Crock Pot Cashew Chicken

I love my slow-cooker.  It makes a lazy cook like me look good!  You serve this hearty meal that looks like it took all day, when all you really do is "dump it, set it, and forget it." This, however, isn't one of those meals. This takes a little prep, and I'm not wholly convinced it even needs to go in the slow cooker, but my oh my, it was worth the work in the end. I served with some homemade Lo Mein Noodles, and it was quite a tasty dinner.

Crock Pot Cashew Chicken

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup Flour
• 1/2 tsp Black Pepper (recommend Highland Foods' Maple Pepper)
• 2 lbs Chicken thighs, cut into bite-size pieces
• 1 TBSP Sesame oil
• 3 TBSP Soy Sauce
• 2 TBSP Rice Wine Vinegar
• 2 TBSP Ketchup 
• 3/4 TBSP Raw Sugar
• 2 Garlic cloves, minced
• 1/2 tsp Fresh Ginger, minced
• 1/4-1/2 TBSP Red Pepper flakes
• 1/2 cup raw Cashews
• 2 Scallions, sliced

Directions

1. Place flour and pepper in a large Ziploc bag. Add chicken pieces and seal; toss to thoroughly coat meat.
2. Heat sesame oil in a large skillet or wok. Add chicken and cook for about 5 minutes until brown on all sides. Remove and add to crock pot.
3. Mix soy sauce, rice vinegar, ketchup, sugar, garlic, ginger and red pepper flakes in a small bowl.
4. Pour mixture over chicken and toss to coat. Cover crock pot and cook on low for 3-4 hours.
5. Stir cashews into chicken and sauce before serving. Garnish with scallions.

Picture and original recipe inspiration courtesy of http://www.preppypaleo.com/