Easy Chow Mein
Skip the takeout and make the BEST chow mein at home in less than 30 min! Perfectly crispy noodles with bok choy, mushrooms + bean sprouts!
We were ordering Chinese take-out from one of my favorite places. And all I really wanted was a giant bowl of chow mein with pan-fried noodles to that perfect crispness and crunch.
Except Ben says to me, “I think it’s lo mein that you want.” I was hesitant. I was 99% certain it was chow mein that I was looking for. He said, “Doesn’t the ‘chow’ in chow mein mean rice?”
I should have just stopped listening to him right there. Instead, I ordered the lo mein and I did not get my crispy noodles. And someone slept on the couch that night.
So in case you all are wondering, that is the key difference to chow mein versus lo mein. Chow mein noodles are fried to crispness while lo mein noodles are boiled to softness.
Both are great – but sometimes you just want those crispy noodles.
So after that mix up, I’ve been trying to perfect a homemade chow mein dish. You know, so I don’t have to constantly fight about chow mein versus lo mein with Ben.
And lo and behold, I think I’ve got it. This recipe here is created with the most perfect crispy noodles made with Hong Kong-style pan-fried noodles.
This can be found at your local Asian grocery store, and is usually sold parboiled so they can be used straight from the bag to pan without boiling them first, yielding that amazingly crisp firmness with soft, chewy spots throughout.
But if you can’t find them or they are not available, don’t worry. Fettuccine, linguine, or even ramen noodles (with the seasoning packet discarded) make for a handy substitute!
Easy Chow Mein
Ingredients
- ¼ cup oyster sauce
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 teaspoons freshly grated ginger
- 1 teaspoon Sriracha
- 1 (16-ounce) package Hong Kong-style pan-fried noodles
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 2 tablespoons canola oil
- 1 (3.5-ounce) package shiitake mushrooms
- 4 baby bok choy, coarsely chopped
- 1 cup mung bean sprouts, rinsed and drained
Instructions
- In a small bowl, whisk together oyster sauce, soy sauce, garlic, ginger and Sriracha; set aside.
- Heat 1 tablespoon canola oil in a large skillet or wok over medium high heat. Add noodles and cook, stirring constantly, until golden brown and crispy, about 3-4 minutes; set aside.
- Heat remaining 1 tablespoon canola oil in the skillet. Add mushrooms, and cook, stirring often, until tender, about 3-4 minutes. Stir in bok choy until just wilted, about 1 minute.
- Stir in noodles and oyster sauce mixture until well combined, about 2 minutes. Stir in bean sprouts.
- Serve immediately.
Did you make this recipe?
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For me, I prefer the flat egg noodles, you get more of an eggy flavor and more surface area to soak up sauces. Also, I used sambal oelek instead of sriracha (I didn’t have any at the time)
Just whipped this up for lunch as we had bean sprouts, and I’m one of only 2 in the house who likes them. My children all decided it smelled delicious (even after they’d eaten lunch!), and it was awesome!
Sounds good just like I ate 50 years ago I am going to make it tomorrow probably put a little curry powder in as well
Very good recipe and easy to make.
Just made this for the first time tonight, and it was a hit! Could not find the Hong Kong noodles, so used 2 pkgs of Ramen w/o the flavoring packet. First boiled for 4 minutes, drained and rinsed, then tossed in a tsp of olive oil to prevent sticking together. Fried per the recipe directions, and they came out nice and crispy. Worked great in the recipe. Thanks for this recipe, will be making it often.
Just made this recipe. Did not have beanspruts. Served it with Pork Ribs in spicy sauce. Yummy!
Amazing! My kids loved this and they’re picky eaters. I added cut up beef stripes. Love all your recipes, Thank you!
Loved it ! Made it with Costco’s brown rice and millet noodles (boiled them first). Will become a regular easy/quick vegetarian lunch here 🙂
Oh! My gosh!! This is delicious!! I made this yesterday and came out amazing. Thanks. I’m Mexican by the way and I love all your recepies!
Just Yum! amazing flavor!
Great recipe , but I make my noodles from scratch. They are run thru the fine noodles setting and deep fried. A bed of noodles, veggies etc on top. Couldn’t be better.
I boiled the noodles before cooking (according to the package). Do you cook your noodle straight out of the bag?
Hi Junko, this recipe here is created with Hong Kong-style pan-fried noodles. They can be found at your local Asian grocery store, and is usually sold parboiled so they can be used straight from the bag to pan without boiling them first, yielding that amazingly crisp firmness with soft, chewy spots throughout. I hope that helps answer your question.
After I read your reply, it makes all sense that the noodles will be crisp firmness with soft, chewy spots throughout. I will definitely try this soon! This recipe is very easy and delicious!
I made this, and was blown AWAY with how divine it tasted! Wow! Thank you for this recipe!
Delicious! I added strips of pork tenderloin. I will definitely be making this again.
Where can you find these noodles to make this recipe?
This is so delicious! My family loves it. Instead of the oyster sauce I use water and it’s not as salty as is with the original recipe.
I make this recipe a lot. I add 3 teaspoons of grated ginger and 2 tsps of Sriracha to get more kick. Overall, a damn delicious recipe!
This was the Most Best Noodles ever tasted
So yummy!! First time making chow mein , and it turned out so good .
If I personally find it a tad salty, do you suggest just adding a bit of water to the sauce or cutting back on a certain ingredient 🙂
I tried this recipe using cooked ramen noodles, but it kind of just turned into a mushy pile of noodles with some crispy outsides. I would suggest using only the hong kong style noodles, not ramen!
I’ve used Ramen noodles before (usually mixed with either dry Rooster brand noodles, Capelli D’angelo or even spaghettini) The trick is to very lightly boil the ramen. I start with the heavier pasta noodles and then add the ramen during the last minute or two.
Very delicious. I used soft chow mein noodles.