I’m kind of obsessed with cashews. Whenever there is a bowl of mixed nuts in front of me, those are the only nut I eat. When I go to the grocery store and allow myself to splurge on the bulk nut section, always cashews. When I make brownies or cookies that call for walnuts or pecans, I always substitute for, you guessed it, the cashews. Needless to say, this is a recipe I love! Who doesn’t enjoy sweet tender chicken, savory sauce, and the added crunch of the best nut ever?
This was another fairly easy recipe for me to throw together. I was able to snap a few shots, which means it definitely wasn’t overwhelming like the Spring Rolls here! I did forget to add the spring onions at the end (I substituted Chinese chives).
I also would probably have added a bit more seasoning. I’m not good at taste testing before I plate so sometimes I realize it would have been better with a little more fish sauce, a little less sugar, etc, after it’s too late to make any changes. I’m sure I’ll get better at this but this was one of the issues I had with this particular recipe. Specifically, I would have added more fish sauce.
So, if you’re ready for an easy recipe of chicken, tasty vegetables, and the crunchy awesomeness of cashews, gives this one a try! You won’t be disappointed.
Gai Pad Med Mamuang - Stir-Fried Cashew Chicken
Ingredients
- 70g (3 ounces) chicken (or tofu), thinly sliced
- 1 TBSP cashew nuts (yeah right, go for 2 … or heck, even 3!!)
- 30g (1 ounce) baby corn (or carrots), thinly sliced
- 1/2 onion, quartered and separated
- 30 g (1 ounce) ear mushrooms, think sliced (see notes)
- 10 g spring onion, cut into 3 cm length
- 1 bell chili (or red diced chili)
- 1 TBSP garlic, chopped
- 1.5 TBSP palm oil (vegetable or canola works too!)
- 1/2 tsp palm sugar (or white)
- 1 TBSP oyster sauce (or mushroom sauce)
- 1/2 TBSP fish cause (or soy sauce)
- 1/4 cup water
Notes:
- Mushrooms: use whatever kind you want but ear mushrooms (big dark flat mushrooms) work well.
- Bell Chili: Not sure what this is. I’ll do some research and get back to you!
- Vegetables: They say baby corn OR carrots. Why not both?!
Preparation: In my opinion, it is always important to prep and separate all your ingredients prior to cooking since many recipes (this one included) cook very fast and can get easily overwhelming for a beginning cook (like me!).
How to separate ingredients:
- Plate One: Garlic and Spring Onions (I used Chinese Chives). These are your first and last ingredients.
- Plate Two: Your choice of meat. I used chicken.
- Plate Three: This plate is all of your vegetables that are added at the same time. It’s easy just to tip the plate right in!
- Tabletop: All of your seasonings should be readily available on your counter.
Method:
- Place oil in pan with garlic. Fry until fragrant, stirring frequently. Do not let garlic burn!
- Add chicken and stir until cooked.
- Add cashew nuts and stir until lightly golden.
- Add baby corn, large onions, ear mushrooms, red diced chili, and stir well.
- Add water and season with sugar, oyster cause, fish sauce; stir again.
- Add spring onion and mix well. Turn off heat.
Notes:
- Just from reading this recipe, I might recommend adding the cashew nuts halfway through cooking up the chicken. I feel as though the chicken might get a little over cooked while waiting for the cashews to brown. Just a thought.
Ky Cooks Thai 