chow mein

On Tue, 06 Apr 2004 23:10:52 +0100, Karen Cooke

im_a_super_duper_hero@hot_mail.com said:

can somebody please point me to a website that has a
recipie for chow mein

19,500 (or so) recipes here:

<google.comsearchOpen ↗
8&q=chow+mein+recipe&btnG=Google+Search>

-sw

Karen Cooke said:

can somebody please point me to a website that has a
recipie for chow mein (or give me your own)?

Chow mein is basically chop suey with chow mein noodles, and
chop suey is just a dish of stir fried vegetables with or
without meat. It is more of style of cooking than a
particular dish.

Cut vegetables into thin slices or match stick sized
strips. Meat should be sliced into thin strips or cut into
small pieces which will cook quickly. Prepare your
ingredients , add some hot oil to the wok or frying pan.
Start with the hardest vegetables first, tossing them in
and keeping them moving. As soon as their colour begin to
intensify add the next softer ingredients. As things cook
they can be pushed up the sides of the wok, away from the
heat on the very bottom.

Toss in some chicken stock and soya sauce and add some corn
starch mixed with cold water and sir it until it starts to
thicken, then stir in with the meat and vegetables. Serve on
top of chow mein noodles.

For a more flavourful variation, add some finely chopped
garlic and ginger root along with the first ingredients. Be
careful not to burn the garlic. If using chicken, sprinkle a
little salt on the prepared chicken meat before cooking.

In article <[email hidden]>, Dave Smith

Quoted message said:

Chow mein is basically chop suey with chow mein noodles,
and chop suey is just a dish of stir fried vegetables with
or without meat. It is more of style of cooking than a
particular dish.

In the US, chow mein varies according to the area. The word
"chow" means stir-fried, and "mein" means noodles. In some
areas of the US, chow mein noodles come out of a can and are
deep-fried. In my area, chow mein noodles are made to order
and are actually stir-fried.

When we make chow mein at my house, we take the fresh
Chinese noodles sold in the refrigerated produce section and
cook them briefly in boiling water. They are then set out to
dry a little while. We fry them in a little oil and then put
them on the serving plate. We then stir-fry the other
ingredients, add the sauce and cook until thickened. When
cooked, we add the noodles back, stir them together and heat
to serving temperature.

Chop suey is not actually a Chinese dish. One version of its
history is:

'Chop suey, therefore, is a mispronounciation of
"chopped sewage."'

I got this from:

snopes.comchopsuey.htmOpen ↗

It's quite interesting, at least to me.

--
Dan Abel Sonoma State University AIS [email hidden]

In article <[email hidden]>, Dave Smith

Quoted message said:

Karen Cooke said:

can somebody please point me to a website that has a
recipie for chow mein (or give me your own)?

Which style? Crispy, soft, oily, watery, dry? Cantonese,
Taiwanese? Kind of like asking for a recipe for a sandwich.
Chow mein is quite simple in concept, but the variations
boggle the mind. I've eaten so many varieties here in
Taiwan. I'll focus on the popular variety found here.

Simple is the best. first you need a nice big wok, a gas
stove, some sizzling hot oil (don't be too skimpy on the
oil), garlic, onions, sliced meats or shrimps, some greens
if you wish, cabbage is Ok, some sliced carrots. Some
chiles if you want, And of course a pile of precooked
Chinese noodles. Salt to taste, and add a bit of soy sauce
if you wish. A bit of stock if you like a wetter fried
noodles. A dash of Chinese sesame oil can be nice. also
consider white pepper. Some cooks in Taiwan add canned
barbecue sauces. Taiwanese brands of course! Don't use
American bbq sauces, they are totally different in taste.
NO STARCH! You don't put starch in fried rice, why would
you put it in fried noodles?

Stir fry the ingredients in this approximate order. Onions
and garlic, meats, vegies, noodles. As a rule, you don't
allow the garlic or onions to caramelize, some cooks do this
but not a lot.

The secret is a large sizzling hot wok with a good gas flame
to keep the temp. at the base of the wok where you want it.

Too much soy sauce and you have made American fried noodles.

Quoted message said:

Chow mein is basically chop suey with chow mein noodles,
and chop suey is just a dish of stir fried vegetables with
or without meat. It is more of style of cooking than a
particular dish.

Hmm, bears some semblance to one kind of Cantonese noodles,
but, nope, chow mein is chow mein.

Authentic chow mein has nothing at all to do with American
chop suey. Chop suey is a purely American/Chinese dish
descended from the Chinese cooking that came with the
Cantonese who came to the United States west coast in
the1800s gold rush.

Chow mein in Mandarin Chinese or any other dialect of
Chinese literally means stir fried noodles. Chow means stir
fry, and mein means noodles.

Think of the word sandwich in English. In American English,
sandwich implies two pieces of bread with something between
them. In Mandarin Chinese, to say chow mein literally means
stir fried noodles, with no indication as to the meat or
vegetables contained within. You will find in Asia every
cook in every shop or restaurant will favor a distinct
flavor of stir fried noodles.

In America you say PJ sandwich, roast beef sandwich, or tuna
sandwich. In the far east you specify the kind of chow mein
you want. Most often by specifying the type of meat. You
would say sliced meat chow mein (pork), beef chow mein,
seafood chow mein ( this is a rough translation, because the
literal translation is quite literary and makes no sense in
English)., goat chow mein, etc.

Quoted message said:

Toss in some chicken stock and soya sauce and add some
corn starch mixed with cold water and sir it until it
starts to thicken, then stir in with the meat and
vegetables. Serve on top of chow mein noodles

Weird, this is American chop suey noodles, not chow mein as
found in Taiwan. But it does bear a similarity to Cantonese
style noodles. However, unless you use the Cantonese style
yellow crispy noodles, and have that one kind of green
vegie, and then you need some oyster sauce or soy sauce
(dark or light?) depending on the recipe, well...

Anyway, just my two cents

rodney Greetings from Taipei, Taiwan

"rodneesh" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

In article <[email hidden]>, Dave Smith

Quoted message said:

Karen Cooke wrote:

(snip)

Quoted message said:

In America you say PJ sandwich, roast beef sandwich, or
tuna sandwich. In the far east you specify the kind of
chow mein you want. Most often by specifying the type of
meat. You would say sliced meat chow mein (pork), beef
chow mein, seafood chow mein ( this is a rough
translation, because the literal translation is quite
literary and makes no sense in English)., goat chow
mein, etc.

(snip)

Quoted message said:

Weird, this is American chop suey noodles, not chow
mein as found in Taiwan. But it does bear a similarity
to Cantonese style noodles. However, unless you use the
Cantonese style yellow crispy noodles, and have that
one kind of green vegie, and then you need some oyster
sauce or soy sauce (dark or light?) depending on the
recipe, well...

Anyway, just my two cents

rodney Greetings from Taipei, Taiwan

Rodney, that was such a good post! Thank you for
enlightening me. Plus, you've made me hungry. LOL

kili