Cashew Chicken was my go-to chicken dish whenever we went out for Chinese food pre-pandemic. (Besides grabbing a quick sandwich at Jimmy John’s while waiting for our new phones to finish uploading everything from our old phones, we haven’t gone out for any food, let along Chinese food in a really, really long while. But that is besides the point!) It is a Chinese-American dish that traditionally combines stir-fried chicken with roasted cashews and vegetables that are tossed in a light garlic sauce. Today’s post turns a version of cashew chicken into a pizza topping.

Shredded cooked chicken is added to hoisin sauce that gets a touch of heat from a bit of chili garlic sauce. (Hoisin sauce is a fermented soybean paste with additional spices that give it a umami taste in addition to sweet, tangy, and spicy elements.) Green onions, red bell pepper, and carrots are combined with cashews and cilantro and then layered over the chicken mixture. The cheese goes on last before baking and the finished pizza gets another sprinkling of green onions before serving. The end product is a delectable mash-up of two popular foods!

Cashew Chicken Pizza  (adapted from tasteofhome.com) Total Time Required: 30 minutes, Makes: 8 slices

Ingredients:

• 1 pound pizza dough
• 1 tablespoon sesame oil
• 3/4 cup hoisin sauce
• 2 teaspoons chili garlic sauce
• 1-1/2 cups shredded cooked chicken
• 4 green onions, chopped, divided
• 1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper
• 1/3 cup shredded carrots
• 1/2 cup cashews
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
• 1-1/4 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 475°F. If using a pizza stone, preheat it in the oven. Roll out the pizza dough to a 14-inch circle and place it on a pizza pan or pizza peel. Brush the dough with the  sesame oil. In small bowl, combine the hoisin sauce and chili garlic sauce.

Brush 1/3 cup of the sauce over the crust.

Toss the remaining sauce mixture with the chicken.

Spread it over the crust.

In another small bowl, combine 2 of the green onions, and the red pepper, carrots, cashews, and cilantro.

Mix it together well and spread it over the chicken on the pizza.

Sprinkle the mozzarella over the top of it all.

Bake the pizza until the cheese is lightly browned, about 10-12 minutes. Let the pizza stand for 5 minutes. Sprinkle the remaining 2 green onions over the top of the pizza.

Cut the pizza into slices and serve.

Everything tastes better as a pizza! ~Linda

Cashew Chicken Pizza  (adapted from tasteofhome.com) Total Time Required: 30 minutes, Makes: 8 slices

Ingredients:

• 1 pound pizza dough
• 1 tablespoon sesame oil
• 3/4 cup hoisin sauce
• 2 teaspoons chili garlic sauce
• 1-1/2 cups shredded cooked chicken
• 4 green onions, chopped, divided
• 1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper
• 1/3 cup shredded carrots
• 1/2 cup cashews
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
• 1-1/4 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 475°F. If using a pizza stone, preheat it in the oven. Roll out the pizza dough to a 14-inch circle and place it on a pizza pan or pizza peel. Brush the dough with the  sesame oil.

In small bowl, combine the hoisin sauce and chili garlic sauce. Brush 1/3 cup of the sauce over the crust. Toss the remaining sauce mixture with the chicken. Spread it over the crust. In another small bowl, combine 2 of the green onions, and the red pepper, carrots, cashews, and cilantro. Mix it together well and spread it over the chicken on the pizza. Sprinkle the mozzarella over the top of it all.

Bake the pizza until the cheese is lightly browned, about 10-12 minutes. Let the pizza stand for 5 minutes. Sprinkle the remaining 2 green onions over the top of the pizza, cut it into slices and serve.