Caramelized red curry chicken sits next to a bed of hot, fluffy rice and steamed broccoli and then totally sauced up with the BEST spicy cashew sauce. Ooof, this is so, so good.
Red Curry Chicken Stir Fry with Spicy Cashew Sauce
Featured comment
Ummm HELLO this was absolutely delicious! Will definitely be adding this to my arsenal of quick and delicious recipes. Yum, thank you!
Dani
This chicken stir fry is AMAZING – say hello to thin strips of chicken with caramelized red curry, served on steamy rice with broccoli and a big dollop of this garlicky, gingery, slightly spicy silky-smooth cashew sauce. It’s easy, it’s beautiful, it always has me going back for seconds (thirds).
In This Post: Everything You Need For Red Curry Chicken Stir Fry with Cashew Sauce
- Take Me to the Chicken Stir Fry Recipe
- Lindsay’s Notes
- Visual Walk-Through of the Recipe
- Video
- FAQs
- Reviews
Lindsay’s Notes
The way I love this recipe! Wow.
Red curry caramelized chicken stir fry, served with steamy rice and broccoli, and blanketed in a creamy, bright, super flavorful cashew sauce that makes this whole thing into a luscious, look-forward-to-it-all-day dinner dream.
We are in a phase in our family dinner life that calls for a lot of things: Bjork is eating a lot (A LOT) of protein right now, I like to try to get a lot of flavor into every meal (per usual), and the girls like to have some familiar, kid-friendly foods to choose from.
This has been our GO-TO for the last month or so! It hits what everybody wants.
Bjork gets his protein with lots of chicken, I get my flavor with all that sauce and curry-caramelization on the chicken, and the girls have steamy rice and broccoli to get excited about.
This was going to be the lead recipe for what will be our next run of the SOS series – yes, it’s coming! later this week – but I just couldn’t quite do it because of the sauce. That sauce has so much good flavor and I just couldn’t sacrifice anything to make the ingredient list shorter, so it doesn’t quite meet our SOS criteria. Which is fine. Here it is anyway, kind of SOS-y and kind of not, but delivering on that lick-every-drop-of-sauce feeling in such a big way.
How To Make Red Curry Chicken Stir Fry
Step 1: Make Your Cashew Sauce.
Gather up all your ingredients…
and blend them into a nice smooth sauce which looks about like this. It’s divine. (And if you don’t have the time or tools to make this sauce, I also love this Gochujang Sauce in this recipe instead!)
Step 2: Coat the Chicken Pieces with Cornstarch and Spices.
I like garlic powder, salt and pepper, plus the cornstarch to give it that golden brown exterior.
Step 3: Pan Fry the Chicken with Curry Paste and Brown Sugar.
Just like how you might make a normal curry, but rather than adding coconut milk, we are letting the chicken hold onto all that flavor. YES PLEASE!
Step 4: Serve with Broccoli, Rice, and Sauce.
Cut and cook it yourself, or go the steam-in-the-bag route. Doesn’t matter. Just get it all on the plate together.
AND THEN SAUCE THE HECK OUT OF IT.
This combination is so bright, satisfying, flavorful… just so incredibly good.
Watch How To Make This Red Curry Chicken
The cashew-sauce-on-stir-fry idea came from the Chloe Flavor cookbook (affiliate link), which is a very delicious vegan cookbook by Chloe Coscarelli!
Print
Red Curry Chicken Stir Fry with Spicy Cashew Sauce
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
Description
Caramelized red curry chicken sits next to a bed of hot, fluffy rice and steamed broccoli and then totally sauced up with the BEST spicy cashew sauce. Ooof, this is so, so good.
Ingredients
Units
Scale
Red Curry Chicken Stir Fry:
- 1 lb. chicken breasts
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 2 tablespoons avocado oil
- 2 tablespoons red curry paste
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
Spicy Cashew Sauce:
- 1 1/4 cup roasted salted cashews
- 1/2 cup water (more as needed)
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- 2 tablespoons sriracha
- 1 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 clove garlic
- juice of 1–2 limes (about 2 tablespoons, or to taste)
- 1 teaspoon ginger paste or fresh ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
Veggies and Other:
- 2 cups small steamed broccoli florets (about 1 small head of broccoli or 1 frozen steam-in-the-bag)
- 2–3 cups cooked rice
Instructions
- Make the Spicy Cashew Sauce: Blend all ingredients in a high-powered blender until very smooth.
- Prep the Chicken: Cut the chicken breasts into very thin pieces. Toss with the cornstarch, garlic powder, salt, and pepper.
