at home – I find it imperative to plan out what I’m going to make for dinner throughout the week.   I honestly do not know how or what people eat if they don’t plan in advance – I guess they just go to the grocery store a lot or concoct a meal on the fly each night.   Personally I love having a list of meals that I know I have all the ingredients for that week.  Menu planning also = effective, efficient grocery shopping trips.  That is except when your grocery store is out of a key ingredient or you forget it.   That is exactly what happened to me one night – I completely forgot to buy cilantro for the dinner I had planned that night – luckily I was able to switch course without a second thought since I had this easy dinner on my menu plan for the week.

We eat a lot of stir-fries mostly because they are quick, easy and healthy.  I love the simple sauce and the crunchy cashews – as well as the red peppers, which are one of my very favorite ingredients.  Now don’t forget to add this onto your menu plan for next week – enjoy! 

Ingredients

• 2 Tbsp. cornstarch
• 6 Tbsp. water or chicken broth
• 2 Tbsp. hoisin sauce
• 1 tsp. Siracha
• 1 Tbsp. white wine vinegar
• 2 Tbsp. soy sauce
• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/2 cup roasted, unsalted cashews
• 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, chopped into bite-size pieces
• salt and pepper, to taste
• red bell pepper, cut into strips
• 3-4 green onions, thinly sliced
• Rice, for serving

Directions

1. Cook rice according to package directions.

2. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine cornstarch and water/chicken broth and whisk until smooth. Stir in hoisin, vinegar, Siracha and soy sauce and set aside.

3. Add oil to wok or large skillet and set over medium heat.  Season chicken with salt and pepper, then add to wok. Cook until chicken is no longer pink and remove from skillet with a slotted spoon and set aside.

4. Add garlic and cashews to the now empty skillet and stir until garlic is golden and fragrant.  Then add pepper strips and cornstarch mixture. Continue cooking, stirring frequently, for 5-7 minutes or until sauce has thickened.  Return the chicken to the skillet and stir to combine and coat with sauce.  Stir in all but 2 tablespoons of the green onions.

5. Serve with rice and top with remaining green onions.

Source: adapted from Cook like a Champion

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