Diethood » Recipes » Dinner Recipes » Cashew Chicken Meatballs

Cashew Chicken Meatballs

Love cashew chicken? These Cashew Chicken Meatballs are full of nutty cashews and savory chicken and then slicked in an easy homemade sweet and sour sauce. A fun riff on a classic dish.

Chicken meatballs are served on white rice.

Cashew Chicken Meatballs Recipe

My cashew meatballs recipe takes the best parts of cashew chicken and combines them into bite-sized meatballs that are pan-fried until nicely browned and slightly crisp and then finished to perfection in the oven. Fresh herbs and orange zest play off the cashew nuts and a bit of cream cheese helps the meatballs hold together. The simplest homemade sweet and sour sauce adds even more depth of flavor.

This dish is all about contrast, so I suggest serving the meatballs on a pile of fluffy white rice. Add some lightly sauteed vegetables like green beans and garlic or broccoli to round out the meal.

What You’ll Need

You won’t need any complicated ingredients to make this recipe – even the homemade sauce is composed of pantry staples. Check out the recipe card at the bottom of the post for full ingredient amounts.

For the Meatballs

  • All purpose flour
  • Vegetable oil
  • Ground chicken
  • Plain panko crumbs: Don’t use flavored bread crumbs.
  • Salt and pepper
  • Onion: Use a small onion.
  • Fresh herbs: Basil and parsley.
  • Cashews
  • Orange zest: From a small orange.
  • Cream cheese

For the Sweet and Sour Sauce

  • Brown sugar
  • White vinegar
  • Water

How to Make Cashew Chicken Meatballs

These meatballs will come together quicker than the time it takes to order takeout! You can start making the sauce while the meatballs finish cooking in the oven.

Ingredients to make cashew chicken meatballs.

For the Meatballs

  • Heat oven. Preheat oven to 400°F and place the flour in a shallow dish.
  • Combine ingredients. In a large mixing bowl place the ground chicken, panko crumbs, salt, pepper, onion, basil, parsley, cashews, orange, and cream cheese. Mix until fully combined.
Meatballs about to be cooked in a skillet.
  • Form meatballs. In a skillet, heat the vegetable oil. Roll the meatballs into 1-inch balls, lightly coat in flour, and place in the skillet.
  • Cook meatballs. Cook meatballs for about and turn for 2 minutes, or until a little browned on all sides.
  • Bake meatballs. Transfer meatballs and hot oil to a 9 x 13 baking dish. Place in oven and bake until cooked through, about 18 minutes.

Make the Sauce

  • Make the sauce. Place the brown sugar, white vinegar, and water in a skillet. Whisk to combine then cook over medium-high heat, whisking frequently, until sauce reduces by one-half.
  • Serve. Remove meatballs from oven. Pour sauce over meatballs and serve hot.
Chicken meatballs are cooked in the oven.

Tips for Success

This is definitely not a complicated recipe, but there are a few things you can do to help it turn out the best.

  • Cook meatballs all the way through. The best way to tell if meat if thoroughly cooked is to use an instant read thermometer. Meatballs will be done when they reach 165°F on the thermometer.
  • Use a store-bought sauce. I really think you should try my homemade sweet and sour sauce! But if you want to save a few minutes, feel free to use your favorite store-bought sweet and sour sauce.
  • Serve with extra cashews. As you can see in the photos, I like to scatter extra cashews on top of the finished dish. Cashews are so crunchy and hearty and they will add even more texture and flavor.

Serving Suggestions

These meatballs are versatile as well as flavorful. Read on for a few ideas on how to serve them.

  • With rice. The obvious choice, cashew chicken meatballs are great served on a bed of fluffy white rice. You could also swap for brown rice for more nutritional impact. Try my Instant Pot Jasmine Rice for a quick, perfect rice every time.
  • With noodles. Instead of rice, try rice or egg noodles. Cook noodles according to package directions, then toss with meatballs and some cooked vegetables like green onions, slivered carrots, or broccoli. Or you could pair these meatballs with my Teriyaki Noodles recipe!
  • As an appetizer. At a cocktail party or just as a pre-dinner snack, cashew chicken meatballs are sure to please. Place meatballs, covered in sauce, on a plate and serve with plenty of toothpicks.

How to Store and Reheat

If you end up having leftovers, it’s easy to save them for another time.

  • Cooled meatballs and sauce can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-5 days. To reheat, place in a skillet, spoon some sauce over, and cook over low heat until warmed through. You could also reheat the meatballs in a microwave-safe bowl in the microwave until hot.
  • To freeze meatballs, set some aside to cool after they come out of the oven. Then place the meatballs in a freezer-safe bag and store them in the freezer for 3 months. Don’t cover the meatballs with the sauce before you put them in the freezer bag; you can make a fresh batch of sauce if you like later on. To reheat, defrost the meatballs in the fridge overnight, then proceed with your recipe.
Cashew Chicken Meatballs - Seasoned and nutty chicken meatballs served with a side of sweet and sour sauce.

