Chow Mein Sauce Recipe Without Oyster Sauce? Try This

You definitely can't miss this chow mein recipe without oyster sauce!

Chow Mein Sauce Recipe Without Oyster Sauce

Ingredient

Noodles: 200g

Greens, shredded carrots, bean sprouts: Appropriate amount, 30 - 50g each

Soy sauce: 2 tablespoons

Dark soy sauce: 1 tablespoon

Sugar: 1 tablespoon

Salt: Appropriate amount

Chicken powder: A little

Plain water: 2 tablespoons

Steps

Prepare the sauce: Add soy sauce, dark soy sauce, sugar, salt and plain water to a bowl in turn and stir well.

Process of stir-frying noodles: Add an appropriate amount of oil to the pan, put in chopped scallions and minced garlic and stir-fry until fragrant. Then add greens, shredded carrots, bean sprouts, etc., and stir-fry until they are almost cooked.

Add the noodles: Put the cooked noodles into the pan, pour in the prepared sauce, and stir-fry quickly over high heat to evenly coat the noodles with the sauce.

Reduce the sauce and serve: After the sauce has thickened slightly, add a little chicken powder to enhance the flavor, then it can be served.

What Can I Use Instead of Oyster Sauce in Chow Mein?

The core characteristics of oyster sauce are salty, fresh with a hint of sweetness. The following combinations of seasonings can be used as substitutes:

Soy sauce + Sugar:

1 tablespoon of light soy sauce (soy sauce) + ½ teaspoon of sugar can create the salty, fresh and slightly sweet taste of oyster sauce.

Soy sauce + Sweet bean sauce/Seafood sauce:

Sweet bean sauce or seafood sauce has a fermented aroma. When paired with soy sauce, it has a rich layering of flavors.

Fish sauce + Sugar (Southeast Asian flavor)

Fish sauce has a fresh seafood taste. Adding sugar can adjust the taste. It is suitable for Thai or Vietnamese-style chow mein.

What Is the Sauce for Chow Mein?

Different regions and flavors have different sauce combinations.

However, the main ingredients of chow mein sauce usually include seasonings such as soy sauce (light soy sauce, dark soy sauce), sugar, salt, garlic, ginger, chili, etc. Sometimes some special sauces like soybean paste, sweet bean paste, broad bean paste, etc. are added to enhance the flavor.

According to my experience, the key to chow mein sauce is to balance and enhance the aroma. Among them, soy sauce provides the salty and fresh taste and color, sugar is used to neutralize the saltiness and add a touch of sweetness, garlic and ginger can enhance the overall aroma, and chili is added in accordance with personal taste to add spiciness. You can adjust and innovate according to your own preferences.

For example, traditional Beijing-style chow mein usually uses a combination of soybean paste and sweet bean paste, and then adds a little light soy sauce and dark soy sauce for coloring and seasoning. The fried noodles have a strong sauce aroma and a mellow taste. Korean-style chow mein may use chunjang, and then fry with vegetables such as onions, potatoes and carrots, sweet with a touch of spiciness, with a unique flavor.

How Do You Make Chow Mein Not Soggy?

Choose the right noodles:

It is recommended to choose chewy noodles for chow mein, such as hand-pulled noodles and sliced noodles. They are not easy to break and stick together during the stir-frying process.

Pretreatment of noodles:

Cook until 80% done: When boiling noodles, put them into the boiling water and cook until they are 80% done. This way, they won't become soft and floppy during stir-frying.

Run under cold water: After cooking the noodles, immediately rinse them under cold water to remove the starch on the surface and prevent the noodles from sticking together.

Mix with oil: After rinsing with cold water, drain the noodles and drizzle a little cooking oil and mix well. This can keep the noodles from sticking to the pan during stir-frying and keep them separate.

Stir-frying techniques:

Heat the pan and add cold oil: When stir-frying noodles, first heat the pan, pour in an appropriate amount of oil, and let the oil evenly coat the bottom of the pan to prevent the noodles from sticking.

Stir-fry quickly over high heat: Stir-fry noodles over high heat to maintain a dry and fragrant taste and avoid the noodles becoming soft and floppy from slow stir-frying over low heat.

Keep stir-frying: After putting the noodles into the pan, stir-fry quickly to ensure that the noodles are evenly heated.

What is The Crispy Thing in Chow Mein?

The crispy things in chow mein may be the following ingredients:

Fried peanuts:

In many parts of China, peanuts are added to chow mein. The combination of crispy peanuts and chow mein not only brings a strong peanut flavor but also a crispy texture.

Fried tofu skin:

Adding fried tofu to chow mein can bring a unique crispy and refreshing taste. The bean flavor of the fried tofu and the sauce flavor of the chow mein blend together, creating a rich texture.

Diced vegetables:

Diced carrots, cucumbers or green peppers, etc. will still maintain a certain crispness after being cooked, adding a fresh texture and rich colors to the chow mein.

Sesame seeds:

Whether it's white sesame seeds or black sesame seeds, sprinkling them on chow mein can add a touch of crispness and make the chow mein look more appetizing.

How Long Do You Soak Chow Mein Noodles?

Soaking the noodles after boiling can make them more chewy. If they are dry noodles or dried spaghetti, it is recommended to soak them for 3 - 5 minutes. The time should not be too long, otherwise the noodles will become sticky.

If they are fresh noodles or hand-pulled noodles, the soaking time can be shortened to 2 - 3 minutes. Because fresh noodles are relatively soft, soaking for too long makes them prone to breaking.