This is a fairly easy recipe, but it took me several attempts to get it just right. And it's actually one of the recipes that's taken me the longest to nail down. I first tried Thai cashews from Trader Joe's years ago and I fell in love! The spiciness, the boldness of the flavours and the overall Thai flavour explosion in my mouth wasn't something I had experienced with a cashew recipe before. And if you love the flavours of Thai food, I promise you, you'll fall in love with these roasted cashews too! They are the perfect snack and dangerously addictive - you've been warned.

Ingredients

The ingredients may be hard to find if you don't have access to a well stocked grocery store or an Asian market, but there really aren't a lot of substitutions for these flavours. So I'd urge you to find the ingredients so you can enjoy these! It's worth it - promise!

Lemongrass

Makrut lime leaves

Thai chili peppers

Lime zest

Kosher salt

Avocado oil

Honey

How to Make Thai Spiced Cashews

Once you have your ingredients, making these Thai cashews are very easy.

You will need a coffee grinder to pulverize the ingredients until everything is finely ground. I've tried doing this in my Vitamix, but the blade doesn't reach the ingredients as well and so it won't get as finely ground. The reason you want the ingredients finely ground is to coat the cashews well, so I highly recommend using a coffee grinder for this.

Add the lemongrass, lime leaves and chili peppers to your coffee grinder and blend well.

Add this to a large bowl and then add in the remaining ingredients, including the cashews.

Toss everything very well to coat the cashews.

Transfer to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and bake until slightly golden brown, about 22 to 25 minutes. Let them sit on the baking sheet after to cool down and then transfer to a sealed container.

Substitutions

Honey: you can use a vegan alternative if you need, agave would be the best option as it's stickier similar to honey. You can also use this honey alternative.

Makrut lime leaves: if you really can't find the lime leaves, you can substitute with extra lime zest, but the flavours won't be the exact same.

Thai chili peppers: you can omit if you don't want any spice, or use another type of chili such as serrano or use a pinch of cayenne pepper.

Avocado Oil: use another type of neutral tasting oil instead.

Tips

• Don't over bake: check on the cashews after 15 minutes to be sure they aren't getting too browned. Oven times and temperatures vary, so these may take from 15 minutes to 30 minutes.
• Let them cool: allow the Thai cashews to cool on the baking sheet before removing them. This ensures the seasonings adhere to the cashews properly.
• Use a coffee grinder: because there isn't a lot to process, a coffee grinder is best to pulverize everything which allows the seasoning to stick to the cashews better.

More snack recipes

Check out these other healthy snack recipes below:

• Crispy lentils (three ways)
• Butternut squash hummus
• PB & J energy bites
• Savoury granola
• High protein chocolate energy balls

If you make these Thai cashews, please share with me, by tagging me on Instagram or leave a comment and/or review below. I truly love seeing and hearing form you!

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