This cashew basil chicken is one of my all time favorites! Although, I feel like I say that a lot. It is inspired by a Chinese takeout dish that we love. When Clay was born we didn’t have the brain capacity or energy to cook so we did a lot of food delivery and this was a go to meal. Once we felt somewhat human again we decided to create a healthier version of the cashew basil chicken we’d ordered so many times. This recipe comes together in under 30 minutes which makes it perfect for a weeknight meal. We serve ours over rice but you can use cauliflower rice if you’d like to keep it grain free. You can also control the heat of the dish by adding or keeping out the jalapeno seeds. The more seeds the spicier the dish.

I hate slicing raw meat into bite sized pieces because it takes forever. When making this cashew basil chicken recipe I keep the thighs whole and then slice them after they are cooked. This adds more cook time but cuts down on the prep time. If you prefer to cook bite sized pieces then you will dredge the chicken the same but the cook time will be around 6-8 minutes total or until your chicken is cooked through. I’ve done it both ways and the end result is the exact same so you do whatever works best in your kitchen. Cashew basil chicken is always a hit in our kitchen and with our family.

Happy Cooking!

Want more Chinese takeout inspired dishes? Check out these posts:

• Cashew Chicken Lettuce Cups
• Orange Chicken

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Cashew Basil Chicken

Cashew Basil Chicken is an easy weeknight meal that is incredibly delicious. It is full of flavor with a bit of spice from the peppers and a hit of freshness from the basil.

Course Main Course

Cuisine Asian

Keyword Chicken, gluten free, paleo, weeknight meal

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes minutes

Servings 6

Ingredients

• 1 1/2- 2 lb boneless, skinless chicken thighs
• 2 bell peppers
• 2 jalapenos
• 1/2 onion
• 1 cup cashews
• 2/3 cup fresh basil leaves
• 3/4 cup + 1 TBSP tapioca flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp pepper
• 1 tsp granulated garlic

Sauce

• 3/4 cup bone broth
• 1/4 cup coconut aminos
• 2 TBSP honey
• 2 TBSP chili garlic sauce
• 1 TBSP rice vinegar
• 1 tsp fish sauce
• 1/4 tsp ground ginger

Instructions

• Dice onion. Deseed and chop bell pepper and jalapenos into bite sized pieces. If you like spicier meals keep the seeds in the jalapeno. For more mild meals, discard the jalapeno seeds.
• Roughly chop cashews into halves and pieces, set aside. Tear or slice basil into smalller pieces or ribbons, set aside.
• Combine sauce ingredients and set aside
• Make a slurry by combining 1 TBSP of tapioca flour and 2 TBSP water, set aside
• Preheat a large skillet over medium high heat and add 2 TBSP avocado oil
• Combine 1/4 cup tapioca flour with salt, pepper, and granulated garlic.
• Dredge the chicken thighs in the tapioca flour and add to the hot skillet. Cook for 6-8 minutes per side until chicken is browned and fully cooked. Depending on the size of your skillet you may need to work in batches. If so, dredge only the amount of chicken that will fit in your pan at one time. Remove chicken to a plate
• Add onion and cook for 3-5 minutes until translucent.
• Add peppers and cook for 3-4 minutes until they begin to soften. While the peppers cook chop the chicken into bite sized pieces
• Add sauce ingredients to the pan and bring to a boil
• If your slurry has separated, mix it. Then, pour it into the sauce and stir to combine.
• Reduce heat to medium and add the chicken and cashews back to the skillet. Let simmer for 2-3 minutes or until the sauce begins to thicken
• Remove skillet from heat and stir in basil
• Serve over rice and enjoy!