This Instant Pot Cashew Chicken is a delicious copycat of your favorite Chinese takeout dish, and it’s made with ingredients you already have on hand in your pantry!
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This Instant Pot Cashew Chicken is the very best copycat of Chinese takeout that you can imagine and it all comes together in one pot so it’s the easiest dinner idea ever!
No more dirtying a whole bunch of different bowls and pans, just add all the ingredients, pressure cook, stir in your veggies at the end and you’re done!
The sauce is even made up of mostly ingredients that you should already have on hand at home in your pantry so there’s no special trip to the store needed – just you and a delicious stir fry ready on the fly!
I love making Asian dishes in the Instant Pot because it’s way faster and easier than cooking up a traditional stir fry, and you can even cook the rice or noodles, chicken and sauce all in one as seen in this Instant Pot Orange Chicken or this Instant Pot Lo Mein.
It’s obviously versatile enough for pasta, soups and curries too but Chinese takeout copy-cat recipes are probably some of my favourites.
Stovetop Cashew Chicken
This Instant Pot Cashew Chicken can also be converted into a stovetop version super easily so if you don’t have an Instant Pot there’s nothing to fear!
I obviously prefer the Instant Pot version because you don’t have to be as hands on with the cooking time but sometimes you just want a quick stir fry – in that case you will saute the onions, celery and chicken with the sauce ingredients and cook your rice separately, adding in the zucchini and red pepper within the last 2-3 minutes of cooking time.
Both vegetables cook very quickly so you don’t need to saute them for very long. Add some green onions and sesame seeds on top and you’re set!
Instant Pot Cashew Chicken Sauce
This cashew chicken sauce is SO easy and as I mentioned earlier, you likely already have all the sauce ingredients on hand at home in your pantry! This recipe uses mainly soy sauce, garlic, brown sugar, hoisin sauce and chicken broth so it’s not too many ingredients.
If necessary, you can even just use more soy sauce and brown sugar if you don’t have hoisin sauce on hand – just go ahead and double the amounts of each ingredient and you will replicate a similar taste without having to use a bunch of different ingredients.
If you like your cashew chicken spicy you can also add in a little bit of sriracha or chili garlic paste, and if you want a hint of sesame you can also swap out the vegetable oil for sesame oil so you can go ahead and play with this recipe a little bit.
Of course you can also change up the veggies that you’re using in this Instant Pot Cashew Chicken too – I prefer zucchini and red pepper because both will become slightly cooked when you let them sit in the hot pot of sauce and chicken, but you can use whatever veggies you have on hand too.
Mushrooms or carrots would be a great addition to this recipe but they are heartier veggies that take longer to cook so I would recommend you cook them on high pressure along with the chicken instead of stirring them in at the end. But if you decide to go with broccoli or another veggie that tenderizes quickly then I would just stir it in at the end.
It’s up to you to get creative as you choose!
Will you be making this Instant Pot Cashew Chicken?
It’s a delicious, healthy weeknight dinner that’s full of veggies and it’s so easy you can also use it as your meal prep for the work week!
If you try any of my recipes be sure to let me know on Facebook or in the comments – I’d love to see what you come up with!
Grab some glass meal prep bowls if you plan on packing this Chicken Pasta Bake in the freezer and defrosting in the microwave.
Or these aluminum foil containers are perfect for re-heating straight from the freezer to oven.
And of course I get all my free-range chicken from Butcher Box!
5-Day Instant Pot Challenge!
Learn how to use your Instant Pot to meal prep by subscribing to our newsletter!
Instant Pot Cashew Chicken
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 yellow onion, chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 3 celery stalks, chopped
- 3 medium-sized boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1 inch pieces
- 1/4 cup hoisin sauce
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tbsp brown sugar
- 1/2 cup chicken broth
- 2 tbsp cornstarch
- 1 red pepper, chopped
- 1 zucchini, chopped
- 1 cup cashews
- 2 cups cooked jasmine rice (about 1 cup dry, cooked according to package directions)
- 1 bunch green onions, sliced
- sesame seeds for garnish
Instructions
- Add olive oil, onion, celery, chicken, hoisin sauce, soy sauce, brown sugar and chicken broth to Instant Pot in that order. Cook on high pressure for 3 minutes then do a quick release of pressure.
- Meanwhile, cook rice according to package directions.
- Open lid and gently stir in cornstarch, then add red pepper, zucchini and cashews, stirring to combine. Replace lid and let sit for 5-10 minutes for veggies to soften.
- Serve cashew chicken overtop of cooked rice and garnish with sesame seeds and green onions. Serve and enjoy!
Nutrition