- Cook the Chicken: Add the avocado oil to a nonstick pan over medium high heat. Add the curry paste and brown sugar; cook for a few minutes to get it caramelizy and bubbly. Add the chicken. Toss once to coat in the sauce, then let it sit for several minutes to get the chicken nice and golden brown. Flip and repeat until chicken is cooked through. If needed, add 1-2 tablespoons of water to the pan to lift up any browned pieces that are stuck to the bottom.
- Serve: Serve the chicken on cooked rice, with cooked broccoli, with a lot of that yummy cashew sauce all over everything.
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Sauté
- Cuisine: Asian-Inspired
Keywords: chicken stir fry, red curry chicken, stir fry
Frequently Asked Questions For Red Curry Chicken Stir Fry
What can I use instead of cashews?
I would make a peanut sauce equivalent! You can find my favorite peanut sauce here. And if you need a completely nut-free option, this Gochujang Sauce is one of my favorites.
How long does the cashew sauce last?
This will last for 3-5 days in the fridge! Goes well on SO many things! I have never loved eating steamed broccoli more than I did when I dipped it into this sauce.
Can you make this vegetarian / meatless?
This would be great with cauliflower or tofu! Chloe uses seitan and broccoli in the cookbook recipe that inspired this recipe.
How do you make this chicken stir fry dairy-free?
This is naturally dairy-free! Hip hip!
How do you make this chicken stir fry gluten-free?
First, make sure your curry paste is gluten-free. Secondly, use a tamari or coconut aminos instead of soy sauce in the cashew sauce.
What’s the fastest way to make this chicken stir fry?
Have your chicken cut up in advance, have your sauce made in advance, and use steam-in-the-bag broccoli plus steam-in-the-bag rice! Comes together in a snap.
Recipes For The Sauce Lovers Among Us (It’s Me)
Filed Under: All Recipes Broccoli Dairy-Free Dinner Fall Main Dishes Meat and Chicken Recipes Rice Stovetop Winter
September 18, 2023
Nice to meet you!
I’m Lindsay and I ♡ FOOD. I used to be a teacher, and now making food and writing about it online is my full-time job. I love talking with people about food, and I'm so glad you're here.
Did you make a recipe? Tag @pinchofyum on Instagram so we can find you!
I wasn’t sure what to make for dinner tonight but when I saw this recipe in my inbox, it was decided! We eat a plant-based diet so I switched out the chicken for soy curls (rehydrate for 15mins, drain & squeeze out liquid, toss in corn starch & garlic powder, then baked at 425 for 15 mins. Once baked I added them into frying pan with oil, red curry paste & brown sugar).
Served with brown rice & broccoli and the ahhhhmazing spicy cashew sauce (which I made slightly less spicy so my daughter wouldn’t complain 🙃). So, so good! Definitely hoarding all the leftovers for myself.
Thanks for your take on this! I was planning to use soy curls also and your process if perfect!
I recently stumbled upon your Red Curry Chicken Stir-Fry with Spicy Cashew Sauce recipe, and I must say it was a game-changer for my weeknight dinners! The blend of spices and that kick from the cashew sauce truly sets this dish apart. Thank you for sharing, I’ll be recommending this to all my fellow foodies on Facebook. 🙂
Does the nutritional information include rice and broccoli?
It does, yes!
Oh my goodness! Another winner! Made this last night and hubby and I both loved it – that sauce is so delicious I want to make more as a dip for roasted veggies! Thank you for so many awesome recipes – you’re my ‘go to’ when I’m in a cooking slump and need fresh ideas!
So glad to hear that, Melissa!
My blender is not the most high powered. Do you think this sauce would work with an immersion blender or food processor?
You could try a food processor! It likely won’t get quite a silky and smooth, but should still do the job.
Courtney, I made this the other night with my ancient 10 speed Oster blender and it worked out fine! It takes a minute but the sauce was completely smooth. Hope that helps!
This meal came together super fast, and it was delicious! The cashew sauce is divine. I wish I’d doubled the chicken so we could have leftovers.
I loved this recipe! It was super easy to make, and came together in less than 30 minutes. The sauce was extra delicious, and I’m going to use the leftovers on tomorrow night’s stir-fry.
AMAZING! Our only regret is that we did not double the recipe. So delicious and honestly I am not sure which I liked more the amazing sauce or the chicken. Make this you will not regret it.
Thanks Kathy!
