Shanghai Style Chow Mein Shanghai Chao Mian Food

SHANGHAI NOODLES (CU CHAO MIAN)

Steps:

• In a medium bowl, season pork with salt and pepper.
• In a separate medium bowl, whisk together all the ingredients for the sauce - water, soy sauce, sesame oil, oyster sauce, dark soy sauce (if using), wine, sugar, pepper, corn starch and Sriracha. Set aside.
• Heat cooking oil in a wok or heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Add pork, and crumble while breaking up large lumps.
• Add garlic and ginger and continue cooking until meat is no longer pink, about 5 minutes.
• Mix in cabbage and stir-fry until tender.
• Add in noodles, breaking up strands if necessary and pour sauce on top. Toss to combine, coating with sauce. Adjust seasonings as needed and add Sriracha or red pepper chili flakes, for some heat, if desired.
• Remove from heat and garnish with sesame seeds.

SHANGHAI STYLE FRIED NOODLES

Steps:

• Heat oil in large pan over high heat. Add chicken and cook for 2-3 minutes, until it changes colour. Then, add cooking wine and turn the heat down to medium-low.
• Break the soaked noodles apart with your hands and add them to the pan, along with mushrooms and sesame oil and stir-fry together for 3 minutes, until mushroom is soft and translucent.
• Add soy sauce, dark soy sauce, brown sugar, and white pepper. Stir for 1 minute.
• Add bok choy and turn the heat up to medium. Cook until bok choy gets medium soft, about 1-2 minutes. Do not overcook as you want the bok choy to still be firm and not soggy. If the sauce is getting too dry, add a tablespoon of water.
• Serve hot.

SHANGHAI-STYLE CHOW MEIN (SHANGHAI CHAO MIAN)

Steps:

• Heat oil in saucepan and sauté the garlic, chillies and onion over high heat for 1 minute.
• Add the carrot, shiitake, cabbage, green capsicum and bean sprouts and stir-fry, with the heat still on high for 2-3 minutes.
• Add the soy sauce, vinegar, sugar, pepper and salt.
• Stir in the noodles and heat through. Serve garnished with chives.

CHICKEN CHAO MIAN

Steps:

• Half boil the noodles and drain the water using a strainer.
• Wash with cold water.
• Drain the water again.
• Heat 1/4 cup of oil in a pan.
• Fry the veggies in it one-by-one.
• Next fry the chicken in the same oil till the juice of the chicken dries up.
• Add 3/4 cup of chicken stock, cover it and allow it to cook.
• When the chicken stock is dried, add all the spices to it.
• Quickly, wash the noodles once again, drain the water and add it to the chicken and spices.
• Mix and saute well.
• Cook for 5 minutes.
• Add all the vegetables.
• Cook for 2 minutes.
• Serve hot.

CANTONESE CHOW MEIN

Steps:

• Immerse egg noodles into boiling water for 30 seconds, then remove and set aside.
• Heat your wok at high heat, keep it dry. Add 5 tbsp oil and coat the wok evenly with oil.
• Fry the noodles for about 2 minutes, and keep shaking it back and forth, until the noodles turn golden brown. Flip and repeat.
• The outer noodles should be golden, inner ones are soft. Remove noodles and arrange in center of a plate.
• Blanch the vegetables in boiling water (30 seconds). You can arrange the bok choy in a circle around the noodles if you like.
• Put some oil and fry minced garlic in the work, then add the blanched vegetables and stir fry. Add the meat ingredients, 1 tbsp water, cover the wok and steam for 1 - 2 minutes.
• Add the flavouring ingredients, the water with corn starch, and fry gently. Add a bit more water if you want more sauce.
• Pour the veggies and meat over the noodles.
• Note #1: Char xiu (Honey BBQ pork) is available in Chinatown or a good Chinese grocery store, as well as baby boy choy (also known as Shanghai bok choy).
• Note #2: Ideally you should use a large non-stick wok for frying noodles. Traditionally, Chinese people use a carbon steel wok, which is baked in the oven after purchase, and then rubbed with oil after washing each time to protect it. It turns black over time, and is pretty much non-stick. You could also use a non-stick pan, but non-stick coatings are poisonous and will accumulate in your body. Non-stick pans should generally be only used with medium or low heat. If you like them, get a professional grade non-stick pan for high heat cooking, it feels like ceramic.
• Note #3: I often add a dash of rice wine (sake) to the meat and vegetables. It just gives it a little extra flavour and isn't salty like most cooking wines.

CHOW MEIN (HONG KONG STYLE)

Steps:

• Marinate selected meat(s) with 1 tsp of corn starch, ½ tsp of sherry, ½ tsp of soy sauce, garlic, and a pinch of baking soda.
• Set aside for 15 minutes or longer.
• Heat wok or large pot with ¾ - 1 cup corn or vegetable oil until smoking.
• Pan fry fresh noodles until crispy golden brown and set aside in a serving container or platter.
• Sear meat(s) and set aside with noodles for later.
• Add a little oil to the wok (approx. 2 tablespoons) and stir fry veggies except for the bean sprouts.
• Mix chicken stock with corn starch to thicken sauce and add rest of the ingredients.
• Either mix noodles with the thickened sauce or serve over the fried noodles (Hong Kong Style).
• Flavor with sesame oil and garnish with cilantro for presentation.
• Noodles are available as packaged fresh thin "steamed" egg noodles in Asian markets not to be confused with the thin "egg noodle balls" for won ton soups.
• The latter tends to get gooey and starchy when using "lower heat temperatured" home stoves.