Chinese Chow Mein

Name: Chinese Chow Mein
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 12 min
Total time: 27 min
Yield: 2 servings
Cuisine: Chinese
Ingredients: egg noodles 280 g; pork strips 120 g; cabbage 100 g; carrot 50 g; bean sprouts 80 g; oyster sauce 1.5 tbsp; soy sauce 1 tbsp; sesame oil 1 tsp

Quick answer

Total time: 27 min
Level: Easy
Servings: 2 servings
Ingredients: 8

About this dish

Spread across a very hot pan and left alone for a moment, the noodles pick up crisp, browned patches while the centers stay chewy, and that contrast defines chow mein.

It depends on dry ingredients: noodles boiled just short of tender and cooled, bean sprouts shaken free of water, and vegetables pulled before they weep. A thin coat of sesame oil on the drained noodles stops them from fusing into a clump as they cool. High heat from start to finish keeps liquid from pooling in the pan, where it would steam the noodles instead of frying them. Oyster sauce and soy give the strands a glossy, salty coating.

Ingredients

servings

IngredientAmount

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Instructions

6 steps

1

Boil 280g egg noodles for 2 to 3 minutes, stopping while the center still has a little firmness.

Drain thoroughly, then toss lightly with the sesame oil so the strands cool separately instead of clumping.
2

Slice the 120g pork thinly so it browns before the vegetables overcook.

Cut the cabbage and carrot into 4 to 5cm strips, and shake excess water from the bean sprouts to prevent the stir-fry from turning soggy.
3

Heat a pan or wok thoroughly over high heat.

Spread in the pork and stir-fry for 1 to 2 minutes until browned on the surface.
4

Add the cabbage and carrot first and stir-fry for about 1 minute, then add the bean sprouts last.

Keep the heat high and stop before the vegetables release liquid, while they are still crisp.
5

Add the cooled noodles and spread them across the hot surface for about 30 seconds so some strands crisp.

Add 1.5 tbsp oyster sauce and 1 tbsp soy sauce, then toss until every strand is evenly coated.
6

Stir-fry everything rapidly for 1 more minute until the oyster sauce and soy sauce coat the noodles and ingredients with a sheen.

Stop before liquid pools in the pan and serve immediately.