Chinese Orange-Barbecue Cashew Chicken

Remember that elementary school game called What's Wrong With This Picture?  Everything always looked good but there was just that one thing out of place, or askew?  That's what I think of when I think of this recipe.  It looks good, but if you look closely you'll see what's wrong. 

See all that sauce just sitting on the bottom of the plate?  Not cool!  When I chose this recipe for our Look + Cook cook along this month I was thinking this would be an amazing recipe with a delicious sauce that coats the chicken.  It wasn't.  No matter what I did, I couldn't get the sauce to coat the chicken.  I cooked it a little longer than called for, didn't matter.  As a last attempt I even tried adding cornstarch to the sauce to help thicken it and that didn't work either.   

In addition we found the flavor to be a little strange.  It could just be personal taste.  We'd never had Orange-Barbecue Chicken before and maybe it's just not our thing, but something about it was just off. After many rounds of extremely tasty recipes from Rachel's Look + Cook book this is officially the first flop.  I guess it was bound to happen.  This was edible and we did eat it, but I wouldn't make it again. Oh well, live and learn, right?

Chinese Orange-Barbecue Cashew Chicken

Adapted from Rachel Ray's Look + Cook

Serves 4-6, easily

2 tablespoons canola/vegetable oil
1-1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts or thighs cut into bite-size pieces
salt and pepper
1 red bell pepper, chopped into 1/2-inch dice
1 onion, chopped into 1/2-inch dice
2-3 garlic cloves, finely chopped or grated
1/4 cup hoisin sauce
1/4 cup orange marmalade
1 tablespoon hot sauce
2 tablespoons tamari (aged soy sauce)
1/2 cup chicken stock
1/2 cup honey-roasted cashews
4 scallions, thinly sliced on the bias

Place a large skillet over high heat with about 1 tablespoons of the oil.  When the pan is very hot, add the meat, season with salt and pepper, and stir-fry until golden brown, 4 to 5 minutes.  Remove the meat from the pan and reserve on plate.  Add the remaining tablespoon of oil, then add the bell pepper, onion, and garlic to the skillet and stir-fry for 3 minutes, or until crisp-tender.  In a small bowl, stir together the hoisin sauce, orange marmalade, hot sauce, tamari, and stock.  Return the chicken to the skillet and pour in the sauce.  Add the cashews, toss to coat, and continue cooking until sauce thickens up, about 1 minute more.  Serve the stir-fry with brown rice and garnish with the scallions.

Next month's Look + Cook recipe, chosen by Brenda of Brenda's Canadian Kitchen, is Spinach and Artichoke Mac 'n Cheese.  Look for Brenda's version of Chinese Orange-Barbecue Cashew Chicken coming up in the next few days!