First of all, I will confess that among my college friends I am famous for my cashew chicken. More like infamous – it’s one of those stories that get me laughing so hard it’s difficult to tell.
Years ago, as upperclass students, we were all living off campus and enjoyed having dinner parties. When it was my turn, I wanted to impress my friends with a new recipe – cashew chicken. It was a delicious meal I’d been served by Mrs. Murphy when I was hanging out with Doug Murphy, one of my Pizza Inn coworkers back in those days
The chicken breasts were cut in small pieces, breaded and fried. This was served over rice with a tasty sauce. I had to search for the “exotic” ingredient it required: oyster sauce. I couldn’t wait for my friends to try it!
The night arrived, and I slaved over the stove. That was back when I only had two pans and hand-me-down dishes. Sherry and Russ were there; Jennifer and Dave, and Steve.
Proudly, I served everyone this unique dish. They politely tasted the cashew chicken, then someone asked me, “Where are the cashews?”
Where indeed?
Mrs. Murphy hadn’t included cashews in the recipe she wrote out for me, nor had her dish had any nuts. I never found out if that was a mistake, or due to allergies.
The truth of the matter – I thought the name came from the shape of the small chicken pieces. They sure look cashew-like.
To this day, I have not lived down that meal! A few years later, I was able to host a repeat, complete with cashews, and served from Royal Doulton china this time.
In the NYTimes yesterday, I found a delightful article about this dish, which has been a staple in restaurants in Springfield, Missouri for almost 50 years.
“Cashew chicken, in the form first cooked by Mr. Leong nearly a half-century ago, is not the stir-fry served by many Chinese-American restaurants. Around Springfield, cashew chicken — deep-fried chicken chunks in a brown slurry of soy sauce, oyster sauce and stock, scattered with green onions and halved cashews — is the culinary common denominator. “
And, wouldn’t you know, the Murphy’s were from Springfield, Missouri, the home of this recipe!
Visit this blog for another cashew chicken story and the recipe!
