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Korean Fried Chicken with Korean Inspired BBQ Sauce
Korean fried chicken has become a really popular dish, and it isn’t difficult to see why.
The crispy, sweet, spicy and smoky flavours dance on the tongue.
What’s not to love?
The fresh flavours of garlic, ginger, chilli and spring/green onions create a fantastic zing on the palate.
We are going to marinate our chicken in buttermilk, lightly fry the chicken in vegetable oil, and serve with rice, noodles or a light Korean salad.
Table of Contents
Korean Fried Chicken – Step 1 – Prepare the Chicken
Korean Fried Chicken – Step 2 – Make Your Korean BBQ Sauce
Korean Fried Chicken – Step 3 – Lightly Fry Your Chicken
Korean Fried Chicken – Step 4 – Warm Your Chicken in the Sauce and Serve
Ingredients
4 Chicken Breasts Cut into Small Pieces
1 Pint of Buttermilk
1 Teaspoon of Fine Sea Salt
For the Batter
1 Beaten Egg
2 Heaped Tablespoons of Cornflour (Cornstarch in the US)
1 Teaspoon of Chinese 5 Spice
1 Teaspoon Fine Sea Salt
1 Teaspoon of Freshly Ground Black Pepper
For the Korean BBQ Sauce
5 1/2 Tablespoons or 1/3 Cup of Brown Sugar
4 Tablespoons of Rice Vinegar
6 1/2 Tablespoons or 1/2 Cup of Soy Sauce
2 Tablespoons of Sesame Oil
3cm Piece of Ginger Peeled and Finely Chopped
2 Cloves of Garlic Peeled and Finely Chopped
1 Tablespoon of Sriracha Sauce
1 Tablespoon of Cornflour added to 2 Tablespoons of Water
To Serve
Freshly Chopped Red Chilli (Red Pepper in the US)
2-3 Spring/Green Onions Finely Chopped
Teaspoon of Toasted Sesame Seeds
Korean Fried Chicken – Step 1 – Prepare the Chicken
Chop your chicken breasts into bitesize pieces and place in a bowl. You can also use boneless chicken thigh meat, just keep in mind the meat will be darker and more moist. (Not to everyone’s taste!)
Add enough buttermilk to the bowl to cover your chicken, and add your salt.
Cover with clingfilm and marinate for at least 30minutes.
Korean Fried Chicken – Step 2 – Make Your Korean BBQ Sauce
Now we are going to make our Korean BBQ Sauce. Fry off the ginger and garlic in a little sesame oil in your wok at medium heat.
Keep back your cornflour and water mix until the end, but add all the rest of the ingredients.
Bring your sauce to the boil, and then turn the heat down to a simmer. Leave on the heat while you fry your chicken.
Korean Fried Chicken – Step 3 – Lightly Fry Your Chicken
Put your cornflour, 5 spice powder, salt and pepper together in a bowl.
In a separate bowl crack an egg and then beat with a fork.
Now dip a chicken piece into the seasoned flour until evenly coated with the cornflour mix. Now dip it in the beaten egg, and then back into the cornflour mix.
Put it on a plate ready to fry. Shake off any excess cornflour.
We are going to repeat this process for each chicken piece.
When you are finished put two tablespoons of vegetable oil into your wok and bring the oil temperature up to about 180°C or 365°F.
You’ll know your pan is hot enough when you drop a piece of bread into it, and it crisps up and goes brown straight away.
You can obviously use a deep fat fryer for this, just be aware you will end up using a lot more oil.
You’ll probably need to cook your chicken in batches either way.
At this temperature, and because the chicken is in bitesize pieces it won’t take long to cook. Probably around 5 minutes a piece.
Make sure sure you leave it in long enough to get a good crispy coating, and still be moist inside. Keep your eyes on the chicken and don’t let it burn.
When each chicken piece is fried put it on a plate covered with kitchen paper to soak up any excess oil.
Leave your chicken pieces to air dry and crisp a little more, while you prepare your noodles, rice or any side dishes you would like to serve with your Korean fried chicken.
Korean Fried Chicken – Step 4 – Warm Your Chicken in the Sauce and Serve
At this point you can return to your BBQ sauce and add the cornflour and water mix. This will thicken the sauce and give it a lovely consistency. Stir thoroughly.
Warm your fried chicken in the pan with the BBQ sauce.
Chop your spring/green onions and red chilli up finely.
Toast your sesame seeds in a dry wok or pan over a medium heat for a few minutes until they are lightly browned. Don’t let them burn.
Serve your Korean fried chicken in the BBQ Sauce garnished with spring/green onions and toasted sesame seeds.
Perfect with long grain jasmine rice, noodles or a light Korean style salad.
It’s well worth considering doing your Korean Chicken on the BBQ for extra flavour.
For another great recipe for Korean Fried Chicken, you could try here:
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Mei Fun Noodles Recipe in 6 Easy Steps
My Mei Fun Noodles recipe is the most popular and best known dish made with these rice noodles – Singapore Mei Fun.
Mei Fun Noodles are flavoursome, healthy, simple to make, and will suit the whole family.
Mei Fun Noodles Recipe in 6 Easy Steps What is usually in Mei Fun?
Although Mei Fun originated in China, it is probably best known in the popular dish Singapore Mei Fun.
Singapore Mei Fun is made with rice noodles, soy sauce, curry powder and a variety of stir-fried vegetables. Proteins can vary but the dish often has Char Siu (Chinese BBQ Pork), eggs and prawns/shrimp.
Are Mei Fun Noodles Healthy?
Yes they are healthy on their own.
1 Cup of Plain Mei Fun Rice Noodles has 224 calories, 1g protein, 56g carbs and 0g of fat.
Once you cook them in oil, sauce and add your proteins and vegetables, 1 serving of Singapore Mei Fun Noodles will have 30g net carbs, 21g protein, 290 calories, and 8g fat.
You can reduce calories and fat by making a vegetarian version, and leaving out the meat.
Are Mei Fun Noodles Vegan?
Yes, the noodles themselves are vegan and plant-based. They are made mostly from rice flour and water.
Sometimes tapioca and cornflour/corn starch are added to improve the texture, but these starches are also free of any animal products.
Singapore Mei Fun usually contains eggs, prawns/shrimp and pork however.
Are Mei Fun Noodles Gluten Free?
Yes, Mei Fun Noodles are gluten free, as they are made from water and rice flour.
How Do You Pronounce Mei Fun?
This dish is pronounced ‘May Fun.’ It is very straightforward once you know how, but not all Chinese dishes or phrases are so easy to say in English.
The Chinese language is written down using Chinese characters, and it does not have an alphabet.
Knowing how to pronounce a word or phrase in Chinese is not always useful for Westerners because it won’t really give you any idea on how to write it, unless you know how to use Chinese characters.
What’s the Difference Between Lo Mein and Mei Fun?
The Chinese word for noodles is ‘mein,’ so a literal translation of Lo Mein would be ‘tossed,’ or ‘stirred,’ noodles. This refers to the way that they are cooked.
Mei Fun means rice noodles referring to the type of noodles used.
Mei Fun Noodles Near Me – Where Can I Buy Them?
You may have to go to an Asian Grocery Store to buy Mei Fun Rice Noodles. Not all supermarkets sell them as they are quite specialised ingredients.
They can also be ordered online, on Amazon or on Walmart.
