Chicken Chow Mein. Springy chow mein noodles fried with tender chicken with a variety of delicious vegetables in a savoury sauce.
So good and quick to make!
This chicken chow mein recipe will knock your socks off as it’s so good and easy to make at home in one wok. Ready in 30 minutes!
Balanced in texture and taste!
Now I know there are many chicken chow mein recipes online but this one is so perfectly balanced thanks tender chicken, variety of crunchy vegetables and bouncy egg noodles. Not to mention, the best sauce for chicken chow mein!
Serves well for larger families
My chicken and chow mein noodles hit the spot every time and possesses a a great variety of vegetables to help lighten the heaviness of the noodles. It serves well for a larger family and great for leftovers too!
Easy Chicken Chow Mein
These Cantonese noodles are so easy to make! The cooking process is less than 7 minutes in a hot wok and most of the time is dedicated to preparing your ingredients.
You are first marinating the chicken. Then pre-mixing the sauce ahead of time. Next you’ll blanch and strain the chow mein noodles for just 10 seconds or until loosened. Finally fry the chicken first and then the crunchier veggies. Then mix in the noodles with sauce along with the softer vegetables.
That’s it! If you scroll down, I will teach you how to make chicken chow mein like the takeaway!
What you’ll need
For this recipe you’ll need the following chicken chow mein ingredients:
- Cantonese chow mein noodles
- Skinless boneless chicken thighs
- bean sprouts
- cabbage
- celery
- carrot
- green onion
- vegetable oil
Sauce:
- regular soy sauce
- dark soy sauce
- oyster sauce
- Shaoxing wine
- sesame oil
- white granulated sugar
- white pepper, or sub with black pepper
- cornstarch
- garlic
- chicken stock, unsalted
Chicken marinade:
- regular soy sauce
- cornstarch
- water
How to make Chicken Chow Mein
Below are brief steps with visuals to show you how to cook this dish. Please scroll down to the recipe card below to find full instructions and details.
Marinate chicken and set aside as you work on preparing other ingredients
In a bowl, combine sauce ingredients.
Blanch chow mein noodles in hot boiling water for 10-15 seconds or JUST until loosened.
Strain immediately.
In a wok over medium high heat, add oil and chicken. Fry chicken until 75% cooked.
Then add carrots, celery, cabbage and fry until softened.
If needed, add remaining oil. Toss in noodles and pour sauce over top. Stir fry until noodles are coated in sauce, about 30 seconds.
Mix in bean sprouts and green onions. Fry for 10 seconds. Serve and enjoy!
Cooking Tips
Below are tips on making Cantonese chicken chow mein:
Prepare your ingredients ahead of time!
I know I say this in every single recipe post but in Asian cooking it is all about preparing the ingredients prior to cooking. Since we are cooking these noodles in a hot wok, it is really important to have the ingredients lined up and ready to throw into the pan. You do not want to be fumbling around the kitchen looking for ingredients as you cook. This causes overcooking of noodles and other ingredients.
Slice chicken thinly and evenly
This allows for a slightly faster cooking time if they are sliced thinly (about .75 cm). Make sure to slice them evenly for even cooking time.
Slice vegetables into thin long pieces
This allows for the vegetables to mix well with the long thin noodles as they are relatively the same shape.
Pre-mix the sauce
The same reasoning goes for the sauce. Pre-mix in a bowl and you will thank yourself later. If you are adding the sauce ingredients one by one as your noodles are overcooking in your pan, you’ll end up with soggy noodles. So, take the time and combine the sauce ingredients before you cook.
FAQ
Below are frequently asked questions about this easy chicken chow mein recipe:
Is chicken chow mein healthy?
It can be depending on how much oil and how much sodium you add. Of course, my version is made for taste, so it is high in sodium but delicious. If you want to reduce the sodium, feel free to adjust the soy sauce and oyster sauce amounts to your liking.
How to cook chicken for chow mein?
The best way to cook chicken for chow mein is that it should be one of the first ingredients you fry but only fry it until 75% cooked and then add in the rest of your ingredients.
Alternatively, you may cook it to 100% and then remove from the wok as you cook the other ingredients and then add the chicken back in after you’ve added the noodles and sauce. This prevents your chicken from overcooking.
What is the difference between chicken chow mein and lo mein?
Chow mein means fried and Lo mein means to mix. Chow mein is when the noodles are usually fried, stir-fried or sometimes deep fried in hot oil to make it crispy. Then it’s stir fried with a sauce, protein and vegetables. Most times, the sauce is on the heavier side.
