Chicken Chive Chow Mein (韭菜雞炒麵, Gau2 Coi3 Gai1 Caau2 Min6)

 

This recipe was updated on 17 Jul 2014. Some instructions and ingredient quantities were changed, and metric measurements added.

One of my favorite dishes to make and eat is stir fried noodles. Chow mein is one of those dishes where you can use whatever’s around to make it (as long as you have noodles!). This dish has chicken and chives, with red and green bell pepper strips for color, and scrambled eggs for added taste.

Enjoy!

Ingredients

¾ lb.	375 g.	Chicken thigh or breast meat (雞肉, gai1 juk6), cut into 1-inch (2.5 cm.) pieces
1 tsp.	5 ml.	Baking soda (蘇打粉, sou1 daa2 fan2)
½ in.	15 mm.	Knob of ginger (薑, goeng1), crushed in a garlic press
2 cloves	2 cloves	Garlic (蒜, syun3), crushed in a garlic press
1 Tbs.	15 ml.	Corn starch (粟粉, suk1 fan2)
2 Tbs.	30 ml.	Soy sauce (豉油, si6 jau4)
1 Tbs.	15 ml.	Hoisin sauce (海鮮醬, hoi2 sin1 zoeng3)
2 Tbs.	30 ml.	Shaoxing rice wine (紹興酒, siu6 hing1 zau2) or dry sherry
½ tsp.	2.5 ml.	Ground white pepper (白胡椒, baak6 wu4 ziu1)
1 tsp.	5 ml.	Sesame oil (麻油, maa4 jau4)
1 lb.	500 g.	Chives (韭菜, gau2 coi3), cut into 2-inch (5 cm.) pieces
1	1	Green bell pepper (青椒, ceng1 ziu1), cut into thin strips
1	1	Red bell pepper (紅椒, hung4 ziu1), cut into thin strips
½ lb.	250 g.	Bean sprouts (芽菜, ngaa4 coi3)
3	3	Eggs (gai1 daan6, 雞蛋), scrambled
½ in.	15 mm.	Knob of ginger (薑, goeng1), crushed in a garlic press
2 cloves	2 cloves	Garlic (蒜, syun3), crushed in a garlic press
		Oil for cooking

 

Sauce Ingredients

1 Tbs.	15 ml.	Thick soy sauce (上珠油, soeng6 zyu1 jau4)
2 Tbs.	30 ml.	Soy sauce (豉油, si6 jau4)
1 Tbs.	15 ml.	Hoisin sauce (海鮮醬, hoi2 sin1 zoeng3)
2 Tbs.	30 ml.	Shaoxing rice wine (紹興酒, siu6 hing1 zau2) or dry sherry
½ tsp.	2.5 ml.	Ground white pepper (白胡椒, baak6 wu4 ziu1)
1 tsp.	5 ml.	Sesame oil (麻油, maa4 jau4)

 

Equipment

14 in.	35.5 cm.	Wok or pan

 

Preparation Instructions

1. Prepare the chicken thigh or breast meat by removing any skin or bones, and cut into 1-inch (2.5 cm.) pieces. Add the baking soda to the chicken, allow to tenderize for 10 minutes, and then wash the baking soda from the meat. The baking soda can be omitted but results in the tender meat experienced in restaurant dishes.
2. Marinate the chicken for at least one hour or overnight in the refrigerator with the ginger and garlic crushed in a garlic press, corn starch, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, Shaoxing rice wine or dry sherry, ground white pepper, and sesame oil. If marinating the chicken overnight, take it out of the refrigerator at least one hour before cooking.
3. Take the eggs out of the refrigerator at least one hour before cooking and then scramble the eggs in a bowl.
4. Wash and cut the chives into 2-inch (5 cm.) pieces.
5. Wash and cut the red and green bell peppers into thin strips.
6. Crush the ginger and garlic in a garlic press and put into a small bowl.
7. Prepare and mix the sauce in a small bowl: add the thick soy sauce, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, Shaoxing rice wine or dry sherry, ground white pepper, and sesame oil.

 

Cooking Instructions

1. Cook the noodles according to the instructions on the package and until the noodles are al dente. Drain the noodles and set aside. If ready-made or fresh noodles are used, “fluff” the noodles to separate them (i.e. you don’t want put a single mass of noodles into the wok).
2. Heat the wok or pan over high heat before adding oil. Scramble the eggs in the wok while the pan is heating up. Transfer the scrambled eggs to a bowl.
3. Reheat the wok over high heat and before adding oil. Add the chicken pieces to the wok in a single layer on the bottom and brown the outside. You may have to cook the chicken in batches, so be sure to reheat the wok over high heat before adding more oil. Put the chicken into the bowl with the eggs.
4. Reheat the wok over high heat before adding oil and then the bowl with the ginger and garlic. Quickly stir fry the ginger and garlic until fragrant before adding more oil and then the bell peppers. Stir fry the bell peppers to brown them and then put them into the bowl with the chicken.
5. Reheat the wok over high heat, add more oil, add the bean sprouts to the wok, and stir fry. Transfer the contents of the wok to the bowl with the chicken.
6. Reheat the wok over high heat before adding more oil and then the noodles. The wok should be very hot before adding the oil and then the noodles. Noodles cooked in a restaurant wok (over much higher heat than that available in your kitchen) are served slightly burned, which gives the noodles an extra added flavor.  To try to emulate slightly burned noodles, try to put the noodles in one layer in the hot wok and add some liquid (water, stock, or Shaoxing wine; but not too much liquid otherwise you’ll steam the noodles) to facilitate the heat transfer from the wok to the noodles, and leave the noodles alone. You want the noodles to get burned before adding more oil to the noodles and turning them over, repeating the process.
7. Add the chives and the contents of the bowl with the cooked chicken back into the wok and stir fry the ingredients together. Add the sauce ingredients to the wok and stir fry the ingredients together. Put the cooked ingredients into a serving dish.