Cashew Chicken

(from seeva12’s recipe box)

This Chinese restaurant staple gets a lot of its sky-high fat content from oil. We lightened it significantly but kept all of its flavor and crunch.
Now POINTS® Value: 8
Level of Difficulty: Moderate

Source: weightwatchers.com (from RecipeThing user salonx) (from RecipeThing user LindseyHughes)

Prep time: 25 minutes
Cook time: 12 minutes
Serves 4 people

Ingredients

  • tsp peanut oil
  • 2 medium garlic clove(s), minced
  • 1 pound uncooked boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into 1-inch cubes
  • 1/2 tsp table salt
  • 1/4 tsp black pepper
  • 1 1/2 cup fat-free, reduced-sodium chicken broth, divided
  • 2 Tbsp low-sodium soy sauce
  • 2 medium stalk celery, chopped
  • 8 oz canned bamboo shoots, drained
  • 8 oz canned water chestnuts, sliced, drained
  • 1 1/2 Tbsp cornstarch
  • 2 cup cooked white rice, kept hot
  • 1 3/4 oz dry-roasted cashews, chopped (about 6 Tbsp)

Directions

  1. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add garlic and cook 1 minute. Season chicken on both sides with salt and pepper and add to skillet. Cook until browned on all sides, stirring frequently, about 4 minutes.

  2. Add 1 cup of broth, soy sauce, celery, bamboo shoots and water chestnuts to chicken and bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer until chicken is cooked through, about 5 minutes.

  3. Dissolve cornstarch in remaining 1/2 cup of broth; add to skillet and simmer until sauce thickens, stirring constantly, about 1 minute.

  4. To serve, divide rice among 4 shallow dishes. Spoon chicken mixture onto rice and sprinkle with cashews. Yields about 1 cup of chicken, 1/2 cup of rice and 1 1/2 tablespoons of cashews per serving.

  5. For a burst of color, add 2 cups of chopped fresh baby bok choy in place of the bamboo shoots and water chestnuts. The tender greens will cook with the chicken in 5 minutes.

  6. We renovated Cashew Chicken by:

  7. Reducing the amount of oil used to sauté the chicken.

  8. Sprinkling a small amount of cashews on top of the dish instead of throughout so you can use less but still get cashew flavor in almost every bite.

  9. Using reduced-sodium chicken broth and soy sauce in lieu of their regular varieties.

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