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Panda Express Chow Mein - BEST copycat recipe ever that tastes EXACTLY like Panda Express. So good and easy, healthier, cheaper, and takes 15 mins!!
Chinese Takeout
When it comes to Chinese food in the United States, no restaurant is more iconic than Panda Express, who has over 1650 stores here.
How does it sound if you could make all the things you get at Panda Express for a fraction of the price, and even healthier as well?
Look no further, as I am going to share a series of popular and super easy Chinese recipes with you all.
Getting The Best Panda Express Copycat Recipe
Panda Express is famous for its Chow Mein and I am sharing the copycat recipe with you today. Everyone loves Chow Mein, greasy Chinese noodles tossed with lots of vegetables, stir-fried over very high heat in a wok.
Furthermore, to make sure that I do justice to the real deal, I recently went to Panda Express twice. I made sure to talk to the cook and drill down the recipe, and I got it down to a T.
Ingredients To Make This Copycat Recipe
- Noodles
- Onion
- Cabbage
- Celery
- Soy sauce
- Oyster sauce
- Oil
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients.
Tips For The Best Chow Mein
- A perfect chow mein should be loaded with lots of wok hei (breath of wok)—the ingredients should be flash cooked over high heat in a wok, so the noodles and vegetables are slightly burned and charred
- I am sure you have seen the cook at Panda Express tossing and cooking the noodles behind the counter, all done in a matter of minutes. To get good wok hei, you need lots of oil and a wok (but skillet will do).
- The chow mein should never be soggy or wet, and no water should be added during the cooking process.
See It For Yourself
So, below is the real Panda Express on the left and my version on the right. The chow mein tastes exactly like Panda Express, the only difference is the noodles used.
Panda Express noodles are specially made for them only and not available at the stores. For the closest replacement, use yakisoba.
This is a super easy recipe to make at home and you can get all ingredients from regular stores. Make a big batch of Panda Express Chow Mein—it’s so good, so easy, healthier, cheaper, and you can have as much as you want!
Frequently Asked Questions
This recipe is only 362 calories per serving.
What To Serve With This Recipe
For a wholesome meal and easy weeknight dinner, I recommend the following recipes.
I hope you enjoy this post as much as I do. If you try my recipe, please leave a comment and consider giving it a 5-star rating. For more easy and delicious recipes, explore my Recipe Index, and stay updated by subscribing to my newsletter and following me on Facebook, Pinterest, and Instagram for new updates.
Other Recipes You Might Like
Panda Express Chow Mein Copycat
Ingredients
- 1 lb. (500g) yakisoba
- 3-4 tablespoons oil
- 1/2 yellow onion, sliced
- 8 oz. (230g) cabbage, sliced
- 2 oz. (60g) celery, cut into small pieces
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 1/2 tablespoons oyster sauce
Instructions
- Discard the seasoning packages of the yakisoba noodles. Loosen up the yakisoba and set aside.
- Heat up a wok or skillet over high heat, add the oil when it's heated. Add the onion, cabbage, and celery into the wok, stir fry and toss continuously until the vegetables become soft and some of them are slightly charred.
- Add in the noodles and stir a few times before adding the soy sauce and oyster sauce. Stir continuously to combine all the ingredients in the wok. Dish out and serve immediately.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
hi. could you please tell me what you mean by the yakisoba noodles(in the ingredient?) so don`t buy the packaged chow mein noodles?
This is how they look: http://www.lafujimama.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/yakisoba-noodles.jpg. But you can use packaged chow mein noodles and follow the instructions of the packaging before cooking. Some you have to cook them before stir-frying. For yakisoba noodles you don’t have to.
Hi I just tried this recipe – HELP! Are you sure we aren’t supposed to cook the yasiko noodles first?? Mine never did soften up! I cooked them with all the ingredients for an additional 10 minutes (covered) and even added 1/2 cup of water and they are still crunchy! The flavor is great and I really want this to work ;) what do you suggest?
