Vegetable chow mein
Egg noodles pan-fried until a little crispy, then tossed with cabbage, celery, carrots and bean sprouts in a glossy soy sauce, the takeout classic made at home.
- 35 min total
- 25 min hands-on
- Follow-a-recipe easy
- Serves 4
- About $1.80 a serving
- 400 calories
- Good the next day
- Vegetarian
- Dairy-free
Dolly says: Make the full amount. It’s just as good for lunch the next day.
Ingredients
For 4 servings.
- 8 oz lo mein noodles
- 1 tbsp hoisin sauce
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 1 yellow onion, sliced
- 2 stalks celery, thinly sliced on an angle
- 1 carrot, cut into thin matchsticks
- 3 cups green cabbage, shredded
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tsp fresh ginger, grated
- 2 cups bean sprouts
- 3 stalks green onions, cut into 2-inch pieces
From your pantry
- 3 tbsp vegetable oil, divided
- 3 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tsp sugar
Each serving has about 400 calories, 13 g protein, 58 g carbs and 14 g fat, and costs about $1.80 at typical US grocery prices. Both are estimates from what the recipe uses.
Missing something?
- No yellow onions? White onions or red onions work.
- No green cabbage? Red cabbage or coleslaw mix works.
- No green onions? Chives work.
Steps
Tap an underlined word for a quick explanation.
Bring a large pot of water over high heat. Cook the noodles as the package says, usually 2 to 3 minutes, then , under cold water and shake dry.
Bring to a boil. It means heating a liquid on high until it’s fully boiling before you move on. A lid on the pot gets it there faster, which makes it a good moment to chop something.
How you’ll know: Big bubbles break all over the surface, and they keep coming when you lift the lid.
Drain. Draining means pouring off liquid, like tipping pasta into a colander or spooning extra fat out of the pan. Pour hot grease into a can or jar, not the sink, where it hardens and clogs the pipes.
How you’ll know: Only a few drips are left, and the food isn’t sitting in a puddle.
Rinse. Rinsing means running cold water over rice or canned beans in a strainer while you swish them around. It washes off loose starch and can liquid, so rice cooks up fluffy and beans taste clean.
How you’ll know: The water running out goes from cloudy to mostly clear; it doesn’t have to be perfect.
High heatTimer: 2 min 30 sec
Stir the soy sauce, hoisin, sugar, sesame oil and 2 tablespoons water together.
Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large over medium-high heat.
Skillet. A skillet is a frying pan: wide and flat with low, sloped sides. The shape lets steam escape, so food browns instead of stewing.
How you’ll know: It’s the pan you’d fry an egg in, and a 10 or 12 inch one handles most recipes.
Medium-high heat
Spread the noodles out and cook 3 minutes without stirring, until and underneath, then flip and cook 2 minutes more.
Golden brown. Golden brown is the color of good toast, somewhere between yellow and light brown. It means the outside is cooked and crisp but not burnt.
How you’ll know: It looks like toast and smells toasty; dark brown with a bitter smell means it went too far.
Crispy. Crispy means the outside is dry, firm and crunchy. It comes from high heat, a little oil and room in the pan, because crowded food steams and goes soft.
How you’ll know: It sounds crunchy when you tap or bite it, and it doesn’t flop when you lift it.
Medium-high heatTimer: 5 min
Dolly’s tip: This is what makes it chow mein instead of lo mein: a little crunch on the noodles.Move them to a plate.
Add the rest of the oil over high heat. the onion, celery and carrot 2 minutes, then the cabbage, garlic and ginger for 2 minutes more, until .
Stir-fry. Stir-frying means cooking small pieces fast over high heat in a little oil, stirring almost constantly. It moves quickly, so have everything chopped and ready before the pan gets hot.
How you’ll know: It sizzles loudly the whole time, and the vegetables turn bright and tender-crisp in minutes.
Tender-crisp. Tender-crisp means vegetables cooked until just tender but still with a little snap. They keep their bright color and crunch instead of going soft and dull.
How you’ll know: A fork goes in with slight resistance, and the color is bright, not olive or gray.
High heatTimer: 4 min
Add the noodles and sauce and with tongs 2 minutes, until glossy.
Toss. Tossing means gently lifting and turning food so everything gets coated, like pasta in sauce or vegetables in oil. It coats every piece evenly without mashing anything.
How you’ll know: Every piece looks glossy or evenly coated, with no dry spots hiding underneath.
High heatTimer: 2 min
in the bean sprouts and green onions for 1 minute and serve.
Toss. Tossing means gently lifting and turning food so everything gets coated, like pasta in sauce or vegetables in oil. It coats every piece evenly without mashing anything.
How you’ll know: Every piece looks glossy or evenly coated, with no dry spots hiding underneath.
High heatTimer: 1 min
Plan this in Dollop, and get the grocery list
Dollop puts this dinner on a night that suits your week, lists only what you still need to buy, and walks you through each step while you cook.
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