Healthy Cashew Chicken Casserole
Published 4/28/2020 • Updated 9/27/2024
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
Make this Cashew Chicken Quinoa Bake for a high-protein, one-dish meal that the whole family will love! Meal prep at its finest.
Can’t get enough of our delicious chicken casserole recipes? Check out this easy orange chicken casserole or this easy southwestern chicken casserole!
Make Your Own Healthy Chinese Takeout
Raise your hand if you’ve jumped on the casserole train. We have been whipping up casserole recipes for the last couple of weeks in the Fit Foodie kitchen and we have no shame!
Today we are sharing one of the original quinoa casserole recipes on FFF! It is also one of the most popular recipes. Want to know why?
- It is stacked with protein (37 grams per serving)
- There’s only one dish to clean
- It tastes like your favorite cashew chicken Chinese takeout (except it’s healthier)
This chicken casserole is made with whole, healthy ingredients, with all of the classic flavors of cashew chicken. PS: have you made our Instant Pot Cashew Chicken? Let’s break this casserole down.
Everything You Need to Know
All you need is one pan.
For this dish, you literally throw everything in a casserole dish UNCOOKED (even the chicken and quinoa) and pop it in the oven for 60 minutes.
Can I use other vegetables in this casserole?
Yes, you can use other vegetables in this chicken casserole. If you don’t have peppers on hand or want to use something else. Feel free to use any of your favorite vegetables. Below are some of our top substitution picks!
- broccoli
- cauliflower
- pea pods
- green beans
Does it matter what kind of quinoa I use?
I tested this with traditional white quinoa
and Inca Red Quinoa
.
I noticed that the red quinoa needed to cook a bit longer than the white, so just be mindful of that if you only have red on hand!
Do I need to use specific cashews in this recipe?
You can use whatever cashews you have on hand! However, we recommend using roasted salted cashews for the best flavor!
What are the best toppings for this cashew chicken casserole?
The topping options are endless for this cashew chicken casserole! Below are our go-to toppings!
- fresh lime juice
- cilantro
- cashews
- green onions
Can I freeze this cashew chicken casserole?
Yes, you can freeze this cashew chicken casserole! Make the casserole as instructed in the recipe card and then let it cool completely.
Next, cover the casserole dish with plastic wrap and then tin foil to tightly seal the casserole and place in the freezer for up to 3 months. You can also transfer the casserole into meal prep containers for single-serve options!
Cashew Chicken Casserole Tips
Here are a few tips and tricks to make sure you get the most bang for your buck when you make this chicken casserole recipe!
- Make sure that all the quinoa is submerged in liquid before you place the casserole in the oven.
- If you find that your chicken casserole isn’t cooking evenly, try stirring the casserole halfway through the cook time.
- Be sure to spray your casserole dish before placing ingredients into the casserole dish. This will prevent the ingredients from sticking to the casserole dish when you are serving it!
Healthy Chinese Take-Out Recipes
- Instant Pot Beef and Broccoli
- Healthy Orange Chicken
- General Tso’s Cauliflower
- Vegetarian Fried Rice
More Chicken Casserole Recipes
- Best Chicken Casserole Recipes
- Cauliflower Mac and Chicken Casserole
- Healthy Chicken Enchilada Casserole with Brown Rice
Cashew Chicken Quinoa Bake Video
Cashew Chicken Quinoa Bake
Ingredients
- 1 cup white quinoa, rinsed and uncooked
- 1 cup yellow onion, minced
- 2 medium bell peppers, any color, chopped into bite-sized pieces
- 1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breast, diced into bite-sized pieces
- 1/2 cup hoisin sauce, or gluten-free hoisin sauce
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce or tamari, low sodium
- 1/2 tablespoon fresh ginger, minced (fresh ginger paste works, too)
- 1.25 cups water
- 1 cup cashews, raw or roasted work
- optional garnishes: green onion and/or sesame seeds
Instructions
- First, preheat oven to 375ºF and spray a casserole dish with coconut oil cooking spray.
- Next, place 1 cup uncooked quinoa on the bottom of the casserole dish and layer with diced onion and red pepper on top. Place sliced chicken on top of veggies.