Hi Kristy, can you send me a picture of your yakisoba? It’s not supposed to be crunchy and they are soft. This is how they look: https://foodutopia.files.wordpress.com/2011/06/maruchan-fresh-yaki-soba.jpg
Have to try this recipe ass well – looks nice and easy :-)
Greetings from Denmark – love chinese food and dont have the chinese take-away options like in the states. So glad to find your homepage 3 month ago – we have been making different recipes several time every week since then :-)
Looking forward to new recipes from you…
Hi Tina, please check out my new ebook https://rasamalaysia.com/easy-asian-takeout/. I think you will really like it.
hi, I love Chinese food and this noodles are my favorite! One question, how come the noodles end up looking so soft but they are not boiled? Is it just the oil that do the work and magic? I’m making this tomorrow just need to get oyster sauce!!! Thanks for sharing the recipe!!!
Yes, oil and high heat cooking :)
The chow mien from Panda has always been a favorite of mine so i knew i had to try this. I made it last night and it was SO GOOD. Loved how simple it was and that it used minimal ingredients. Will be making this often. Thank you for sharing!
Hi Katie, thanks so much for your sweet comment, I am so glad that you love this Panda Express chow mein recipe. :)
Hi. I made this last night for supper and my family loved it. I’m not sure I did the noodles right though. I used uncooked Ramen Noodles (you know the kind that are 40 cents in a square package) and even though I separated them they were still crunchy. Should I have used a different noodle or even cooked them first? My family liked them as is but I didn’t think they looked like your lovely picture.
Thanks for posting such wonderful recipes.
The uncooked ramen should be soft and not crunchy…they are pale yellow in color right? Next time you can use a bit of water and quickly rinse it to separate the noodles.
Cook the dry Yakisoba noodles quickly in the microwave or some boiling water just for about a minute then cool with cold water and drain till you add to the pan with the sauce. I’ve made with both noodles and I liked the dry better. They must be parboiled first though and then they finish cooking in the pan with the sauce
What is the best type of oil to use in Asian cooking, Bee? Vegetable, Corn, Olive or Canola? Which gives the less fat and more flavor? ove your recipes..
Vegetable oil is fine, or any oil is fine.
While you could use any oil for stir frying, it is not a bad idea to consider using one with a high smoke point if cooking indoors. I use rice bran oil or extra light olive oil however avocado oil is better (but more expensive). Basically you want a refined oil,
Good to know.
Most Asian restaurants use peanut oil, don’t they???
Chinese love peanut oil but I am not sure what restaurants use. It might be whichever is cheaper. ;)
so it certainly looks like lo mein to me, no chow mein
Hi Phil, lo mein is wet, chow mein is dry. Chow Mein means ็้ข in Chinese which is basically fried noodles. Lo Mein is ๆ้ข, which means the noodles are pre-cooked first and then mixed with a sauce.
Looks like Lomein to me too! I notice many online recipes for Chow mein look like Lomein. In the North East, our Chow mein is served on crunchy noodles and Lomein on soft spaghetti type noodles.
Hi Cleeo, chow mein means stir-fried noodles. The crunchy noodles might be a regional variation. Lo Mein means the noodles are mixed with the sauce, there is really no stir-frying involved.
Delicious Bee. Thank you.
Thanks Liz.
I love this, Bee. . and I bet your version is way better than Panda Express!! We’ve stopped eating there and I make Chinese food at home!
Hi Alice, yes it’s better because you can make it less greasy, theirs is soaked in oil!! :)
My daughter and I love the chow mein noodles at Panda but it is difficult to get them consistent and correct any more and I basically now the recipes, but this is awesome because I didn’t know about the oyster sauce!!!! Thank you so much for sharing I look forward to all of your recipes!!! I am wondering if you have or know where I can get the recipe to make the noodles from scratch? I found one recipe which was just flour and water but I am not sure if it is the correct noodle. Any ideas? Thanks again, All of my love and the blessings, love and grace of our LORD ALMIGHTY, into you and your, today and always!!!
Hi Suzanne, awww, your comment just made my day. I don’t have a noodles recipe but Chinese uses lye water to make noodles. It’s not so simple as water and flour. Thanks for your support. Do sign up my email to get email notifications.
We stopped eating there too for reasons I won’t get into on the Internet! I absolutely love Copycat recipes, they can just be spot on for the fraction of the cost so I can’t wait to try. Love getting that restaurant experience (without the hmmmm, was this food dropped on the floor and scooped up and put back in the pan? question in my brain. Thanks for sharing. Will try!!!!
Oh no, wow, that’s just gross. Yes, you can make this easily at home, and it tastes like the real deal as I did side-by-side taste testing. :)
Unfortunately you have to worry about any restaurant dropping food and putting it back.