Chinese Lo Mein
Quick answer
- Total time
- 25 min
- Level
- Easy
- Servings
- 2 servings
- Ingredients
- 8
About this dish
Unlike chow mein, which gets fried until crisp, lo mein tosses boiled noodles gently with sauce so they stay soft and glossy.
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Soy sauce, oyster sauce and a little sugar make a salty, faintly sweet coating, mixed in advance so the seasoning spreads evenly during the brief toss. Half cooking the shrimp before the vegetables go in keeps it from toughening while everything is tossed, and the broccoli and carrot come off the heat while still bright and crisp. The noodles are plated the moment the sauce turns glossy, since left in the pan they dry out. Chicken or beef works in place of shrimp with the same steps.
Ingredients
Instructions
- 1
Mix 1.5 tablespoons soy sauce, 1 tablespoon oyster sauce, and 1 teaspoon sugar before cooking.
Boil the lo mein noodles, drain them well, and keep them warm so the sauce can coat them smoothly later.
- 2
Rinse 140 g shrimp in salted water, then pat them very dry so they sear instead of steaming.
Cut the broccoli and carrot into small, even pieces so they soften quickly during the short stir-fry.
- 3
Heat the pan over medium heat and stir-fry 1 teaspoon minced garlic for about 20 seconds, just until fragrant.
Add the shrimp and cook until the outside turns pink but the center is still slightly underdone.
- 4
Add 90 g broccoli and 50 g carrot, then stir-fry for about 1 minute.
Stop when the color looks brighter and the vegetables have lost their raw edge but still keep a light crunch.
- 5
Add the warm noodles to the pan, then pour the prepared sauce around the edges.
Lower the heat to medium-low and toss gently with chopsticks or tongs, loosening clumps without breaking the noodles.
- 6
Turn off the heat once the sauce coats the noodles with a glossy finish.
Do not leave them in the pan too long, because lo mein should stay moist and soft, not dry or crisp.
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