Oh my gosh, Lindsay, this was so so delicious! And that sauce … a pinch of yum indeed 😋
I’m quite new to POY, but so far everything is a big hit. And on repeat.
Thank you! 👍🏼 😃
We made this tonight and it was fantastic!! We have quite a bit of sauce leftover (in part because our kids were not interested in that part). Do you think it would freeze well for the next time we make this?
We haven’t tried freezing but think it would work okay! Would love to hear how it is if you give it a try.
Made this tonight! So good! I love the ease of this recipe, and the flavors were fantastic! I love the spicy cashew sauce so much!!!
Glad to hear it, Katie!
Ummm HELLO this was absolutely delicious! Will definitely be adding this to my arsenal of quick and delicious recipes. Yum, thank you!
Glad you enjoyed it, Dani!
I recently bought Arroy-d red curry paste from amazing because the thai kitchen curry paste just didn’t have enough flavor. I’ve been waiting for a new recipe to try it with and this was PERFECT. Brown sugar + curry has a great sweet and spicy flavor. But the sauce, it’s all about the cashew sauce. I’ll be dreaming of this one for days and will be looking for new ways to use that sauce! Thanks for sharing!
Woohoo! Glad to hear it!
I don’t know if I did something wrong, but I was disappointed in this recipe. The cashew sauce was good, but the combo of curry and brown sugar was not. It was a bit too salty, and maybe too acidic?
I think it would have cooked better if the curry and brown sugar were mixed together before going in the pan, but I won’t be making it again, personally. Everyone else seems to love it, so maybe a me problem.
Appreciate the feedback, Lori!
My blender isn’t super high powered, so would it be ok to soak the cashews prior to blending to make it more smooth? Or would that ruin the flavor?
Should work just fine!
Sinfully good for a healthyish recipe. I don’t leave a lot of reviews, so you know I was really impressed. The mix of curry spice and the cashew sauce hit everything I want in a spicy sweet dinner – emphasis on the spice. I went with powdered garlic and ginger because I was feeling lazy, and probably added too much ginger (about 1tsp each), but it was still a knockout.
This was insanely good! Followed the recipe except was short a 1/4 c of cashews. Used a 1/4 c of toasted slivered almonds. Next time I’ll have to hide the cashews…. Used my food processor and everything buzzed up nicely. Dreaming of what I could make for breakfast to put that leftover cashew sauce on….
This was one of the best curry dishes I have made. THAT SAUCE!! So so good. Unfortunately I was at the end of my jar of red curry paste so I was a Tbsp short…but still…my oh my that crispy chicken with the carmelized curry!! Another winner! Sweet with just the right amount of heat (i only used just shy of a Tbsp of siracha since I am a bit of a wimp with super spicy) and it was just perfect! Great SOS meal – came together so fast.
So glad you enjoyed it, Janet! 🙂
My husband and I enjoyed this one! It packs a good amount of flavor. Commenting to share that we cut out quite a bit of sugar from this recipe and it tastes great. We halved the cornstarch, kept just a quarter of the brown sugar to help with sauce caramelization, and completely cut the maple syrup. A couple other notes – we don’t have a blender so we used a food processor for the cashew sauce and it worked just fine. We had extra cashews so we tossed some extra whole cashews into the chicken/curry sauce mix at the end and they add a nice extra crunch.
Glad to hear it, Claire!
Came back to this to say this was incredible and SO easy! The chicken was super flavorful for being so simple and the cashew sauce took things to the next level. Thank you!
This was so yummy! I made it for meal prep, and it really kept well. I doubled the recipe; I won’t double the sauce next time. It made a huge batch. Eight tasty portions in under an hour- that’s a winner in our household. Thanks, Lindsay!
This was delicious. I made the chicken a little saucy instead of dry like a stir fry. Can the cashew sauce be frozen? BTW I could just drink the cashew sauce. Thanks!
Easy and delicious!! I subbed thinly sliced chicken thighs for the breasts and it worked perfectly. Will make again soon!
Another unreal recipe! so easy and so delicious
This cashew sauce is outta this world. We didn’t even really follow the recipe closely for the chicken (didn’t have enough red curry paste) and subbed a lot of tomato paste with curry powder (I know not even remotely the same thing) but the flavors of whatever red curry paste we had plus the cashew sauce really brought it all together. We garnished with green onions! Thanks for yet another flavor packed meal!
Amazing!
REALLY delicious and flavorful recipe! The only thing I changed was what I served it with (torn spinach instead of steamed broccoli for any other broccoli haters out there).