Cashew Chicken with Fried Rice

Decided to try a completely new recipe tonight just because I can.
I have been wanting to make some Cashew Chicken with Fried Rice for a while for my boyfriend because he absolutely loves it from Bonsai, which is a Chinese and Japanese restaurant here in Rock Springs that also makes sushi rolls.
The hardest part about this dish is making sure you have all of the ingredients but once you have then you will be ready to rock for many more other Chinese and Japanese meals to come.  I was really nervous getting ready for it but once I had everything pulled out and prepped in dishes it was game on.

Top left skillet: Cashew Chicken

Bottom left skillet: Fried Rice

Right skillet: Cauliflower Fried Rice

Cashew Chicken

• Ingredients
• 3 tbsp cornstarch
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• ~ 1.25 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts, diced into 1 in. pieces
• 2 tbsp sesame oil
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 cup frozen vegetable mix (peas, corn and carrots is what I used)
• 1 cup celery, diced
• 1 cup shelled frozen edamame
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 cup unsalted dry-roasted whole cashews
• 2 tbsp low-sodium soy sauce
• 2 tbsp honey
• 1 tbsp rice wine vinegar
• 1 tbsp Asian Chili Garlic Sauce
• 3/4 tsp ground ginger
• 3/4 cup green onions, sliced thin
• Directions
• In a gallon-sized ziplock bag: add cornstarch, salt, pepper, and chicken. Shake it all up to coat the chicken. 
• Heat a large skillet or wok to medium-high with sesame oil and olive oil, add in chicken and flip to cook all sides evenly. Chicken should be about 80% cooked before moving on.
• Add frozen vegetable mix, celery, frozen edamame, and garlic to chicken. Stir to combine for 3 to 4 minutes or until vegetable are crisp and chicken is cooked through.
• While that cooks, make the sauce. In a medium bowl add soy sauce, honey, rice wine vinegar, Asian Chili-Garlic sauce, and ginger, Whisk together and set aside. 
• Add cashews to skillet and stir to combine.
• Add sauce and stir to combine. Simmer over medium-low heat for 2 minutes. 
• Add green onions and stir to combine. Serve immediately. Store in fridge up to 5 days in an airtight container. 

Yes it looks like a lot but completely worth it. 

While I had this going, I also had pulled all the ingredients out to make fried rice. Before I even started prepping for the Cashew Chicken, I had 1 cup of Brown Rice cooking on the stove because that takes about 45 minutes. Once the rice was done cooking, I was able to start the fried rice.

Fried Rice

• Ingredients
• 1 cup brown rice cooked or your choosing, yields 2 cups. I cooked myself Cauliflower Fried Rice (can find after this recipe).
• 3 beaten eggs
• sauce mix from Cashew Chicken, I only made half of what was called for above. 
• 1 cup frozen vegetable mix
• Directions
• Heat wok or skillet to medium-high with a thin layer of olive oil. Add beaten eggs and scramble until cooked.
• Add in frozen vegetable and stir to combine.
• Add in cooked rice and stir to combine.
• Add in sauce mix and stir to combine, let simmer for 2 minutes before serving. 

Not bad I would say. My boyfriend highly liked it so I can't wait until the next time I decide to cook it for dinner. All of this will make about 4-6 servings. 

Cauliflower Fried Rice

• Ingredients
• 2 cups cauliflower that has been pulsed in a food processor
• 1 beaten egg
• ~1/4 sauce mix from Cashew Chicken
• 1/2 cup frozen vegetables
• 1/2 cup shelled frozen edamame 
• Directions
• Heat large skillet to medium-high heat with a thin coat of sesame oil. Add in frozen vegetables and edamame, stir to combine. Let cook for 4 minutes or until vegetables are crisp.
• Move vegetables to side of skillet. Add beaten egg to other side and scramble. Mix together once egg is cooked.
• Add in cauliflower and stir to combine. Cook for 2 minutes. 
• Add sauce mix to skillet and stir to combine. Cook for 4-5 minutes and serve immediately. 

Amazing the Cauliflower Fried Rice tastes just like the regular Fried Rice just without the calories from the rice. Perfect substitute if you are wanting to lose weight but still are able to enjoy your favorite dishes. Serving size for this would be one if having it by itself or 2 if you do have some of the Cashew Chicken.