This Mei Fun Noodles recipe will feed two people – if you need to feed more just double or triple the quantities.
Mei Fun Noodles Recipe
Ingredients
Tablespoon of Groundnut (Peanut) Oil or Rice Bran Oil
90g Mei Fun Rice Noodles
2 cloves garlic finely chopped
1 thumb sized piece of ginger peeled and finely chopped
1 tablespoon Madras curry powder
2 eggs, lightly beaten
10 Peeled Prawns/Shrimp
50g of Chinese BBQ Pork or Char Siu (substitute chicken or
1/2 Chinese Cabbage shredded
1 Medium-Sized Carrot cut into batons
100 g bean sprouts
2 stalks of scallions cut on the diagonal to serve
Freshly chopped coriander (cilantro) leaves to garnish
For the Sauce
1/2 tablespoon Oyster Sauce
1/2 tablespoon Sesame Oil
Pinch of salt or to taste
1/2 teaspoon of honey or sugar
1/2 tablespoon of Chinese Rice Wine
Juice of half a lime
1 tablespoon of Water
1 teaspoons of Cornflour/Corn Starch to thicken
Mei Fun Noodles Recipe Method
Step 1 – Cook the Mei Fun Noodles according to the packet instructions (probably around 5mins in boiling water). Remove the noodles and put the beansprouts in the same boiling water the noodles were in. Leave the beansprouts in for a couple of minutes until they are just beginning to cook. Set them aside for now.
Step 2 – Make your sauce by adding all the ingredients together in a small bowl. You will need to whisk it for a while to let the cornflour dissolve.
Step 3 – Add your cooking to wok or pan on a medium heat and add the beaten eggs. Let them settle into shape and cook. When they are fulled cooked and set break them up into pieces with a spoon or spatula and set aside.
Step 4 – Add the prawns and pork (or chicken/beef strips) to the pan and fry them off until cooked. Don’t overdo the prawns/shrimp – they are done when their tails begin to curl up and they turn pink. Set aside with your cooked eggs.
Step 5 – Now add the ginger and garlic to the wok or pan as well as some more Peanut Oil (or Rice Bran Oil if using). Turn the heat down a little. Add the Madras Powder to the oil and let the flavours infuse for 30 seconds or so. Don’t let the garlic or curry powder burn or they will taste bitter.
Step 6 – Add in your cooked noodles and use a pair of tongs to make sure the noodles get evenly coated in all that lovely flavour. Turn the heat up to medium high and add your vegetables (beansprouts, carrots and cabbage). Add the pork, prawns and egg to the pan. We want our veg to be just cooked, but still retain a crunchy texture. Add in the sauce and toss to coat. Finally add your garnishes – the chopped scallions and coriander. Serve straight away in bowls.
If you enjoyed this article you might also like to read our article on ‘Ramen Noodle Recipes.’
https://asiankitchenrecipes.com/2022/02/23/ramen-noodle-recipes/
Or our article on ‘Recipes for Egg Noodles – 30 of the Best Suggestions:’
https://asiankitchenrecipes.com/2022/02/20/recipes-for-egg-noodles/
For another great article on Mei Fun Noodles try here:
https://thewoksoflife.com/chicken-mei-fun/
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Chicken Tikka Masala Best Recipe – Indian Restaurant Style in 7 Simple Steps
Chicken Tikka Masala is a fan favourite at Indian Restaurants the world over. Here is my tried, tested and tasty recipe for you to make at home in 7 simple steps.
Chicken Tikka Masala Origin
There are many theories about the origins of Chicken Tikka Masala, but most people think that the dish was invented in Britain by restauranteurs from the South Indian community in the 1960s.
It was probably to please their British customers who enjoyed gravy, sweetness and did not like dry meat. Yoghurt and tomato puree were added to make the modern Chicken Tikka Masala from the British Indian Restaurant (BIR) Tradition we all know and love.
What most people don’t realise is that although Chicken Tikka Masala was invented quite recently, the dish has its origins in India 5000 years ago.
The very first Emperor of the Mughal Empire was afraid of choking on chicken bones so he ordered his chefs to remove the chicken from the bones, and cut the meat into small pieces.
The chicken was then cooked in the tandoor oven. These small pieces of chicken eventually became known as ‘Joleh,’ which is the Persian word for ‘Tikka.’
The method of cooking the chicken tikka is definitely Indian in origin, as well as many of the ingredients.
Chicken Tikka Masala Main Ingredients
Chicken Tikka Masala is usually made by marinating the meat first in yoghurt and spices, and then chargrilling it in a hot Indian Tandoor Oven.
It is then cooked in a curry sauce made with onions, tomatoes and coconut flour. It is then finished off with butter and cream and topped with fresh coriander.
Are Butter Chicken and Tikka Masala the Same?
The two dishes are definitely similar, and some people think that Tikka Masala was adapted from Butter Chicken.
The two curries look and taste quite similar but there are some definite differences. Simply put, Butter Chicken is richer and creamier than Tikka Masala, and Tikka Masala has a richer tomato flavour than Butter Chicken along with a coconut taste.
What is the Difference between Chicken Masala and Chicken Tikka Masala?
Chicken Masala is a simple Indian dish made with chicken, onions, tomatoes and spices.
Chicken Tikka Masala is a richer, creamier and sweeter dish made with yoghurt and cream. The tikka pieces are chargrilled in a Tandoor oven on skewers and then placed into the curry sauce.
Red food colouring is often added to give it its characteristic colour.
How do I make my curry taste like takeaway?
Indian restaurants and takeaways use a base gravy (sometimes called curry sauce) as the basis of all their curries.
It is made up mostly of onions, vegetables and spices and it gives you a smooth thick curry that tastes like takeaway.
You can find a recipe for this base gravy here:
For this Chicken Tikka Masala recipe you will need to make the Chicken Tikka first and marinate it overnight.
Chicken Tikka Masala Plated Up With Rice For the Chicken Tikka
- 1 kg of chicken pieces cut into small bite-sized pieces
- Freshly Squeezed Lemon Juice from 2 Lemons
- 1 tablespoon finely ground salt
- 1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 1 tablespoon ground coriander
- 250ml or 1 cup of plain yogurt
- 2 tablespoons minced garlic
- 1 tablespoon minced ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon of chilli powder
- 1 teaspoon turmeric powder
- Handful of finely chopped coriander leaves
Chicken Tikka Method
- Place the chicken pieces in a large bowl and add all of the marinade ingredients above.
- Stir to coat the chicken in the yoghurt and spice marinade making the pieces of meat are fully covered. Leave for up to 48 hours in the fridge. The longer the better. If you don’t have the time, leave it to marinade for no less than 30 minutes.
- Place your chicken pieces onto metal skewers. The barbecue will work best to chargrill the chicken much like a Tandoor Oven, but you can cook the chicken on the skewers underneath a hot grill.
- Cook your chicken tikka turning it occasionally to cook evenly. It should blacken and char. Cook until the juices run clear when poked with a knife. Cut a piece of chicken and check the middle if you aren’t sure.