Cashew Chicken Meatballs

Katerina | Diethood
Love cashew chicken? These cashew chicken meatballs are full of nutty cashews and savory chicken and slicked in an easy homemade sweet and sour sauce. A fun riff on a classic dish.
5 from 2 votes
Servings : 18 Meatballs
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes

Ingredients
  

For the Meatballs
  • 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
  • 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
  • 1 lb ground chicken
  • ½ cup plain panko crumbs
  • Salt and pepper , to taste
  • 1 small onion , finely diced
  • ¼ cup chopped fresh basil
  • ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
  • 1/3 cup chopped cashews
  • Zest of one small orange
  • ½ cup cream cheese , room temperature
For the Sauce
  • ¼ cup packed brown sugar
  • ¼ cup white vinegar
  • ¼ cup water

Instructions
 

Make Meatballs
  • Preheat oven to 400°F.
  • Place the flour in a shallow dish and set aside.
  • In a large mixing bowl combine ground chicken, panko crumbs, salt, pepper, onion, basil, parsley, cashews, orange, and cream cheese.
  • Mix until everything is thoroughly combined.
  • In a skillet, heat the vegetable oil over medium heat until hot.
  • Roll meat into 1 inch meatballs, place in flour, turn to lightly coat on all sides, and add to hot oil.
  • Cook and turn for 2 minutes, or just until a little browned on all sides.
  • Transfer meatballs and hot oil to a 9 x 13 baking dish.
  • Bake for 18 minutes, or until meatballs are cooked through.
Make Sauce
  • Prepare the sweet and sour sauce by combining all ingredients in a skillet.
  • Bring to a boil; whisk frequently and continue to cook over medium-high heat for 4 minutes or until sauce is reduced by 1/2. 
Serve
  • To serve, remove meatballs from oven and pour the prepared sauce over meatballs.

Nutrition

Calories: 102 kcal | Carbohydrates: 6 g | Protein: 5 g | Fat: 6 g | Saturated Fat: 2 g | Cholesterol: 28 mg | Sodium: 49 mg | Potassium: 176 mg | Fiber: 0 g | Sugar: 3 g | Vitamin A: 170 IU | Vitamin C: 1.7 mg | Calcium: 17 mg | Iron: 0.6 mg

Nutritional info is an estimate and provided as courtesy. Values may vary according to the ingredients and tools used. Please use your preferred nutritional calculator for more detailed info.

Course: Dinner
Cuisine: Asian
Keyword: baked chicken meatballs, cashew chicken meatballs recipe, sweet and sour sauce recipe
Did you make this recipe?Leave a Rating!

Categories:

More Meatball Recipes

Ask a Question or Rate this Recipe

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating:




32 comments on “Cashew Chicken Meatballs”

  1. I made these cashew meatballs tonight for dinner along with rice and broccoli and both my husband and I enjoyed it very much. The only change I made was use light cream cheese as that was what I had on hand. Thanks Katerina for a delicious dinner option.

    I have a request or suggestion ;-). I know salt and pepper are to the taste of each individual but I really very much appreciate it when there is an amount listed by the cook for both. Sometimes if I haven’t made a dish before, for example, I find it most helpful to see what the cook used as it’s a starting point vs. having to guess if not sure. Just a thought….

  2. THESe were pretty good but I wasn’t sure how much salt to add and ended up under-salting. I did forget to make the sauce because I got distracted cleaning up the kitchen. I would like to add soy sauce next time! Loved the basil flavor of these

  3. Avatar photo
    Maryanne | the little epicurean

    This looks wonderful! I never thought about adding cream cheese to meatballs. I bet it tastes amazing!

  4. Avatar photo
    Jenny | Honey and Birch

    Cashew chicken is one of my favorite items to order from Chinese restaurants – I bet these meatballs are delicious!

  5. Avatar photo
    Erin @ The Speckled Palate

    YUM! This just looks and sounds incredible! I can imagine these would be a big hit in my home!

  6. These sound divine Kate! Yet another thing to add on my to do list. Looks like I will be busy this weekend. Cannot wait! 🙂

  7. Oh, my! These look fantastic. I will pop over to Meagan’s blog to check out the recipe…but first, I must hunt down your popcorn…mmmmmm….

  8. Avatar photo
    Stacy | Wicked Good Kitchen

    Loooove cashews…and, cashew buttah! (Visit my blog for some especially tasty recipes using cashew butter, Kate. I’ll get you hooked in no time.) And, I adore Cashew Chicken. Now, in meatball form, with your recipe for Cashew Chicken Meatballs? NOM! Why didn’t I think of that? Well, that’s why I love Diethood. I never know what genius recipe you devise next! Cocktail parties shall never be the same, girlfriend. 😉 xo

    1. Katerina - Diethood
      Katerina Petrovska

      I LOVE your support, Stacy! THANK YOU!!! xoxo

      As soon as my little ones fall asleep, I am going to hop over to your place and see your recipes for cashew buttah! 🙂

  9. Incorporating the cashews into the meatballs is a great way of enjoying both the chicken and the cashews in one bite … I’ll have to check out your sweet and sour sauce as well.

  10. Avatar photo
    Carol | a cup of mascarpone

    What delicious looking meatballs, and a wonderful guest post for Meagan! Thanks for sharing such a great recipe!

  11. Avatar photo
    Denise Browning@From Brazil To You

    Kate: As soon as I opened my email and read the title, I got all excited. I love cashew nuts…And combined with chicken in a meatball is even better. Did you know that cashews (the fruit and its nut) is native from Brazil? The nut is attached to the fruit and use both in several dishes in Brazil.

  12. Avatar photo
    Meagan @ A Zesty Bite

    Thanks so much for the guest post! Everyone including me are craving these for breakfast.

Scroll to Top