Eastern Chicken Chow Mein

Chicken Chow MeinWinner Winner Chicken Chow Mein Dinner!

Cash in on this Chicken Chow Mein dinner Fo’ Show!  It’s got everything you want in this recipe; vegetables, chicken, rice and Crispy noodles.  Yep, that’s what I’m talking about.  Now, if you’re wondering why I’m referencing “Eastern” Chicken Chow Mein for this recipe and you missed my other post about “Western” Chow Mein, you can CLICK RIGHT HERE to read up on the differences between the two and how Lo Mein fits in with all the confusion.  Otherwise, let’s move on shall we.

Traditionally, Chicken Chow Mein is serve with a ton a vegetables over rice, topped with crispy noodles.  If that’s what you are looking for, then you came to the right place.  This recipe has all of that, and I’m happy to say that and more.  But this Chicken Chow Mein recipe doesn’t necessarily have to have chicken in it at all if you prefer a substitutions.  Tofu is an excellent source of protein and it’s used in Chinese cooking constantly.  So if you’re leaning that way, don’t be shy because this recipe is great with Tofu too.  Personally I even prefer using shrimp when I’ve got it.  Nothing like some wild Browns!

Chicken Chow Mein Ingredients:

2 cups of rice
2 cups Crispy Noodles
4 boneless Chicken thighs (chicken breast,shrimp or tofu)

2 Celery Stocks
1 cup Shitake Mushrooms
1 cup Bean Sprouts
1 can Water chestnuts
1 hand full String Peas
1/2 chopped Onion

3 cups Chicken stock
1/3 cup corn starch
1/4 cup Soy Sauce
2 tsp Sesame Oil
1 tsp fresh chopped Ginger
1 tbsp sugar (optional)
peanut oil for cooking

  • Cook the Chicken thoroughly, salt and pepper to taste
  • Mix 2 cups of Chicken stock with soy and sugar on low heat in a seperate pan
  • Mix 1 cup of Chicken stock with corn starch in a seperate bowl
  • Stir fry all the vegetables, add chicken, then stock with soy and bring to a boil
  • Add Chicken stock with Corn starch
  • Add Sesame Oil and Ginger and serve

For an added bonus, I like to top off this recipe with a shake of Tempura Dipping sauce, made by Kikkoman.  I hope you enjoy this Eastern Chicken Chow Mein recipe as much as I do.

Oriental Salad with Dressing

Oriental SaladOriental Salad made with Leftovers!

There’s nothing that top secret about an Oriental Salad.  But I’m going to make one using leftovers.  I can walk into almost any kitchen, open the refrigerator and turn out a gourmet dish.  Obviously a salad is a weak example, but it is an example none the less.  Lomo Saltado was left over in my refrigerator today and I decided to turn out an Oriental Salad.  Not that that’s too difficult in itself, but the secret to an oriental salad lies in the dressing.  So, though I’m whipping out a quick salad, I want the main focus to be two things, leftovers and the dressing.

The best part is everybody has leftovers.  So there is a very large variety of options you could probably turn out in your own salad.  Beef and Chicken are the easiest, and since my Lomo Saltado recipe has onions and peppers in it as well, I feel like this is the best choice for an Oriental Salad as well as an excellent opportunity to introduce my oriental salad dressing. There are two sauces you need to be aware of; Sriracha, made by Rooster and Kikkoman’s Tempura Dipping Sauce. Sriracha is HOT but it has an excellent flavor for oriental foods that only it can provide.  Use this sparingly and to your desired tastes.  Tempura Dipping sauce is great for many things.  I use this when I make Lo Mein or Ham Fried Rice!

Sriracha and Tempura Dipping SauceOriental Salad Dressing Ingredients:

½ cup Mayonnaise
1 tsp Oyster Sauce
1 tsp Sesame Oil
½ tsp Sriracha
2 oz Tempura Dipping Sauce

All the ingredients are pretty basic for this salad.  Just be sure to add onions, peppers and some sort of Crispy noodle.  I use uncooked Ramen on purpose just to show that it can be done and it can still taste excellent.  The Dressing is simple and lies as follows in the above ingredients.  Make sure you try an Oriental Salad with this Oriental Dressing next time you’re craving it.