For the Chicken Tikka Masala Sauce
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil or ghee (Indian clarified butter)
- 300g chicken tikka pieces
- 3-4 ladles of Base Gravy/Curry Sauce
- 1 tbsp garlic and ginger paste (equal amounts of fresh ginger and garlic blended in the food processor with a little water
- 1 tablespoon of coconut flour
- 1 tablespoon of ground almonds
- 70ml or 1/4 cup of tomato puree mixed with a little water
- 1 Tablespoon of Mix Powder (Every Indian Restaurant has their own version). To Make the Mix Powder add together 4 Tablespoons Ground Coriander, 2 Tablespoons Ground Cumin, 4 Tablespoons Turmeric, 1 Teaspoon of Kashmiri Chilli Powder, 1 Teaspoon Garam Masala, 1 Teaspoon Freshly Ground Black Pepper, 3 Tablespoons of Smoked Paprika. This mix will keep for 3 months in an airtight container. You just need a tablespoonful for this recipe – store the rest for other curries.
- 1 tablespoon of tandoori masala
- 1 tablespoon of smoked paprika
- 1/2 tablespoon sugar – more if you like it sweeter
- 100ml or 1/3 cup of single cream
- 1 teaspoon red food colouring powder (adds colour but no taste)
- Juice of 1 lemon
- 1 teaspoon of salt or to taste
- A sprinkle of dried methi leaves
- 1/2 tsp garam masala
- 2 tablespoon chopped coriander
- Heat the vegetable oil/ghee in a frying pan over medium to high heat
- Add the garlic and ginger paste and fry for around a minute
- Now stir in the mix powder, sugar, ground almonds, coconut flour, tandoori masala, and smoked paprika
- Add the tomato puree and water paste and bring the heat down to a simmer. At this point you can add the first ladle of base curry, and your chicken tikka pieces.
- Bring your pan to the boil to infuse the flavours and then turn down to a simmer. Stir to coat your chicken pieces in the sauce, add the red food colouring and a ladle of base gravy/curry sauce.
- Now pour in your single cream. If your sauce isn’t as thick as you would like add a little more base gravy/curry sauce.
- Finally add in freshly chopped coriander, a squeeze of fresh lemon juice, a sprinkle of methi leaves and 1/2 teaspoon of garam masala. Add a teaspoon of salt and taste the sauce. If you feel it needs a little more salt you can add according to taste. Remember you can always add a little more but if you add too much you can’t take it away.
Serve with Naan Bread and Pilau Rice. For an awesome Homemade Naan Recipe try here:
https://lilluna.com/homemade-naan-bread/
Now go and amaze your friends and family!
If you liked this article you could try our Chicken Korma Recipe Blogpost here:
https://asiankitchenrecipes.com/2022/03/15/chicken-korma-recipe/
If you would like to read another awesome Chicken Tikka Masala Recipe Blogpost you could try here:
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Chicken Korma Recipe – Indian Restaurant Style Curry in 7 Easy Steps
I would like to share my tried, tested and truly delicious Chicken Korma recipe with you.
Although overall I personally prefer a more savoury and spicier curry, even I have to admit that this Chicken Korma recipe is delicious. The balance of sweetness, mild spices, & coconut creaminess is an absolute party for your taste buds.
Chicken Korma Recipe Served with Rice & Chopped Coriander Is Chicken Korma a British Curry?
The Korma curry has its origins in the Mughal (also spelt Moghul or Mogul) Empire that was in power in India from 1526.
It was a popular dish in Mughal cuisine, but like many curries (e.g. vindaloo) it has also been influenced by British cuisine and become quite a different dish than what the Mughals would have eaten.
You would also get a different dish if you ordered a korma in India today.
This version is the Anglo-Indian (or British Indian Restaurant – BIR) version that many people living in the United Kingdom or the US would be used to getting from a takeaway or restaurant.
What does Chicken Korma taste like?
Korma is a mild, sweet, creamy curry with flavours of ground almonds, coconut, and onions. It also has mild overtones of garlic and ginger, as well as cinnamon and cardamom.
Is Chicken Korma very hot?
Korma is not hot, it is actually the mildest curry from the Indian subcontinent. It contains little to no heat, only aromatic spices.
What Goes with Chicken Korma?
Chicken Korma is usually served with Naan bread and pilau rice. For healthier bread options you could try chapattis or roti bread.
What is Korma Curry made of?
Korma curry can be made from the following ingredients; vegetable oil or ghee, garlic, ginger, base gravy/curry sauce, a cinnamon stick, double cream, sugar, ground almonds, cardamon pods, chicken pieces, garam masala, creamed coconut block, salt and rosewater.
Ingredients For Chicken Korma Recipe
- 2 tablespoon of vegetable oil or ghee
- 300g or 11oz of pre-cooked chicken cubes done in a little vegetable oil and 1/2 teaspoon of turmeric
- 1cm piece of cinnamon stick
- 1/2 teaspoon of garam masala
- 3 crushed green cardamom pods
- 1/2 teaspoon rosewater
- 1 tsp garlic and ginger paste (equal amounts garlic and ginger blended together with a little water
- 1 tbsp coconut flour or coconut milk powder
- 70ml or 1/4 cup of double cream
- 3 Ladles of Base Gravy/Curry Sauce
- 1 tablespoon of sugar (more if you like it sweeter)
- 1 teaspoon of salt
- 3 tablespoons ground almonds or ground cashew nuts
- 50g (2 oz) creamed coconut block
Method for Chicken Korma Recipe
- Melt the vegetable oil or ghee in a pan over a medium heat.
- Add the cinnamon piece and 3 crushed cardamon pods to the hot oil to provide a brilliant flavour base.
- Fry off the spices for around a minute or so to get the flavour into the oil, and then add your garlic and ginger paste. Give it a minute or two to infuse.
- Add the sugar, ground almonds (or ground cashew nuts) & coconut flour.
- Add a ladle of base gravy/curry sauce, and then add your pre-cooked chicken.
- Put in your coconut block & turn your pan down to a simmer, which will let the block melt down and distribute its flavour into your sauce.
- Now add 1/2 teaspoon of rosewater, and then the double cream. It’s really important to taste your curry here. Remember you can always add more of something, but you can’t take an excess away. Add a little more sugar if your Korma isn’t sweet enough to your liking. Taste and adjust accordingly. If you feel your curry needs salt then add a little more and then taste again, adjusting accordingly. You may wish to add more base gravy/curry sauce at this point, if you like your curries thicker.
Serve your finished Chicken Korma recipe with Pilau rice, naan bread (or chapatis/roti bread if you prefer a healthier option) and freshly chopped coriander.
Optional – sprinkle some chopped cashews or ground almonds on the top of your Chicken Korma, along with the chopped coriander.
If you need a fantastic recipe for making your own naan bread at home try here:
https://www.recipetineats.com/naan-recipe/
If you would like to read another great Chicken Korma Recipe I’d fully recommend this one:
https://www.indianhealthyrecipes.com/chicken-korma-recipe/
Or if you prefer a hotter, more vinegary curry try our Lamb Vindaloo recipe here:
https://asiankitchenrecipes.com/2022/03/07/lamb-vindaloo-recipe/
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Lamb Vindaloo Recipe – Authentic Indian Restaurant Curry at Home in 5 Steps
This lamb vindaloo recipe comes from my visits to Indian restaurants in Birmingham, and in Belfast near where I live.
It is important to realise this is not an authentic recipe that Indian people would eat at home – it is part of an Anglo-Indian food tradition often called BIR (British Indian Restaurant).
If you want to learn how to cook curries that taste like an Indian restaurant or takeaway – you’re in the right place!