On the other hand, lo mein, is pre-cooked egg noodles tossed and simply mixed with a lighter sauce, protein and vegetables. The sauce in lo mein is usually not as heavy or saucy.
Can I substitute the chicken?
Yes! Feel free to replace with shrimp, scallops, squid, tofu, pork or beef. I wouldn’t advise fish unless it’s been deep fried prior to mixing with your noodles, or it’ll come apart as you fry.
Can I substitute the oyster sauce?
You can replace with vegetarian stir fry sauce. I wouldn’t recommend hoisin as it’s too sweet and not authentic to chow mein usually.
Where can I buy chow mein noodles?
Any Asian grocer will sell them in the refrigerated noodle section.
Can I use dried, frozen or other egg noodles?
Yes, you may!
Can I replace some of the vegetables?
Yes! I would recommend substituting with harder vegetables like snap peas, snow peas, choy sum, yu choy, gai-lan or even bok choy!
Other recipes you may like!
If you enjoyed this homemade chicken chow mein, you may enjoy these other Cantonese dishes:
SHRIMP FRIED RICE
CHINESE LEMON CHICKEN
CRISPY SOY GARLIC TOFU
CHINESE SPICY GARLIC EGGPLANT
KUNG PAO CHICKEN
SPICY VEGETABLE LO MEIN
CANTONESE SOY SAUCE CHOW MEIN
CHINESE LO MEIN
Try it!
Well, I hope you give my Chicken Chow Mein a try! It always excites me when you make my recipes and I hope this is one you try and most importantly, enjoy.
Sharing is caring
If you enjoyed my chicken chow mein with bean sprouts, please share it with your family and friends or on social media! Take a picture of your re-creation and make sure to tag me @ChristieAtHome in your feed or stories as I would love to see it!
Did you enjoy it?
If you genuinely enjoyed my Chinese chicken chow mein recipe, please leave a 5-star review. I would appreciate it 🙂
Take care,
Christie
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Easy Chicken Chow Mein
Ingredients
- 454 grams Cantonese chow mein noodles
- 1 lb skinless boneless chicken thigh thinly sliced
- 2 cups mung bean sprouts washed and strained
- 2 cups cabbage thinly sliced
- 1 cup celery thinly sliced on an angle
- 1 cup carrot sliced into matchsticks
- 2 stalks green onion chopped into 1-inch pieces
- 2 tsp vegetable oil or any neutral tasting oil
Sauce:
- 2 tbsp regular soy sauce not light or dark soy sauce!
- 1 tbsp dark soy sauce
- 3 tbsp oyster sauce or sub with vegetarian stir fry sauce
- 2 tbsp Shaoxing wine or sub with Dry Sherry wine
- 2 tsp sesame oil
- 1 tsp white granulated sugar
- ¼ tsp white pepper or sub with black pepper
- 2 tsp cornstarch
- 4 cloves garlic thinly sliced
- ½ cup chicken stock unsalted
Chicken marinade:
- 2 tsp regular soy sauce not light or dark soy sauce!
- 1 tsp cornstarch
- 2 tsp water
Instructions
- Marinate chicken and set aside as you work on preparing other ingredients
- In a bowl, combine sauce ingredients until well combined.
- Blanch chow mein noodles in hot boiling water for 10-15 seconds or JUST until loosened. Do not over blanch. Strain immediately.
- In a wok over medium high heat, add 1 tsp oil and chicken. Fry chicken until 75% cooked.
- Then add carrots, celery, cabbage and fry until softened.
- If needed, add remaining oil. Toss in noodles and pour sauce over top. Stir fry until noodles are coated in sauce, about 30 seconds.
- Mix in bean sprouts and green onions. Fry for 10 seconds. Serve and enjoy!
This was so easy to make and very tasty! The family loved it!
Thank you for making my recipe! I'm so happy you and the family enjoyed it:)
OMG! This is amazing. So simple to make too. I'll be making it again, the only change I'll make next time is add more veggies.
Thanks so much for making my recipe Nancy! So glad you enjoyed it 🙂
Absolutely love this chicken chow mein had it a few times now it’s definitely a favourite of my husband’s and mine thanks .
Thanks so much for making my chow mein Jules! I'm so glad you and your husband enjoyed it 🙂 Have a great day!
Tastes just like the same dish from our favourite Chinese restaurant. My husband says, as he's finishing his meal, that we won't have to order out anymore! I left out the wine/sherry, and it wasn't missed at this house.
Awesome! So happy to hear that you both enjoyed it. Thanks for making my recipe!