I love Cantonese dim sum and every time I go dim sum, other than the dainty little dumplings and soft fluffy steamed buns, I always order a plate of supreme soy sauce chow mein, or 豉油皇炒面. Supreme soy sauce chow mein is basically plain fried egg noodles seasoned with soy sauce. The greasy, glistening, brown-colored fried noodle dish is the epitome of Cantonese cooking: the simplest ingredients, perfect breadth of wok or wok hei, and the timing of wok cooking. A great supreme soy sauce chow mein can be very addictive and utterly scrumptious, no less than the flavorful and delicate dim sum. It’s a plate of savory, toasty (from the perfect wok hei), and greasy goodness! I can’t stop eating it and always want more.
Since the ingredients are really simple, I decided to attempt it at home. I fired up my well-seasoned cast iron wok, prepared all the ingredients and had them right beside the wok. Using a pair of long wooden chopsticks, I successfully created my favorite dish at home, and the smoke alarm didn’t go off while I wok hei’ed the noodles! Having the ingredients right by the wok is essential to the success of this recipe because the high heat cooking process is so short that you have no time to turn around and find your ingredients, as just a matter of a few seconds can render your noodles overcooked and unsuccessful.
For this supreme soy sauce chow mein recipe, it’s important to use a pair of long chopsticks to “stir fry” the noodles as they are more versatile than spatula; the motion of tossing the noodles with the chopsticks will loosen up the noodles so they don’t clump together. As a result, your noodles will be perfectly blended with the soy sauce seasonings, every strand of the noodle lustrously coated with the oil, and the bean sprouts and yellow chives will be perfectly cooked and remain fresh and crunchy. So there you have it, the secret technique of making it Chinese restaurant worthy.
Last but not least, don’t be afraid to use oil. In fact, use oil generously in this chow mein recipe, because without the glistening and greasy sheen on the noodles, it ain’t the classic and iconic Cantonese supreme soy sauce chow mein that we all love so much. Dig in and enjoy!
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Mary Blackledge Corroo
I made this recipe day before yesterday. Yellow chives and bean sprouts are hard to find in my area. I used a little celery, onion and cabbage instead. Also my fresh noodles were shaped more like linguine than spaghetti. At any rate, your treatment is delicious! That was the first time I ever used dark soy sauce. Wow what a difference that makes. My noodles not only tasted awesome, they looked nice too. Thanks so much for the great post and delicious recipe. :)
Sandy
HI, THIS SOUNDS & LOOKS GREAT, BUT IN MY AREA (SOUTH CENTRAL NEW ENGLAND) THIS WOULD BE CONSIDERED LO MEIN (PORK,BEEF, VEGE, CHICKEN, HOUSE SPECIAL ETC.)THE COOKED SPAGHETTI STYLE, THIN SOFT NOODLES, PICTURED ABOVE(LO MEIN)MADE W/FEW DIFFERENT KINDS (VEGES, PORK,ETC.)LITTLE BIT OF ONIONS, WATER CHESTNUTS, NOODLES & ALL ARE COATED W/DARK-LOOKING SAUCE AS IS SHOWN HERE. THE CHOW- MEIN. (I’M STARVING) THEY MAKE AROUND HERE IS MADE W/LONGISH SLICED LIGHT WHITE,GREEN VEGES (CABBAGE ONIONS, & THIS LIGHT /WHITE. ISH GRAVY-LIKE SAUCE & YOU SPOON THIS ON TOP OF THESE HARD THIN CRUNCHY NOODLISH THINGS(CALLED CHOW MEIN NOODLES. YOU GET THESE ON THE SIDE. (WHICH SOFTEN UP WHEN COVERED WITH HOT (AS IN STEAMING-HOT) VEGETABLES(CHOW MEIN. THERE IS ALSO CHOP SUEY (NOT MY FAVORITE, BUT IS MORE OF SOUPY KINDA SAUCE,W/ THE WHITISH, LIGHT GREEN VEGES. (NOT SURE WHAT KIND). CAN YOU HELP ME TO DISTINGUISH THE DIFFERENCE & WHAT EXACTLY IS IN EACH DISH. THANK YOU SO MUCH !! SANDY
Maggie
What brand of wok do you use? Any particular brands you would recommend for authentic Singaporean and Malaysian cooking?
Rasa Malaysia
I don’t know the brand it’s just a regular wok from Asian stores.