Lamb Vindaloo Recipe with Potatoes & Garnished with Coriander What is a Vindaloo Curry?
Vindaloo is a hugely popular dish to order from your favourite Indian takeaway or restaurant.
Vindaloo is a hot curry which is similar to Madras except for the addition of vinegar, potatoes and 2 extra teaspoons of chilli powder.
If you don’t like the dish to be too hot you can just use two teaspoons of chilli powder. If you like your tongue on fire and your nose running, you can add extra teaspoons.
Bear in mind that a vindaloo should be hot but not so hot you can’t enjoy the flavours!
Where does the Lamb Vindaloo Recipe Come From?
The vindaloo has its origins from when the Portuguese colonised Goa during medieval times, bringing spices and chillies from the New World.
It was first served with pork which had been preserved in vinegar.
Many curry houses have been traditionally run by Muslims, and so pork is not an option.
This lamb vindaloo recipe comes from this BIR (British Indian Restaurant) Tradition. You can substitute the lamb with chicken, which is also a very popular option, or paneer (Indian Cheese) for a vegetarian option.
What Do I Need for a Lamb Vindaloo Recipe?
For this recipe you will to have made the curry sauce/base gravy in advance. You will need 3-4 ladles or so depending on how much sauce you like in your curry, or how thick you like it to be.
You can find that recipe here:
https://asiankitchenrecipes.com/2022/03/06/curry-sauce-recipe/
Ingredients for Lamb Vindaloo Recipe
- Pre-cooked cubes of lamb (cooked in vegetable oil and 1/2 teaspoon of turmeric)
- 2 tbsp Vegetable Oil or Ghee (Clarified Butter)
- 1 tbsp white wine vinegar (add a little more if you like)
- 3 crushed green cardamom pods (this lets out the flavour)
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 star anise
- 1 tbsp garlic and ginger paste (equal amounts of ginger & garlic mixed with water and blended). Alternatively you can grate 2 cloves of garlic, and peel and grate a thumb-sized piece of ginger
- 4 Indian Green Finger Chillis – finely chopped
- 2 bird’s eye chillis finely chopped
- 1/2 tsp ground turmeric
- 4 teaspoons of chilli powder (more if you like it really hot)
- 1/2 tsp methi leaves (fenugreek)
- 1 pre-cooked potato (boiled in water or curry sauce/base gravy) peeled and chopped into pieces
- 1 tbsp of finely chopped coriander (cilantro in the US)
- 70ml (1/4 cup) tomato puree mixed with a little water
- 1 tbsp of Restaurant Curry Powder (Mixed Powder) a blend of these spices; 1 tbsp garam masala, 3 tbsp ground coriander, 3 tbsp ground cumin, 3 tbsp ground turmeric, 3 tbsp smoked paprika & 4 tbsp curry powder. Keep what’s left of your Mixed Powder for adding to further curries.
- 1 tsp of salt or to taste
How Do I Cook a Lamb Vindaloo Recipe?
Lamb Vindaloo Method
- Get your pan over a medium to high heat and add the oil or ghee, if using. Add the bay leaf, star anise and the crushed cardamom pods. Let the flavours begin to infuse together for a minute or so and then add in your ginger and garlic paste.
- Now add your finely chopped chillies for about a minute before adding the ground spices to the pan. The smells will be fragrant, and the oil full of flavour.
- Add 2 ladles of your curry sauce/base gravy and then the tomato puree. Try not to stir so that your sauce has a chance to caramelise and stick a little. This adds a nice smoky flavour to the sauce as well. If it is sticking too much then give it a quick stir. Turn the heat down to a simmer.
- Put your pre-cooked lamb into your pan and stir the sauce to get all the lovely flavours to coat your lamb pieces. Let it simmer for 3-4 minutes. At this point you may wish to add more base gravy if you feel your sauce needs watered down a little, or if the pan is becoming too dry.
- Now add in the white wine vinegar and then the methi leaves and salt. Taste the sauce and adjust the seasoning by adding more salt, if needed. Add the pre-cooked potato pieces and heat them up in the sauce. Last of all, garnish with coriander/cilantro.
Serve with naan bread and the rice of your choosing.
Great work! You can now cook authentic Indian Restaurant style Vindaloo.
Go forth and amaze your friends!
If you enjoyed this article please feel to try my Ramen Noodles article:
https://asiankitchenrecipes.com/2022/02/23/ramen-noodle-recipes/
Or my ‘Recipes for Egg Noodles,’ article here:
https://asiankitchenrecipes.com/2022/02/20/recipes-for-egg-noodles/
For another great article giving you an excellent lamb vindaloo recipe, try here:
https://www.cubesnjuliennes.com/lamb-vindaloo-recipe-mutton-vindaloo/
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Curry Sauce Recipe – The Base Gravy For All Your Curry Needs
This curry sauce recipe is the basis for all British Indian Restaurant (BIR) curries. We are going to make a few batches that you can freeze for later, use right away or keep in the fridge for a few days.
It’s just like having money in the bank, or in this case like having gold in little takeaway dishes.
All of the British Indian curry recipes you will find on this blog use this base gravy – usually around 3-4 ladles of it.
Why is Curry Sauce Used in Indian Restaurants and Takeaways?
When Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi immigrants moved to the United Kingdom in the last century, many naturally decided to open their own curry houses and restaurants.
This presented a problem. Curries can take a long time to prepare, and contain complex flavours and ingredients. How could they prepare food for their customers quickly?
The ingenious answer came in the form of creating large batches of base gravy, or curry sauce.
The British have had a long association with curries and also gravy. Today if you visit a curry house in the UK, you will most likely get a curry which is smooth in texture and quickly prepared.
These curries are not authentic in the sense of what Indian families would eat at home, but they have become a fusion food known as BIR or British Indian Restaurant style cooking.
In fact you could well argue that curry is the national dish in Britain.
This style of preparing curries has become very popular all across Europe and the United States, as well many other countries in the world.
What Does Curry Sauce Taste Like?
Base Gravy by itself tastes much like carrot and coriander soup! That’s why it needs more spices and ingredients added to it to create each one of the curries that it provides the basis for.
Think of it like a stock or soup base that we will build on for each curry.
It brings a smooth texture and vegetable flavour base to all the curries we will make from Korma to Vindaloo, Tikka to Tarka Dhal. The list goes on and on.
Is Curry Sauce Vegan?
Yes curry sauce is both vegetarian and vegan. The ingredients are all plant-based and vegetable oil is used.
If you want to use this base gravy curry sauce for vegan recipes, may I suggest chickpeas or lentils for amazing results? A Dhal is a delight for vegans, flexitarians or even dare I say, carnivores.
How Do I Make Curry Sauce From Scratch?
Please follow this step by step recipe to achieve the best results.
