Lo mein is a popular Chinese noodle dish with a variety of meat and vegetable options. The dish is made with wheat flour noodles and a mix of seasonings, including soy sauce and hoisin. Vegetables are sautéed in a wok or skillet and combined with the noodles and seasonings.
The Chinese noodle dish called lo mein is popular all over the world for its diverse combination of Asian ingredients and flavors. Although different types of meat such as beef, chicken, pork or shrimp are frequent partners with wheat flour and noodles, many prefer a heavy vegetable one with sautéed vegetables and even nuts. The key is that the noodles and vegetables are mixed with the special mix of seasonings such as soy sauce and hoisin, but also garlic, ginger, scallions, coriander and scallions.
Translated from the Lou Mihn Cantonese word as “cut noodles,” lo mein is literally that. For veggies this means throwing in noodles with much larger chunks of veggies to make up for the lack of meat. Some of the more common vegetables in this dish are mushrooms, cabbage, peppers, eggplant, bok choy, carrots, onions, shallots, celery, and bean sprouts. Tofu can be added as well, for an extra punch of protein.
The wheat flour noodle used in the vegetable fillet is an integral part. With a standard egg and enriched flour paste the dish will lack its characteristic color and flavour. These noodles are readily available in grocery stores. They can also be made at home by replacing the wheat flour with enriched flour in the dough. While the regular spaghetti style is traditional, any size will do.
Some knife skills will be required to prepare some vegetable components before the cooking even begins. Garlic and ginger will need to be finely chopped. Carrots are traditionally cut into thin strips, a technique known as julienne. All other vegetables can be chopped as desired, although the thinner the cut, the faster they will cook.
After the vegetables have been cut into shape, the sesame or peanut oil is heated in a wok or skillet. Once the garlic, ginger and shallots have had a chance to caramelize, the vegetables are added in order of how fast they are cooked. Vegetables like carrots and eggplants will go in first, followed by onions, sprouts and celery. While the vegetables cook in a pan or wok, the wheat noodles are boiled until cooked through, coated in a light oil, and sautéed in another pan. When a darker shade of brown than when raw, having a slightly harder texture, the noodles are tossed with the vegetables, along with a light mixture of soy sauce and hoisin.
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