PAN FRIED NOODLES (Chinese thin, wheat-based egg noodles, also called Hong Kong noodles)
![]() | ![]() |
Like lo mein, chow mein noodles are wheat based and contain egg. While some posit that lo mein noodles are boiled and chow mein noodles are fried, both noodles often are boiled briefly, rinsed, then stir fried in a wok with various combinations of meat and vegetables. Both remain soft (see Lomay’s chicken chow mein). But in the United States, chow mein noodles also are commonly fried until crisp and golden.
Liang mein hwang, “two sides brown” in Cantonese, is a fried noodle cake – soft inside but crisp outside. Topped with a stir fry, it may be a traditional relative of what American’s know as chow mein or, on some Chinese American restaurant menus, as pan-fried noodles.