Ingredients For Curry Sauce Recipe
100g or 1/2 cup of chopped carrot
1/2 Green Pepper chopped and seeds removed
1 teaspoon of Brown Sugar
200ml or 0.84 of a Cup Vegetable Oil
1 Teaspoon of Garam Masala
1.5kg or 3.3 lbs of White Onions – peeled and roughly chopped
1/2 White Cabbage Chopped
100g or 1/2 cup of Potato peeled and roughly chopped
1&1/2 teaspoon of Fine Sea Salt
100g Garlic & Ginger Paste (equal amounts of garlic and ginger blitzed in the food processor + a little water)
1 teaspoon of Turmeric
2 Litres of Water
160g or 1 Cup of Tomato Puree
80ml or 1/3 Cup of Coconut Milk
40g or 1/2 Cup of Freshly Chopped Coriander
2 Tablespoons of Mix Powder:
1 Tablespoon of Ground Cumin Seeds (Use a Coffee Grinder or Pestle & Mortar – Freshly ground tops stale spices every time)
1/4 Teaspoon Garam Masala
1 & 1/2 Tablespoons of Madras Curry Powder
1 Tablespoon of Ground Coriander Seeds (Use a Coffee Grinder or Pestle & Mortar)
1/2 Tablespoons of Paprika (Best if it isn’t Smoked)
I like to use East End Spices but you can use whatever brand you would like to infuse your base gravy.
Method for Curry Sauce Recipe
- Pour the vegetable oil into a non-stick pan and heat over a medium to a high heat. A non-stick pan helps to create a lovely smoky taste in your curries, and may be worth considering investing in.
- Put your onions into the pan and heat them until they are translucent and transparent. Don’t let them burn or go too brown.
- Add the green pepper (or bell pepper), carrot and white cabbage then stir to make sure they are combined.
- After 5 minutes add the fresh ginger and garlic paste as well as all of the spices. Don’t add the turmeric just yet – we will add it later.
- Now add the tomato puree & enough water (roughly 500ml or 2 cups) to just cover the vegetables. Now add the turmeric. Simmer for around 30 minutes.
- After around 30 minutes take your curry sauce off the heat and let it cool a little.
- When your curry sauce has cooled somewhat, put the base gravy into a blender (in batches if you need to) & blend until it is nicely smooth. You can also use a hand blender if you have one.
- When you are happy with the consistency of your sauce, put it back in the pan and simmer for around an hour.
It will end up with a similar texture to milk, and have a lovely golden colour.
How Long Will My Curry Sauce Recipe Keep For?
You can portion it up in little takeaway dishes or freezer bags, and keep it in the freezer for months.
Best to portion it up for each curry you make – a curry for two will need around 3-4 ladles of base gravy, so put 3-4 ladles in each portion.
You can of course use your curry sauce right away, or place your base gravy in the fridge to keep for 3-4 days.
Well done, you have nailed this most crucial Base Gravy Curry Sauce Recipe! You are now ready to make almost any British Indian Restaurant recipe!
If you enjoyed this recipe you should try our article on ‘Chow Mein.’
https://asiankitchenrecipes.com/2022/02/14/chow-mein-recipe/
You could also have a look at this one on ‘Ramen Noodle Recipes:’
https://asiankitchenrecipes.com/2022/02/23/ramen-noodle-recipes/
If you would like another article on Base Gravy or Curry Sauce try here:
https://greatcurryrecipes.net/2013/12/31/make-indian-restaurant-style-curry-sauce-large-batch/
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Ramen Noodle Recipes – 10 Delicious Dishes for Your Next Meal
Ramen noodle recipes have become a super popular dish in Japan and around the world. They are a type of noodle that is made from wheat flour and water. Sometimes they can be egg based also.
Ramen noodles are made by boiling wheat flour dough in water or chicken broth, then adding salt or other ingredients to taste. The result is a long, thin noodle that is usually served hot with various toppings such as your choice of protein or vegetable, dried seaweed, spring/green onions, herbs and soy sauce.
The dish originated in China during the early 20th century and spread to Taiwan before arriving in Japan after World War II.
It has since become one of the most popular dishes in Japan as well as worldwide.
Most Ramen noodle recipes consist of these basic elements:
- Stock or broth (beef, chicken, vegetable, fish)
- A portion of Ramen noodles
- Your protein of choice; fish, tofu, chicken, pork, beef are the most popular – so are vegetable based ramen noodle recipes e.g. shiitake mushrooms
- Fresh vegetables – red onions, beansprouts, cabbage, shredded carrot etc
- Fresh spices – usually garlic and ginger at the least, sometimes coconut milk, curry powder etc
Here are a few of my favourite ramen noodle recipes. I’ve tried to make them as varied as possible including vegan, vegetarian, pescatarian and well as meat based.
I’m a flexitarian myself. I don’t like to miss out on good food anywhere!
1 Easy Homemade Ramen Noodle recipes
This is a great recipe to start off with as it’s easy, healthy and makes the most of spinach, mushroom and carrot, and is topped off with a delicious hard boiled egg.
A great way to eat healthily, and use up the spare veg in your fridge.
The low sodium content in the broth is helpful if you are worried about your blood pressure or hypertension.
It’s suitable for vegetarians but not vegans.
Check out the full recipe here:
2 How do you Make Ramen Noodles from Scratch?
Making Ramen noodles from scratch is much easier than you might think. You only need 4 ingredients; baked baking soda (baking soda baked in the oven for an hour), 100ml of warm water, 2 cups of flour & corn flour for dusting.
Combine all the ingredients in a bowl and knead until you have a wet dough, then pass your dough through a pasta machine until you have thin strands.
You can also cut your dough into thin strands by hand.
Find the full recipe here:
https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/user/3493506/recipe/how-make-ramen-noodles-scratch
3 Wagamama Homemade Chili Chicken Ramen Noodle Recipes
I couldn’t do an article like this without mentioning one of my favourite restaurants, and meals to cook at home.
The worldwide success of Wagamama is based on healthy, wholesome, flavoursome fast food.
I’ve tried many of the recipes from their cookbooks & restaurants, and this is one of my absolute favourites.
All you’ll need for this knockout dish is chicken stock, sriracha sauce, egg noodles, 1 chicken marinated in soy sauce and fresh ginger, beansprouts, chopped red onion, finely sliced red chili pepper, as well as a chopped scallion, some chopped cilantro/coriander and fresh lime to garnish.
Get the full recipe here:
https://www.wagamama.us/recipes/homemade-chili-chicken-ramen
4 Vegan One Pot Spicy Miso Ramen Noodles recipes
This is a vegan dish that will suit even the most committed carnivores.
For those who don’t know miso is an Asian fermented seasoning made from barley, soybeans & brown rice (as well as a few other grains as well).
This ingredients are all fermented with a fungus called Aspergillus Oryzae.
The resulting paste has a great smooth texture with a lovely strong & salty flavour.
The ingredients for this fantastic vegan one pot recipe include; Bok choi, sliced mushrooms, sweetcorn, sesame seeds, chopped scallions, Japanese chili oil (Rayu), & roasted Nori sheets (seaweed sheets).
The full article can be found here:
5 Mongolian Beef Ramen Noodle Recipes
This is as delicious a beef ramen recipe as I have found and tried at home myself. It is straightforward, healthy and tasty.
Tossing the beef in cornflour really helps to thicken the whole dish, and make the beef that little bit tastier as well.
For this delicious, meaty and warming been ramen soup you will need; ramen noodles, beef sliced into strips, cornflour, sesame oil, vegetable oil, crushed garlic cloves, crushed ginger, soy sauce, brown sugar, beef stock, brown sugar, broccoli, carrot, toasted sesame seeds and scallion to garnish.
https://www.delish.com/uk/cooking/recipes/a29795073/mongolian-beef-ramen-recipe/
6 Spicy Pork Ramen Noodle Recipes
This delicious pork ramen recipe has plenty of spice and flavour.