Chow Mein, Lo Mein and more Chow Mein

Lo Mein/Chow MeinSo many Choices

Do you know the difference between Lo Mein and Chow Mein?  What about the difference between Chow Mein and Chow Mein? Ah, you didn’t know there are two different kinds of Chow Mein?  If you do that’s great, but most people don’t.  I didn’t.  Well at least at the time I was ordering it from a menu and got something I thought was entirely different and not what I was expecting at all.  That experience was years ago but it was the day that I learned the difference between Eastern and Western Chow Mein.

Eastern Chow Mein is what I got when I was expecting something different.  Apparently Western Chow Mein is what I was expecting and if that’s what I wanted from a place that serves the “Eastern” version of Chow Mein, rather, I should have ordered Lo Mein and it would’ve been the same thing.  Are you confused yet?

Western Chow Mein and Lo Mein recipes are virtually the same thing; lots of oily soft noodles with minimal vegetables.  Eastern Chow Mein is practically the opposite with a few variances, but basically lots of vegetables and minimal crispy noodles.  Western Chow Mein is my favorite, though I’ve come to love the Eastern version and often crave that recipe from time to time.  Lo Mein, or rather, Western Chow Mein is what I’ll be focusing on in this recipe.

TopRamen_ChickenNoodles, Noodles, Lo Mein Noodles

Never use Spaghetti noodles unless you want to fit in with all of the other yahoo’s out there that really don’t know what they’re doing.  You may not know either, but with this Lo Mein/Chow Mein recipe, you’ll be able to wing it like the pros and no one will be able to tell the difference.  You can, however, pull this off with Angel Hair Pasta, but I’m still not recommending an Italian noodle for a Chinese dish.  If you can pick up a soft noodle, something doughy or already cooked near the Tofu and egg roll wrappers in your grocery store, then that’s as good as it’s going to get, unless you make your own.  Though today, I’m going to show you how to do this with an all time very inexpensive favorite of mine, Ramen!  Nissin Top Ramen is what I’m using, with the chicken flavored seasoning packet.  You can literally use any flavor you prefer, but most Restaurants use a chicken or vegetable stock in their kitchen.  So trust me with this one because you’re going to need the broth even after you cook your noodles.

Cook The Noodles Al Dente.  This just means that you need to slightly under cook the noodles.  The reason for this is because they need to be cooked a second time when they are tossed with the vegetables, and this will keep them from getting over cooked and sticky.  Another important tip you need to know is the oil.  I have found that Peanut oil gives a more professional taste to the flavor of the noodles.  Don’t ask me why, because Chinese Restaurants will use Canola and even Soy Bean oil for their noodles, but I just don’t think they bring out that delicious fast food street vendor style of Lo Mein we’ve all grown to love.  For all I know, peanut oil is what the street vendors use.  I can’t be certain but it sure tastes right!

Ingredients:

1 pkg Noodles
4 ounces of Broth from the Noodle bouillon
1 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp Hoisin or Oyster Sauce
1/3 cup Peanut Oil
1 chopped Garlic Clove
1 1/2 Mixed Vegetables

Vegetables should include Cabbage, Onion and Carrot at a minimum, but can also contain Mushroom, Celery and Bean Sprouts.  Feel free to add any precooked meats like, Shrimp, Chicken or Beef.  Rob the 4 ounces of Broth from the Noodle bouillon and mix the sugar and your choice of Hoisin or Oyster to make the Secret Sauce.  Both are good but add a completely different taste so just choose your favorite.  Cook the noodles Al Dente and strain, then cook the vegetables in the peanut oil and garlic for 30 seconds, add the noodles and toss, then poor the “Secret Sauce” into the noodles and stir until the coloring is even through out the noodles.  The whole cooking process, tossing the vegetables and then combining with the noodles, shouldn’t take you more than 1 full minute to complete.  Serve the Lo Mein Family Style, on one plate, then dish out separately.