Chinese fried noodles

[doronin]

I have no experience in Chinese cuisine (cooking, not eating), but I'm trying to get more familiar with it...

Fried noodles, how do I do it?

First, what kind of noodles would be the correct choice for that?

Second, the sauce. I eat fried noodles in good Chinese restaurants from time to time, and remember that lovely subtle smoky taste - what is it?

[June Pickering]

I have no experience in Chinese cuisine (cooking, not eating), but I'm trying to get more familiar with it...

Fried noodles, how do I do it?

First, what kind of noodles would be the correct choice for that?

Second, the sauce. I eat fried noodles in good Chinese restaurants from time to time, and remember that lovely subtle smoky taste - what is it?

←

I once found this a very helpful website when I was trying to learn more about noodles. I hope it helps you, too!

http://chinesefood.about.com/od/noodles/

[doronin]

Too bad I don't remember the name of the dish...

I'm not talking of cho mein - stir fry noodles with vegetables in a lot of starchy souce, but rather about dry, that is, not floating in the souce at all, relativey thin noodles, little crispy, and coated by distinctive dark sauce.

They usually served separately, as is, just with some spring onions on it.

Any ideas?

Edited March 6, 2006 by doronin (log)

[rxrfrx]

What you're looking for is not the US "chow mein," but rather the Chinese "fried noodles" a/k/a "chow mien," right? Like, a bed of skinny noodles (mien) that have been fried until crispy, and with a pile of stir-fried meat/vegetable in a very light sauce on top?

[liv4fud]

check this very informative and picturesque Chinese Food Pictorials thread by our very own AhLeung.

Each picture is linked to its very own recipe which is another pictorial guide to making the dish exactly like it looks.

[BarbaraY]

Also check this thread in Chinese Cooking forum. Lots of good tips and discussion of Cantonese Chow Mein.

[doronin]

Thanks guys. I just realized I'd better posted it on Chinese forum... I just didn't know of it.

What you're looking for is not the US "chow mein," but rather the Chinese "fried noodles" a/k/a "chow mien," right?  Like, a bed of skinny noodles (mien) that have been fried until crispy, and with a pile of stir-fried meat/vegetable in a very light sauce on top?

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I think I'm talking not about chow mien at all, though I may be mistaken. In every chinese restaurant in Ottawa, ON I've been, when ordering some "that-style-meat-in-some-souce", I could ask for "fried noodles" (it was always on the menu) as a kind of a side dish, and was served with pretty much the same thing - fried noodles, no pork, or chicken, or vegetables, except spring onions. No sauce on top, though the noodles were coated in something based on soy and sesame oil.

It isn't chew mien, is it?

[Simon_S]

It's called chow mein in some parts of the world, but I believe chow mein in the US is something else.

For what it's worth, I know exactly what you mean!

Si

[doronin]

It's called chow mein in some parts of the world, but I believe chow mein in the US is something else.

For what it's worth, I know exactly what you mean!

Si

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Good!

Now, do you know how to prepare such a thing?

As it doesn't seem to be intended as an independent entrée, it must be one of the simplest recipes in Chinese cuisine...

[ChryZ]

Make sure to read this one.

[Simon_S]

Now, do you know how to prepare such a thing?

As it doesn't seem to be intended as an independent entrée, it must be one of the simplest recipes in Chinese cuisine...

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I don't really do much cooking of any food let alone Chinese, but I am of the opinion that the dish in question really is very simple. I believe it consists of cold noodles, beansprouts, spring onion, soy sauce, salt, maybe a little sesame oil and a hot wok. I believe the key is having the wok hot enough, which can be quite difficult to achieve at home. When the noodles go into the wok, toss them rather than stirring them.

Si

[Khadija]

In Eileen Yin-Fei Lo's book, New Cantonese Cooking, there is a recipe for Geung Chung Bon Mein or "Noodles with Ginger and Scallions." Basically, you take cooked egg noodles and stir fry them with a lot of ginger and a little bit of sauce made from oyster sauce, soy sauce, sugar, chicken broth, sesame oil, and white peppper. The noodles are then topped with a large amount of scallions. When I was growing up, my (Chinese) mom sometimes made something similar, just a as side dish or as a very quick lunch. Does this sound like what you're looking for?