- Prep sauce by mixing together hoisin sauce, minced garlic, soy sauce, fresh ginger, and 1 cup of water. I used a fork to whisk everything together.
- Evenly pour the sauce over chicken breast.
- Bake at 375º for 45 minutes, covered. Remove from oven and add 1 cup of cashews and bake for another 10 minutes.
- Let quinoa casserole sit for 5-10 minutes to continue thickening and cooling.
- Garnish with green onion and/or sesame seeds before serving.
Tips & Notes
- New photos were taken of this recipe on April 28, 2020. I also upped the water from 1 cup to 1.25 cups for a tad more liquid!
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Don’t forget to tag your posts on social media with the hashtag #fitfoodiefinds, we’d love to see what you’re up to!
Do you think this would work in an instant pot?
I totally think it would! We’re planning to test a few casseroles in the Instant Pot soon!
This recipe is a knockout as far as flavor. I used tricolor quinoa. After 55 mins, all the liquid was absorbed but quinoa was still crunchy. I added an extra half cup of water, covered the dish tightly with foil, and baked for another 10 mins. Perfection! Served with steamed broccoli and carrots. I will be making this again. I want to try it with mushrooms next time.
Hello! I’ve found that white quinoa cooks faster and better than red or tri!
What size pan is best for this? I tried to follow the link for a casserole dish assuming that would be accurate but it took me to a 5X7 dish.
This might be the first recipe I’ve made that utilizes quinoa, and it’s certainly the first time I’ve used hoisin sauce. I had to Google a picture of that to know what I was even looking for at the store… lol Anyway, I made a double batch of this because the casserole dish linked in your recipe was smaller than a 9″x13″. I was just barely able to fit it all in, and then I was able to divide it into two containers, freezing one for week #2. It froze well. I can’t even tell a difference. When I took the whole thing out to add the cashews, I mixed everything up, getting the chicken all submerged so more flavor could cook into it. I toasted my own cashews (rather proud of myself for that one), and they were still pretty hot when I threw ’em on top of this. I was worried they might burn, but they turned out perfectly fine! This is so good! Thank you so much for the recipe. It is surprisingly sweet because of that hoisin.
I was looking for recipes to meal prep and this one looked interesting to me. I always read the comments to see if anyone has actually made it and what they have to say about it. While reading the comments, I noticed that you responded to most of the questions asked, with one glaring exception. You never responded to the people who asked about nutritional information. So I checked it out myself. Holy cow is this anything but “Fit” food. The sodium content is over what the max recommended allowance for a whole day is. Admittedly there is a lot of protein which is how you advertise it, but to call this fit is seriously misleading. I was interested in making this, but not now. For anyone interested, here’s the nutritional value. I calculated it today on my fitness pal’s recipe calculator….
Calories Carbs Fat Protein Sodium Sugar
2,425 224 84 182 8,096 58
Per Serving: 606 56 21 46 2024 15
What is the equivalent weight in grams or ozs of 1 cup please?
Ok I’m about to sound really picky right now . But there is a difference between minced and diced , and in the ingredients it says to ‘mince’ the onions , but in the instructions it says to add the ‘diced’ onions. Which one is it? Haha mince is oftentimes acquired from a small blender. Diced is chopped up more casually with a knife. This time around I minced the onion. Hope it turns out ok! 🙂 fingers crossed !
Followed the instructions using white quinoa from Trader Joe’s and it turned out PERFECT, taking exactly one hour to cook! The quinoa was fluffy and this recipe could not have been easier to make. My fiance called it a home run and we will definitely be making it again.
Can you use Farro instead of quinoa?
I haven’t tried this particular recipe with farro!
Hey, I’m looking at making this recipe this week but I’m unsure as to how much chicken I’ll need to get. I’m used to converting from imperial to metric as I often cook from American recipes over here in England. But I don’t know if “4 4oz chicken breasts” is 4lbs and 4oz or if it’s 44oz or something I’ve not even thought of. Are you able to clarify? Thank you!
It’s just 1 pound of chicken!