For this recipe you will need; pork belly, mirin (similar to Sake or Chinese Rice Wine), ramen noodles, spinach, beansprouts, hardboiled eggs, scallions, fresh ginger, red chili pepper, garlic chicken stock and sesame oil.
A delicious way to cook pork belly.
For the full article have a look here:
https://www.olivemagazine.com/recipes/family/cheats-spicy-pork-ramen/
7 Vegan Chili Tofu Ramen Noodle Recipes
Another ramen noodle recipe for the vegans, but with the addition of meaty shiitake mushrooms and tofu you may not notice the absence of meat.
Tofu is a protein-packed food made from bean curd, and it’s flavoursome, affordable and very much part of the Asian diet as a whole.
For this recipe you will need sake, mirin, dried shiitake mushrooms, soy sauce, garlic, ginger, red chili peppers, beansprouts, winter greens of your choice, ramen noodles, marinated tofu, chili oil & finely sliced scallions.
For the full recipe try here:
https://www.olivemagazine.com/recipes/vegan/chilli-tofu-ramen/
8 King Prawn Yaki Soba Ramen Noodle Recipes
King Prawn or Shrimp Yaki Soba is another of my favourite knockout ramen noodle recipes.
The delicious Yaki Soba sauce contains these ingredients; soy sauce, caster sugar, oyster sauce, white pepper, tomato ketchup, Worcestershire sauce.
The dish itself requires oil for frying, sliced onion, ramen noodles, king prawns, bell peppers, pickled ginger as well as black and white sesame seeds and scallions to serve.
9 Shoyu Beef Ramen Noodles
This recipe is well worth a look because it comes from an expert – Chef Meha Nishra, originally from Japan but is now working in Dubai.
As such there’s a real sense of authenticity about this dish.
One or two of the ingredients may seem difficult to source, but you should be able to get them at most Asian supermarkets.
In terms of ingredients you will need; strip steak, sesame oil, chicken stock, Haku Shoyu (Black Garlic Shoyu), shiitake mushrooms, ginger, lemongrass, garlic cloves, fresh ginger, canola oil, brussel sprouts, miso paste, Koyu Ramen Noodles, rice vinegar & green/spring onions to serve.
For the full recipe try here:
https://www.euronews.com/travel/2021/10/11/the-art-of-japanese-ramen
10 Miso Ramen Noodle Recipes
This last recipe is well worth the extra effort to achieve something elegant, authentic and elevated.
It isn’t easy and involves making your own stock from scratch, but you owe it yourself and loved ones to try ramen as lovely as this ramen noodles recipe undeniably is, once in a while.
There are a few sections, including homemade chicken stock, so it’s best to check out the recipe here and see if you would like to try it, probably on the weekend when you have more time!
A visit to the Asian grocery store will be a must!
For the full recipe try here:
https://www.souschef.co.uk/blogs/the-bureau-of-taste/miso-ramen-recipe
If you enjoyed this recipe you should try this other article of ours:
https://asiankitchenrecipes.com/2022/02/20/recipes-for-egg-noodles/
Or this one on authentic Chow Mein:
If you would like another informative article on Ramen Noodle Recipes try here:
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Recipes for Egg Noodles – 30 of the Best Suggestions
There are few things more delicious than recipes for egg noodles. I wanted to share with you 30 of my best suggestions for what to do with egg noodles.
Let me know in the comments if you tried any of them and enjoyed them!
What are your favourite recipes for egg noodles? Let me know in the comments.
1 Singapore Noodles
These delicious noodles have a fantastic curry taste to them, pack lots of flavour, and are easy to make. The recipe calls for rice noodles, I prefer them with egg noodles.
If you don’t make a deal of it, I won’t either. Use whatever noodles you have.
https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/singapore-noodles-0
2 Chow Mein
This is my own easy guide on how to make authentic chow mein with meat, fish or vegetables, plus a little information on the origins of the dish and how it has evolved.
A useful guide for what is surely the most popular Chinese takeaway dish ever!
3 Smoked Shrimp with Chinese Style Marinade with Noodles
This recipe calls for a little bravery if you have never smoked before, but you can use an everyday barbecue to smoke your shrimp if you don’t have a smoker.
You will end up with smoky, flavoursome shrimp which you can serve with egg noodles.
https://bbqsmokergrill.org/smoked-shrimp/
4 Recipe for Egg Noodles From Scratch
Why not try making your egg noodles from scratch? They taste so much fresher, don’t take long to cook, and are easy to make with only 5 ingredients – flour, salt, eggs, and water!
This recipe for egg noodles from scratch is the best I’ve come across!
5 Chinese Chicken Noodle Soup
This is a great recipe, fresh, easy to make and authentic.
Traditionally considered to be good for colds and perfect for winter days this Chinese Chicken Noodle soup is a knockout for any occasion!
Lovely fresh ingredients here include chicken thighs, sesame oil, cilantro/coriander, chicken stock, Sichuan peppercorns, garlic, ginger, bay leaf, cumin and green/spring onion, and of course egg noodles!
https://omnivorescookbook.com/chinese-chicken-noodle-soup/
6 Bo Kho – Vietnamese Beef Stew Recipe with Egg noodles
Here’s one you may not have tried before, or even heard of. This delicious beef stew is made with boneless beef short ribs, lemongrass, garlic, ginger, egg noodles and a whole lot more Vietnamese loveliness.
Definitely worth a try for something a little out of the ordinary.
https://glebekitchen.com/bo-kho-vietnamese-beef-stew-with-egg-noodles/
7 Lo Mein Recipe for Egg Noodles
To make these delicious noodles simply add the protein or veg of your choice, along with egg noodles, red pepper (bell pepper), spring green onion, garlic, white onion, carrot matchsticks, as well as soy sauce, sugar, Chinese rice wine, sesame oil, cornflour (cornstarch) and white pepper.
Similar to Chow Mein but not quite the same.
8 Thai Stir Fry with Vegetables
Although most Thai noodle dishes are made with rice noodles (including the famous Pad Thai) there are some which use egg noodles too. Here’s is a really great recipe for a Thai stir fry with vegetables with bangs of flavour for you to try at home.
https://www.thespruceeats.com/thai-stir-fried-noodles-with-vegetables-3217111
9 Shanghai Fried Noodles (Cu Chao Mian)
This lovely Shanghai Fried Noodles recipe uses sliced pork, ginger, garlic, green/spring onions, cabbage, as well as a fantastic sauce.
It’s easy to make and perfect for a straightforward midweek dinner.
https://www.daringgourmet.com/shanghai-noodles/
10 Steak Satay Noodles
This is a satisfying and filling meal with steak, peanut butter, coconut milk, and egg noodles to name but a few.
Making your own satay sauce is a game changer! Check out this fantastic recipe below.
https://www.olivemagazine.com/recipes/meat-and-poultry/steak-satay-noodles/
11 Salt and Chilli Chicken with Chilli Egg Noodles
A delicious take on the classic salt and chilli chicken from your Chinese takeaway with spicy egg noodles.
You’ll need chicken, cornflour, garlic powder, Chinese 5 spice, garlic, salt, chilli powder, chopped onion, chopped red chilli, egg noodles and spring/green onions to garnish.
12 Chinese Birthday Noodles
Also called longevity noodles, this dish is traditionally eaten on your birthday for luck and long life is the Han province of China. There’s quite a lot to go into this dish and you can substitute the favourite proteins of your guests accordingly.
