Ingredients
10 small black dried mushrooms
1/2 lb fresh chinese egg noodles (regular, mein)
1 sesame oil
1/2 lb sea scallops
1 cornstarch
1/2 lb flank steak
2 tsp dark soy sauce
1/2 cup bamboo shoots, sliced
1 lb bok choy, cut in 1 1/2-inch lengths
2 eggs
2 1/4 cup fresh chicken stock
2 tbsp light soy sauce
1 salt
1/2 tsp sugar
1 peanut oil
1 tbsp or more dry sherry or shaoxing rice, wine
Directions
Here's a recipe for Chow Mein which is a pretty classic application
using pan fried noodles.
Put the mushrooms in a small bowl and pour boiling water over them.
Let soak for 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, cook the noodles in a large quantity of boiling water for
3 1/2 to 5 minutes. Drain, rinse under cold water, drain again, toss
with a little sesame oil and set aside.
Cut The scallops in half, toss with a little sesame oil and 1 1/2
teaspoons of cornstarch; refrigerate. Cut the flank steak as thinly
as possible across the grain. Toss with 1 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch,
in a little sesame oil and the dark soy sauce; set aside. When the
mushrooms have soaked, squeeze them out over the soaking liquid, and
reserve 1/4 cup of the liquid. Cut off the mushroom stems and
discard; cut the caps in two and set aside with the bamboo shoots and
bok choy.
Lightly beat the eggs with a few drops of sesame oil. Heat a small
frying pan and oil the bottom lightly. Pour in enough of the beaten
egg to cover the bottom, pouring any excess back into the uncooked
eggs. Cook just until set and remove. Repeat until all the egg is
used up. Stack the egg crepes, roll them up and slice across the roll
into shreds. Set aside.
Mix the chicken stock with the light soy sauce, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
and the sugar; set aside. Heat this mixture in a small pot over low
heat.
Meanwhile, heat a wok over medium high heat until hot. Add 1 cup
peanut oil and heat until the oil is very hot. Lower the noodles into
the oil to form a nest and let them cook until brown on one side.
(This may take 8 minutes or so.) Turn the noodles over and brown on
the other side. (This will be much faster.) Remove to a large serving
platter and keep warm.
Cook the scallops very briefly in the same oil, remove and drain in a
colander. Turn the heat off under the oil and add the beef. Stir just
until the meat slices are separated and start to change color. Remove
to drain with the scallops.
Pour off all the oil but 1/4 cup and heat. Add the vegetables and
stir-fry for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the seasoned stock and bring to a
boil. Mix the reserved mushroom soaking liquid with 2 tablespoons of
cornstarch until dissolved and stir into the chicken stock sauce.
Stir until it thickens and clears slightly. Add the beef and
scallops, then the wine and cook just until heated through. Pour
over the noodles and serve garnished with the egg shreds.
Posted by Stephen Ceideburg December 18 1990.
Servings: 1 batch
Chow Mein (Two Sides Brown Noodles) Recipe brought to you by Recipe Ideas
Categories: Asian; Chinese
The History of Recipes
It is quite feasible to follow the history of recipes far back into ancient history, at least as far into history as pharonic Egypt, and quite possibly further than that. Interesting though that is, these, ancient cook books were just very basic pictorial instructions for preparing meals.
Interestingly, the oldest recipe discovered so far, according to experts in ancient history are a few ancient tablets in ancient Sumerian which show the baking of bread which is then used to make a drink, quite possibly a form of beer as it is recorded as having made people feel exhilarated and blissful. Progressing into The time of the roman empire 25BC a roman called Apicius compiled a few scripts detailing recipes prepared by wealthy roman citizens. In his works, Apicius recounts how the meals were separated into appetizers, main course and dessert, known in latin as `Gustatio, Primae Mensae and Secundae Mensae`. Additionally, he describes how the ancient chefs used many spices, including a few that will be familiar to modern chefs such as thyme, rue and asafoetida. Later on, there were a couple of cookery books which date from the 14th Century ; a recipe book titled `Forme of Cury`, and another, similary entitled `Curye on Inglish`. Amusingly, these two books are not about the indian food that is served today, but rather accounts of the types of meals prepared for the rich and powerful of that time. Later on in the 1400s, people returning from the crusades brought us a variety of spices and herbs from Arab countries, such as rosemary and coriander. These new spices and herbs led to an increase in recipe publications, some of which still exist in private cookery archives. For the centuries that followed, the rich and powerful families of Wesstern Europe competed to lay on the most exotic meals, and as a consequence, cooks and their recipe collections became highly prized. Even so, it was during the nineteenth century that haute cuisine and recipe publications really came of age. Mrs Beeton in the UK, and the equally famous Fannie Merritt Farmer in the USA, devoted their lives to collating, testing, and publishing popular recipes of the day. By the time we get to the 20th century, cookery books were highly popular mostly due to more people being able to read, people having more free time and disposable income. The introduction of the TV brings us TV cooks and the recipe books that accompanied them. Which pretty much brings us up to date and the internet revolution, permitting us all to access thousands of recipes like the ones you can find on this recipe site. |
We hope you enjoy this Chow Mein (Two Sides Brown Noodles) recipe.
