For the Love of...: ...Chow Mein

'Chow mein' directly translates into fried noodles. Typically it involves deep fried egg noodles that are then topped with a sauce made of any combination of meats and vegetables. The beauty of chow mein lies in the contrast of textures between the crispy noodles on the edges of the plate and the soft noodles that have soaked up the sauce. Our recipe is a lot easier to make at home and recreates the crisp noodles by pan frying instead of deep frying. The sauce can be made from any combination of whats available in your fridge.

Ingredients: (6 generous servings)

- 1 package of dried instant egg noodles

- 3 carrots sliced thinly

- 1 onion sliced thinly

- 4 eggs scrambled

- 6 chinese sausages (Lap Chong) sliced thinly

- 3 green onions sliced thinly

- 2 cloves of garlic finely chopped

- 1 tbsp ginger finely chopped

- 1/3 cup of light soy sauce

- 4 tbsp oyster sauce

- 2 tbsp sugar

- 1/3 cup of water 

- 2 tbsp cornstarch

- 1 tbsp sesame oil

Method:

1. Boil the egg noodles until tender, strain and rinse under cold water

 2. Scramble the eggs and set aside. In the same pan fry the chinese sausage until cooked through, then add the garlic and ginger. Fry until aromatic. Add the onions and carrots and fry until they are tender

3. Add the soy sauce, oyster sauce and cornstarch slurry (1/3 cup of water and 2 tbsp of cornstarch) and cook until thickened. Add the scrambled egg and green onions and set aside.

4. In the same pan, add canola oil and press the drained noodles into a uniform layer. Fry until golden brown and flip over.

5. Carefully slide the crispy noodle cake into a large dish and serve the vegetable and chinese sausage mixture over top. Garnish with green onion and sesame oil.

 Enjoy!