For this recipe you will need oyster sauce, vegetable oil, soy sauce, chopped garlic, shrimp/prawns, beef meatballs, chicken, eggs, carrots, quail’s eggs, salt and white pepper, water, green mustard and fried shallots.
Not to mention egg noodles.
https://cookpad.com/uk/recipes/14167498-chinese-birthday-noodles
13 Thai Pesto Prawn Egg Noodles
This is a really interesting take on pesto by using Thai ingredients – coriander, basil, peanuts, chilli & lime and serving them with prawns and egg noodles.
Well worth a look for a fast and delicious noodle meal.
https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/thai-pesto-prawn-noodles
14 Chicken and Mushroom Wonton Noodle Soup
This delicious wonton noodle soup uses shitake mushrooms, veg and a chicken and mushroom broth/stock to pack a flavoursome punch.
Easy to make but beautifully warming on the tastebuds it’s well worth a try.
https://www.seriouseats.com/wonton-noodle-soup-chicken-shiitake-recipe
15 Taiwanese Beef Noodle Soup Recipe
This calls for thicker wonton egg noodles but really you can use any egg noodles you have.
The soup has big beefy flavours from braised beef as well a good amount of spice from ginger, garlic and chilli.
Really delicious.
https://www.seriouseats.com/taiwan-eats-taiwanese-beef-noodle-soup-recipe
16 Korean-style Bacon & Egg Noodles
This is really interesting change up from the classic combo of bacon and egg done Korean style!
Korean gochujang paste and soy sauce along with bacon, eggs and noodles is simply delicious and simple to make.
You really have to try it!
https://www.marionskitchen.com/korean-style-bacon-egg-noodles/
17 Mi Xao Gion Crispy Noodle Stir Fry
This is another Vietnamese style dish and the first one we have mentioned with delicious crispy egg noodles.
You can customise with seafood, meat or veg of your choice. It comes with a tasty garlic and soy sauce.
Yum!
18 Beef Ramen Noodle Soup
Believe it or not the incredibly popular Japanese Ramen noodles originally came from China. They are yellow and quite long egg noodles which are often served in a broth/stock with fresh veg as ramen noodle soup.
This recipe is one of my favourites for Ramen noodles, but I have a few more fantastic ones to share with you as well.
This healthy and tasty recipe is made from beef stock, beef strips and vegetables and finished off with a poached egg on the top.
https://myfoodbook.com.au/recipes/show/beef-ramen
19 Lemongrass, chicken and ginger noodle broth
Lemongrass and ginger are such warming and invigorating flavours, especially when put together with chicken in a healthy hearty noodle soup.
It’s also quick and easy to make. There’s literally nothing to complain about here.
https://www.olivemagazine.com/recipes/collection/4-quick-and-easy-ramen-noodle-recipes/
20 Vegan Ramen Recipe With Miso Broth
This flavoursome and healthy ramen dish is also vegan and vegetarian friendly. Even us carnivores can benefit from this one!
It’s also splendidly creamy and straightforward to make.
https://www.seriouseats.com/vegan-ramen-miso-creamy-vegan-vegetarian-food-lab-recipe
21 Quick and Easy Homemade Ramen
This great recipe gets extra points for being easy and quick to make but doesn’t in any way skimp on flavour.
22 Make ramen egg noodles from scratch with this tried and tested, and relatively straightforward recipe.
There is nothing quite like freshly made ramen noodles from scratch with fresh ingredients. Health and happiness in a bowl!
23 Chinese-Thai Noodle Stir Fry
This dish is eaten during the vegetarian festival of Tesakan Kin Jay which is celebrated in Thailand during the 9th Lunar month of the year.
More importantly for us it is extremely tasty and easy to make with a lovely combo of garlic and mushroom!
https://www.rosasthaicafe.com/recipes/stir-fried-egg-noodles
24 Indonesian Fried Noodles Mie Goreng
This might be another dish you haven’t heard of or eaten. It’s made with chicken and shrimp/prawns a some spicy love!
It has Nasi goreng paste which is fast becoming a global go to and it’s undeniably delicious and fast to make.
https://rasamalaysia.com/mie-goreng-indonesian-fried-noodles/
25 Malaysian Wonton noodles or Wantan Mee
This is a super easy and tasty recipe for Malaysian Wonton noodles, cooked with a dark sauce. You can also top it with fried or boiled wontons.
It comes out well and can stand up to some Asian street food too.
https://rasamalaysia.com/wonton-noodles/
26 Char Kway Teow or Malaysian Noodle Stir Fry
Staying on the subject of Malaysian noodles here’s a brilliant recipe for Char Kway Teow otherwise known as Malaysian Noodle Stir Fry.
Malaysia is a beautiful country with a real blend of different influences on its food including India, the Middle East, Indonesia, China, & Thailand.
Enjoy the many influences in this dish.
27 Sri Lankan Noodles
This is simple but very effective recipe for Sri Lankan noodles, packing flavour with ease.
It contains carrots, leeks, onion, garlic, red chilli, eggs, oil and egg noodles.
Definitely a dish to try for something a little bit different.
28 Kl Hokkein Mee or Hokkien Fried Noodles
This is a fantastic egg noodle dish from Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia.
You end up with savoury, slightly chewy egg noodles which are covered in sweet & salty fragrant soy sauce. Added to this we have shrimp/prawns, delicious pork belly, cabbage, and also gai-lan.
There are influences from China, Malaysia and Singapore in this delicious dish.
29 Beef and Broccoli Egg Noodles
Beef and Broccoli are a perfect combination especially when served with egg noodles.
This tasty recipe is simple and highly flavoursome, and totally moreish.
The combination of soy and oyster sauce is delicious and authentic.
30 Korean Fried Chicken with Egg Noodles
Last up we have one of my own tried and tested recipes which should always be paired with egg noodles – Korean Fried Chicken.
It has a delicious sauce, an authentic feel and a Korean inspired BBQ sauce, topped off with the always welcome ingredient of sesame seeds.
I hope you enjoyed this extensive list of Recipes for Egg Noodles!
If you liked this article feel free to try this one:
For another excellent recipe on the topic of Recipes for Egg Noodles try here:
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Chow Mein Recipe -Easy Authentic Guide
Chow Mein is one of the most popular noodle dishes in the world. Originating from Northern China, it has spread to many corners of the world, becoming a universally beloved dish.
The dish has gone through many changes throughout its history, and has been altered to suit Western tastes. It is largely based on an authentic dish called “ch’ao mien,” in Mandarin, meaning “stir-fried noodles.”
This dish is usually made with peanut oil (groundnut oil) egg noodles, fried vegetables like cabbage, carrots, celery, and onions, soy sauce, and that classic Chinese ingredient oyster sauce. The noodles are cooked in boiling water until they are soft before they are finished off in the wok with the other ingredients.
Chow Mein is often garnished with spring/green onions and drizzled with sesame oil to serve.
You can add your protein of choice (chicken is the most popular in Chinese takeaways and restaurants) but beef, shrimp/prawns, duck or pork work just as well.
You can also leave it vegetarian, or even add tofu (which originated in China).
The Hong Kong version of the dish uses noodles which are fried in oil until they become crispy.
While this is a great variation and well worth trying, we are going to try and be as faithful as possible to the original idea of the dish as possible, and add the soft egg noodles to the wok (or pan) at the end for a couple of minutes before serving.
