CHICKEN PAN-FRIED NOODLES
Chicken pan-fried noodles dish, known in Cantonese as a “Gai See Chow Mein,” is one of the most popular dishes at good dim sum restaurants. Our family’s Sunday Dim sum tradition includes ordering the Gai See Chow Mein every time we get together.
Har gow (shrimp dumplings), chive dumplings, sesame balls, sesame-crusted sesame balls, sesame-crusted sesame balls, sesame-crusted sesame-balls, and sesame-crusted taro puffs are also on the menu.
That means…after devouring nearly all the little dim sum meals on offer, we’ll get a few noodle dishes as a sort of…dessert? Oh, we’ve got quite a few people around here. There are a lot of children.
Egg noodles are pan-fried in a silky sauce with a lot of chicken and a lot of greens in this Hong Kong-style noodles meal. So, if you can’t get your hands on a restaurant version, you should definitely give it a go at home.
Here it is, folks: our recipe for chicken pan-fried noodles!
INGREDIENTS
MARINADE
- 2 teaspoons of soy sauce
- 2 teaspoons of vegetable or canola oil
- 2 teaspoons of cornstarch
- ¼ teaspoon of salt
REST OF THE DISH
- 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts (thin strips)
- 4 bundles of dried Hong Kong style egg noodles
- 1 bunch of choy sum
- 2 cloves of chopped garlic
- 1 cup of hot chicken stock
- 3 tablespoons of oil
- 2 tablespoons of Shaoxing wine
- 2 tablespoons of cornstarch
- 2 tablespoons of water
- 1 tablespoon of oyster sauce
- 1 tablespoon of soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon of sesame oil
- ½ teaspoon of salt
- 1/8 teaspoon of sugar
- Fresh ground white pepper
INSTRUCTIONS:
- Put the chicken slices and the marinade ingredients in a bowl and put aside. The green veggies can be cut into manageable bits by tearing them lengthwise with your hands.
- Boil the water. Include the dry or fresh noodles. If the noodles are fresh, boil them for one to two minutes. It will take a bit longer for dried. Just soften them during cooking. Do not overcook them because they will become soggy. Drain and set aside after rinsing with cool water.
- Oyster sauce, soy sauce, sesame oil, sugar, salt, white pepper, and hot chicken stock should all be combined in a small bowl. Put the 2 tablespoons of cornstarch and 2 tablespoons of water in another bowl and stir to make a slurry. To go over the ingredients you’ve already prepared: the chicken that has been marinated, the vegetables that have been cleaned and prepped, the cooked noodles, the sauce mixture, and the cornstarch slurry.
- A hot wok should be coated with 2 teaspoons of vegetable oil. Your noodles should be spread out evenly, and they should be fried for about 3 minutes, or until golden and crisp. To sauté the other side, turn the noodles over (you can add a bit more oil if necessary). If the pan is correctly warmed, the noodles shouldn’t adhere to it. You’ll be able to turn all the noodles at once with practice. Simply flip it into sections if you’re not feeling lucky. Transfer the noodles to a big round platter once they are golden on both sides.
- Next, add another tablespoon of vegetable oil after heating the pan until it is barely smoking. The chicken breast is seared. Once browned, deglaze the pan with Shaoxing wine before adding the garlic. Add your sauce now. You now understand why I meant “hot chicken stock,” as I highly doubt you have a roaring flame producing 50,000 BTUs beneath your wok. The flame in our tiny Beijing isn’t the best either. Add the green vegetables after allowing the liquid to come to a boil. For about a minute, stir and cook.
- Since the cornstarch likely fell to the bottom of the bowl, stir your slurry mixture again. When the liquid reaches a boil, add roughly two-thirds of the cornstarch and whisk to thicken. As soon as the sauce becomes thick enough to coat a spoon, add additional slurry. The consistency of your sauce depends on your own liking. Give it another thirty or so seconds to bubble up.
- The entire mixture should be poured over the noodles before serving. If desired, serve with hot chili oil or Sriracha on the side.