As I moved around and found different places to dine, I became more and more educated on Asian cuisine. Thai, Japanese, Chinese, or Vietnamese became my first choice whenever asked, but my vote always lost out to American or Italian. I purchased my first Wok back in 1982 and practiced making recipes as often as possible; I became pretty adept at stir frying. Chow Mein though still remained my foe. Moving to Utah, ingredients for Asian dishes, and good Asian restaurants, became almost impossible to find; my mother sent me "care packages" filled to the brim with packets of noodles, spices and bottles of sauces. A favorite dish was Lo Mein which I posted on this blog a little over a year ago; and I'm reposting due to the nature of this current writing.
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| Seafood Lo Mein |
Lo Mein
Ingredients:
1 lb lo mein noodles (thin
or flat)
4 Tbsp peanut oil, divided
in half½ cup each thinly sliced bell peppers and onion
¼ cup green onion, cut at an angle
1 ½ cups bite sized pieces chicken, pork, beef, shrimp, scallops, crabmeat (or any combination)
1 cup stock (chicken, beef or vegetable depending on protein used)
6 Tbsp oyster sauce
6 Tbsp dark soy sauce
4 tsp cornstarch
2 tsp sesame oil
1 Tbsp each minced ginger and garlic
½ tsp ground white pepper
1 cup straw mushrooms
1 cup bean sprouts
Preparation:
Cook lo mein noodles
according to package directions; set aside, but keep warm.
In a large Wok or skillet,
heat 2 Tbsp peanut oil; add bell peppers, onion and green onion; sauté till
softened. Remove and set aside. Add remaining 2 Tbsp peanut oil; sauté
protein for 2 minutes before adding 2 Tbsp each of oyster and soy sauces; cook
another minute, remove and set aside.
In same Wok or skillet,
mix together 4 Tbsp each oyster and soy sauces, cornstarch, sesame oil, ginger,
garlic and white pepper. Bring to a boil
and let cook 2 minutes to thicken; add back sautéed vegetables and cooked
protein; add mushrooms, sprouts and lo mein noodles. Mix together thoroughly and let cook together
for 3 minutes; tossing frequently to coat and heat through.
Makes 6 servings.
Mary Cokenour
June 6, 2012 What about my Chow Mein phobia that I've been writing about? Well one day I decided to be brave, order it and see if I could eat it without the gag reflex kicking in. Surprise, surprise though; the place I was at served it an entirely different way than I'd ever seen before. It was not mushy vegetables, microscopic shredded chicken swimming in sauce....there were noodles in it, the same type of noodles used in lo mein. The waiter assured me that this was indeed Chow Mein, so you know I had to research it a bit and find out the why of it all.
Here's the gist of it, those crispy noodles that came with the LaChoy canned stuff were a substitute for real Chow Mein noodles. Basically they are the same as those used for Lo Mein; however, after boiling them, they are then fried in oil into a solid mass; the remaining ingredients and sauces are cooked together and then poured over the fried noodles. It's a texture thing really; soft lo mein noodles absorb the sauces more quickly; while fried chow mein noodles are simply coated, yet come apart easily to combine with the other ingredients.
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| Chicken Chow Mein |
"Fear is the mind killer", is a classic line from the movie "Dune", and it is such a statement of truth. In this instance, "Fear was the appetite killer"...key word "was".
Mary Cokenour