As with all great cooking simplicity and harmony of flavours are what’s most important.
Chinese cooking is about balancing opposites (yin and yang) salty and sweet, spicy and mild.
Table of Contents
Chow Mein Step 1 – Prepare the Protein
Chow Mein Step 2 – Chop the Vegetables
Chow Mein Step 3 – Stir Fry the Vegetables
Chow Mein Step 4 – Add the Noodles
Chow Mein Step 5 – Serve the Chow Mein
Chow Mein Step 1 – Prepare the Protein
Depending on your choice of protein, this stage might a little different. If you choose to leave your Chow Mein with just vegetables you can obviously skip this step.
If you are using tofu, you can add it to the pan at the same time as the vegetables as it cooks quickly.
If you are wanting to cook chicken, beef, duck or shrimp/prawns it’s best to cook it in a Chinese style stock which you can freeze and use again to avoid wastage.
This process is very quick and imparts moisture and flavour into your meat.
Add a chicken/duck breast/pork chop or steak per person to a stockpot or pan, and cover the meat with boiling water.
Add a 3cm piece of peeled fresh ginger and 2 peeled garlic cloves, as well as 4 tablespoons of soy sauce.
It will only take 6-8 minutes for your chicken or duck breast to be ready, and then you can shred the meat with a fork.
You can keep the water you boiled the meat in for another time.
We are also going to add some of the stock into the Chow Mein later.
If you’re using a cut of pork or beef steak you can boil it for 10 minutes and then chop it into equally sized pieces.
Chow Mein Step 2 – Chop the Vegetables
Ingredients
2 Cloves of Fresh Garlic peeled and finely chopped
3cm peeled and finely chopped ginger
1 Medium Carrot Chopped into Matchsticks
4 Spring/Green Onions Chopped on the Diagonal (to Serve)
1 Tablespoon of Sesame Oil
1 Pack Of Beansprouts
1 Pack of Mangetout
1 Packet of Baby Corn
Cook your egg noodles according to the packet’s instructions (around 2-3 minutes) and drain.
Add the noodles to a bowl with 1 tablespoon of Sesame Oil, toss to coat the noodles evenly in the oil.
Chow Mein Step 3 – Stir Fry the Vegetables
Ingredients For Chow Mein Sauce
Make the sauce for the Chow Mein separately in a bowl before adding at the end.
1 Teaspoon Light Soy Sauce
1 Teaspoon Dark Soy Sauce
1 Tablespoon Oyster Sauce
1 Teaspoon of Brown Sugar or Honey
2 Tablespoons Water
2 Tablespoons of the Stock You Made
Chow Mein Step 4 – Add the Noodles
When the noodles have cooked and are lovely and soft, sieve them and then add to the pan/wok. Toss them round to make sure they soak up all the great flavours in the pan/wok.
Chow Mein Step 5 – Serve the Chow Mein
Garnish with Spring/Green Onions – Chilli Oil to serve if you like.
If you enjoyed this article feel free to try this one on Tom Yum Goong Soup:
https://asiankitchenrecipes.com/2022/02/13/tom-yum-goong/
Or this one on Korean Fried Chicken:
https://asiankitchenrecipes.com/2022/01/29/korean-fried-chicken/
For another great article on the subject of Chow Mein try here:
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Tom Yum Goong Soup in 4 Steps
Tom Yum Goong soup is a very popular sweet and sour Thai dish.
This recipe is based on one that a talented Thai chef very generously shared with me in Phuket.
This will make enough soup for around 4 people, and makes for an incredibly flavourful starter.
You should be able to find most of the ingredients, but you may need to visit an Asian Grocery store to get Thai Chili Paste, palm sugar, galangal and kaffir lime leaves.
If you can’t get galangal you can use ginger, although galangal will make for a more authentic experience. Kaffir lime leaves and galangal are usually found in the frozen section of the Asian Grocery Market to preserve them.
Making your own stock from shrimp (prawns in the UK) shells and heads is easy enough, and makes for a much better, fresher flavour in your soup. Give it a go!
Table of Contents
Tom Yum Goong Soup Step 1 – Prepare the Shrimp
Tom Yum Goong Soup Step 2 – Make the Stock
Tom Yum Goong Soup Step 3 – Make the Soup
Tom Yum Goong Soup Step 4 – Serve
Tom Yum Goong Soup Step 1 – Prepare the Shrimp
Try to make sure you get whole raw shrimp/prawns with the heads and skins on.
If you really can’t cope with the heads I suppose you could source your shrimp with the heads removed, and the shell left on.
I would strongly urge you to use the heads in the stock however. They are absolutely full of flavour.
The best way to remove the heads is to hold the head between your thumb and forefinger and twist.
As you do this, pinch the prawn’s body and twist your hands in two opposite directions pulling them away from each other. The head of the prawn should pop off cleanly and easily.
Tom Yum Goong Soup Step 2 – Make the Stock
When you have removed the heads and shells from the prawns, place them in a pan on medium heat with a little vegetable oil.
Cook the shrimp shells for a couple of minutes until they take on an orange colour.
Now put enough water into the pan to cover the shells and bring to the boil.
Add two peeled garlic cloves and a 3cm piece of peeled galangal (or ginger) to the stock.
You can leave this to simmer for up to an hour to infuse, but 10-15 minutes is fine.
Pass the stock through a muslin cloth on top of a sieve to remove any grit. Discard the shells, heads and garlic and ginger.
Pour the stock back into a pan on medium heat. Now we have an incredibly flavoursome stock to use as the basis for the Tom Yum Goong Soup.
Tom Yum Goong Soup Step 3 – Make the Soup
Ingredients for the Soup
A Pack of Whole Prawns/Shrimp
1 Stalk of Lemongrass (outer leaves removed, finely chopped)
1 -2 Tablespoons of Fish Sauce (Depending on Taste)
A Handful of Cilantro/Coriander Finely Chopped
1-2 Bird’s Eye Chillies Stalks Removed & Cut in Half
1 Teaspoon of Shrimp Paste
1 Teaspoon Palm Sugar (or Caster Sugar)
4-5 Kaffir Lime Leaves
2 Teaspoons of Thai Chilli Paste
1 Tin of Coconut Milk (leave a little in the tin for serving)
To Serve
Lime Wedges
Finely Chopped Coriander/Cilantro
The soup will be made quickly from here, so make sure you have everything ready to put in the pan.
Bring your stock up to the boil and add your kaffir lime leaves, lemongrass, chilli paste, bird’s eye chillies, shrimp paste, palm sugar, fish sauce and coconut milk.
Let your soup infuse for a minute or two and then add the prawns/shrimp. They will only take a minute or two to cook in the hot soup. Be careful not to overcook your prawns/shrimp.
If the tail of the shrimp/prawn curls up and touches the head it is overcooked.
Last of all scatter your coriander/cilantro and then remove from the heat.
Tom Yum Goong Soup Step 4 – Serve
Ladle your soup into warm bowls and serve with the chopped coriander/cilantro and lime wedges.
For extra presentation carefully tap your tin of coconut milk to create a lovely swirl of coconut milk in your Tom Yum Goong Soup.
If you enjoyed this article feel free to try this one on Korean Fried Chicken:
https://asiankitchenrecipes.com/2022/01/29/korean-fried-chicken/
For another great article on Tom Yum Goong Soup try here:
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