[Austin_]

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!

[Mezzaluna]

What meat (if any) do you prefer? Any flavors, veggies, etc. that are favorites?

[Austin_]

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.

[DC Sunshine]

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

[Mezzaluna]

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).

[Austin_]

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.

[DC Sunshine]

Welcome Austin - let us know how you go

[Headless Chicken]

Chow Mein is nothing more then a noodle version of Fried Rice, just about anything goes. But the 1 thing I do look out for when it comes to making it is the noodles, my grandmother swore by specific brands whenever she would make chow mein and it made a world of a difference.

Generall, heres what I do.

In a wok, heat up some corn or veg oil and season a little with salt. Fry the noodles till chrispy and set aside.

Back onto the wok, cook your meats (I like using left over BBQ pork from the chinese BBQ restaurants, large dices), add some veg (sugar snap peas are great with beef, some blanched bean sprouts does well with chicken), season and add oyster sauce. Pour it all over the noodles and its ready.

With beef (flank steak, thin slices) or chicken (breast meat, cubed) say 1lb of either, marinate for minimum 30mins with:
1 heaping tbsp cornstarch
1 tbsp dark soya sauce
2 tsp sesame seed oil
1 tbsp corn or veg oil
my mother calls this the standard chinese marinade...its pretty much all purpose.

[Austin_]

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.

[pablopabla]

If the above picture interests you, you can get my recipe for the above Stir-Fried Instant Noodles here. Replace the fish cake with any meat of your choice.

[Lady DeWinters]

Here's a recipes which you may wish to try:

Chicken chow mein

If I find some more good chow mein recipes then I'll post them here.

[phoenixv]

Headless chicken, that's a very good way to put it haha. You can even add a little rice wine if you like, or soy sauce.

Corn starch, I was told, was to soften the meat.

Is there a special type of noodle that becomes crispy? As the noodles I get from the supermarket are the type that need to be boiled, not fried, and even if you tried frying them they never really become crispy. However, if a certain type of noodles (I believe they are called yee mien) are used, then it is crispy naturally.

[pablopabla]

Originally Posted by phoenixv

Headless chicken, that's a very good way to put it haha. You can even add a little rice wine if you like, or soy sauce.

Corn starch, I was told, was to soften the meat.

Is there a special type of noodle that becomes crispy? As the noodles I get from the supermarket are the type that need to be boiled, not fried, and even if you tried frying them they never really become crispy. However, if a certain type of noodles (I believe they are called yee mien) are used, then it is crispy naturally.

Erm...I think corn starch is used to make the outer layer smoother rather than softening the meat. I am unaware of its tenderizing properties.

As for crispy noodles, you might want to consider rice vermicelli (also called bee hoon). Deep fry it in oil and you'll get the crispiness you want. Yee mien looks like brown rubber-bands and are usually topped with a watery gravy to soften it prior to eating. It doesn't taste nice on its own.

[phoenixv]

Haha, I'll have to beg to differ based on personal choice then, as yee mien done on it's own is really crispy and me and my friend love it.

Yeah I know about the deep-fried vermicelli noodles, it's what they serve yam rings on! Not really my type though. It's down to personal taste I guess.

Not sure on the corn starch, just heard it from someone haha. You most probably are right.

[phatch]

Originally Posted by pablopabla

Erm...I think corn starch is used to make the outer layer smoother rather than softening the meat. I am unaware of its tenderizing properties.

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