Panda Express Chow Mein Copycat

4.58 from 57 votes
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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!!

A delicious Panda Express copycat chow mein in a bowl with assorted vegetables.
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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

Healthy homemade Panda Express stir fry noodles in a bowl.

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

Panda Express Chow Mein close up in a bowl, ready to be eaten.
  • Noodles
  • Onion
  • Cabbage
  • Celery
  • Soy sauce
  • Oyster sauce
  • Oil

See the recipe card for full information on ingredients.


Tips For The Best Chow Mein

Panda Express copycat recipe Chow Mein picked with a pair of chopsticks.
  • 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

Comparison of Panda Express Chow Mein and homemade copycat recipe Chow Mein.

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

How many calories per serving?

This recipe is only 362 calories per serving.

Panda Express Chinese take out stir fry noodles in a bowl ready to serve.

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 FacebookPinterest, and Instagram for new updates.


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4.58 from 57 votes

Panda Express Chow Mein Copycat

Panda Express Chow Mein – the BEST copycat recipe ever that tastes EXACTLY like Panda Express. So good, so easy, healthier, cheaper, and takes 15 mins!!
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 15 minutes
Servings: 2 people
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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

You can also use Chinese chow mein or egg noodles. Follow the cooking instructions on the packaging before stir-frying.

Nutrition

Serving: 2people, Calories: 362kcal, Carbohydrates: 36.5g, Protein: 6.5g, Fat: 22.1g, Saturated Fat: 2.9g, Cholesterol: 5mg, Sodium: 1732mg, Fiber: 5.5g, Sugar: 8.4g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Please rate and comment below!

About Rasa Malaysia

Bee is a recipe developer and best-selling cookbook author, sharing easy, quick, and delicious Asian and American recipes since 2006. With a strong following of almost 2 million fans online, her expertise has been featured in major publications, TV and radio programs, and live cooking demos throughout the United States and Asia.

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Recipe Rating





96 Comments

  1. amy says:

    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?

  2. Kristy says:

    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?

  3. Tina says:

    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…

  4. Patty says:

    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!!!

    1. Rasa Malaysia says:

      Yes, oil and high heat cooking :)

  5. Katie says:

    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!

    1. Rasa Malaysia says:

      Hi Katie, thanks so much for your sweet comment, I am so glad that you love this Panda Express chow mein recipe. :)

  6. Jenni says:

    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.

    1. Rasa Malaysia says:

      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.

    2. Cheryl Mae says:

      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

  7. liah says:

    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..

    1. Rasa Malaysia says:

      Vegetable oil is fine, or any oil is fine.

      1. Brian says:

        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,

        1. Rasa Malaysia says:

          Good to know.

          1. Suzanne says:

            Most Asian restaurants use peanut oil, don’t they???

            1. Rasa Malaysia says:

              Chinese love peanut oil but I am not sure what restaurants use. It might be whichever is cheaper. ;)

  8. philherb says:

    so it certainly looks like lo mein to me, no chow mein

    1. Rasa Malaysia says:

      Hi Phil, lo mein is wet, chow mein is dry. Chow Mein means ็‚’้ข in Chinese which is basically fried noodles. Lo Mein is ๆž้ข, which means the noodles are pre-cooked first and then mixed with a sauce.

    2. Cleeo2 says:

      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.

      1. Rasa Malaysia says:

        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.

  9. Liz says:

    Delicious Bee. Thank you.

    1. Rasa Malaysia says:

      Thanks Liz.

  10. Alice @ Hip Foodie Mom says:

    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!

    1. Rasa Malaysia says:

      Hi Alice, yes it’s better because you can make it less greasy, theirs is soaked in oil!! :)

      1. Suzanne says:

        5 stars
        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!!!

        1. Rasa Malaysia says:

          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.

    2. Laura @ Raise Your Garden says:

      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!!!!

      1. Rasa Malaysia says:

        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. :)

      2. nancy says:

        Unfortunately you have to worry about any restaurant dropping food and putting it back.