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I hate takeout, but I love making Chinese food at home. However, I'm really on a lookout for a great chow mien recipe- it doesn't have to be fancy or super complicated, but I would like it to be delicious. Any help possible would be great. Thank you!
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Mezzaluna
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What meat (if any) do you prefer? Any flavors, veggies, etc. that are favorites?
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I kind of like chicken chow mien a lot. As far as veggies go, I like onions, carrots, scallions, and garlic. I usually like my chow mien with teriyaki, ginger, or some kind of aciditic, such as lime or lemon. I don't usually cook chinese food a lot, and (forgive me for being a food snob :)), but all the recipes on the net seem to contain those nasty, rotten, cream of chicken soup, cream of mushroom soup, etc. etc, and I would never even touch a can of that stuff . I don't need a recipe, but it would be nice if I could get down the procedures so I could make it at home, and then I could experiment with adding all of my favorites later. I can cook Italian, I can cook Japanese (suprisingly), I can cook Tex-Mex, I can definately cook American, but there's something about these Chinese dishes that really get me confused. I guess it's because I've never really cooked it at home or had a relative who liked to cook it as well. Thank you for responding. :)
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DC Sunshine
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Chow Mein Noodles - Chow Mein Recipe
You might like to have a look at this recipe. It is pretty much the same as what I do and the method works really well. Plus the bonus of no canned soups (I can't abide them for Chinese cooking either). You can leave out or substitute the various veggies for your preference, just start with the harder/longest cooking ones first. You could also vary the wonton noodles to noodles you prefer. I also like to add some garlic at the same time as the onions - just be careful not to burn it or the whole dish will be spoilt.
Have fun! - DC
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Mezzaluna
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DC Sunshine posted what looks like a good recipe to start with, Austin. Seems to be a stir fry with the crispy fried noodles ('mein' means noodles).
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It looks really good. Perhaps a little too many ingredients for my taste however. But it does look pretty easy, and it gives me a lot of good ideas for making it my own. Thank you. I really appreciate it. :)
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DC Sunshine
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Welcome Austin - let us know how you go :)
Don't handicap your children by making their lives easy.
Robert A. Heinlein
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That's a nice way of putting it, chicken. I'll remember that. And the BBQ Pork sounds like a nice addition as well. Thank you so much. Highly appreciated. :roll:
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The reference is to "velveting", usually a combination of cornstarch and egg.
Here's an example:
Velveting Chicken - Chinese Cooking Techniques What is Velveting Chicken
more than taste fine
me eat it all the time
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Milady,
Two problems: (A) Your link doesn't work; and (B) There's a 28 month gap between the last thread and yours.
Interesting nic. Is it taken from the Lady de Winter of The Three Musketeers?
BDL
What were we talking about?
http://www.cookfoodgood.com
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chefguy
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This ones a knockout!!
Serves 6
Ingredients
* 3 cups finely shredded cooked chicken
* 1/2 cup oil
* 1 1/2 cups diced canned water chestnuts
* 1 1/2 cups diced canned bamboo shoots
* 3 cups diced celery
* 2 cups sliced Chinese cabbage
* 3/4 cup diced mushrooms
* 1 large green pepper, diced
* 3/4 cup thinly sliced green beans
* 9 scallions, chopped
* 2 garlic cloves, minced
* 1 tablespoon sugar
* 3 cups chicken bouillon
* 3 tablespoons cornstarch
* 1/4 cup soy sauce
* 1 tablespoon salt
* freshly ground black pepper
* chow mein noodles.
* 3/4 cup toasting almonds
Method
Fry vegetables, sugar, salt and pepper in oil for 1 minute, stirring briskly. Add bouillon, bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer for 10 minutes. Combine cornstarch, soy sauce and 4 tespoons water. Add to vegetable mixture and cook until thickened, stirring constantly. Add chicken and cook for 5 minutes. Serve with noodles, garnish with almonds.
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Umm, maybe in a huge wok for a restaurant burner but at home that's a recipe for failure. Wok will be overloaded and spilling. A home burner won't heat that much volume for stir frying temperatures.
a 10 minutes simmer, plus 5 minutes more with the chicken added? Isn't this supposed to be stir fry?
And mega salt dose betwee the mulitiple bouillion cubes, 1/4 cup of soy and tablespoon of salt.
This recipe just doesn't make sense.
more than taste fine
me eat it all the time
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chefguy
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That's what gNairdA's talking about.
I don't believe you've ever cooked it according to that recipe. Ever.
It won't fit in a wok and it makes no sense. I know it came from the forum on your site and you copied and pasted it word for word.
But if you'd cooked it, you'd know it doesn't work.
more than taste fine
me eat it all the time
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chow mein is one of my favourite chinese dishes, here's how i make it for chicken or beef chow mein::
Medium Egg noodles cooked in adequate ammount of chicken or beef stock, adding a dash of soy sauce when all the stock has been absorbed.
at the same time fry some onions, beansprouts, water chestnuts, spring onions, mushrooms in a wok until tender and set aside.
stir fry some chicken or beef strips in the wok until cooked adding a little salt and or soy sauce to season, then add all the ingredients to the wok for a final 2-3 mins stirring over a gentle heat
serve with prawn crackers :thumb:
we're as good as our last meal.
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chefguy
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First, Wok have different size. The one you see in restaurant is the large size. I have a small one in my home. It is great, portable, most women can handle that easily.
stir fry means you have to stir. Simmer means you don't have to stir.
So, it is not a stir fry...
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Chow is one of the two stir fry techniques. Mein means noodles. The dish above is not chow mein.
more than taste fine
me eat it all the time
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