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Chicken Chow Mein

by Jamie
I found this recipe about 10 years ago in a healthy eating cookbook and have been making it ever since. It is one of our favorites. Yes, my kids will eat it. Some of them dish themselves the veggies they like, my girls eat the onions! Who would have thought! Some of my kids like to pick out the veggies they don’t like, and eat the chicken and noodles. I count that as “my kids will eat this”. We serve it over Chinese Noodles and rice. No rice in the picture my friends…but you can imagine it, can’t you?  
Chicken Chow Mein
Time: 45 minutes total
Yield: 6 Servings
Recipe adapted from Dana Thornock
2 T olive oil
2 onions
2-3 C celery
2-3 C bean sprouts
1 8 oz package mushrooms
4 chicken breasts
salt and pepper
3 C water
3  Chicken bullion cubes
2 T soy sauce
1/2 t sugar
3 T cornstarch dissolved in 1/3 C water
Hot rice
Chinese Noodles
                              
1. In a large skillet heat 1 T olive oil. Cut up the chicken breasts with a pair of cooking scissors. Add them to the pan and sprinkle with salt and cracked pepper. Cook over medium heat until the pieces are golden brown. See how pretty they are? This beautiful golden brown color is going to add some screaming delicious flavor to your chow mien.
2. While the chicken is getting itself beautifully browned you are going to be chopping up your veggies. The long noodlie like things pictured at the far left are bean sprouts. You can find them at any grocery store, though I don’t recommend buying them at Walmart. They sale them in a prepackaged bag, and are very rarely fresh. Smiths (or Kroger) has the best quality I have found. I always make this the same day I purchase the bean sprouts….they do not keep very well.
3. When your chicken is browned, set it aside. Add 1 T olive oil to the same skillet you cooked the chicken in. Add your veggies and cook on medium heat for about 15 minutes, or until the veggies are crisp tender.
4. While your veggies are cooking put the water, bullion, soy sauce, and sugar in a small sauce pan. Heat until boiling, and add the cornstarch/water mixture. Stir it in thoroughly. The sauce should thicken quickly. Set aside.
5. When your veggies are done, add the chicken and the sauce back into the skillet with the veggies. Heat through and serve with rice and Chinese noodles.

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24 comments

Anonymous February 10, 2010 - 4:28 pm

This looks tasty! I will be trying it Saturday night after the weekly grocery trip!

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Miss Rowley February 10, 2010 - 4:45 pm

that looks so good, I am going to have it make it one of these days. bytheway, do you know how many calories are in just one serving, and how much would one serving be? just wondering.

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Jamie Cooks It Up! February 10, 2010 - 5:40 pm

Miss Rowley,
Thanks for your comment. I hope you give it a try!
I don't know the exact calorie count, however it is mostly made up of veggies…so it has to be pretty low. A word of caution with the Chinese Noodles. They are a little bit high in calorie, so I have my chow mein over hot rice and just sprinkle a few Chinese noodles on top.

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Firmages February 10, 2010 - 7:17 pm

Yay! I have been waiting for a yummy chow mein recipe!

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The Girl Next Door Grows Up February 10, 2010 - 9:11 pm

We LOVE chow mein!!!!

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Jamie N February 11, 2010 - 1:50 am

I have a similar recipe for chow mein that I love and I add a handful of grated carrots (or matchstick thickness). It adds more color and more veggies and is so yummy. Just thought I would comment. I'm new here and LOVE your blog!

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Jamie February 11, 2010 - 2:11 am

Jamie- This looks delicious! I love finding new dinner ideas!

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Kim McCann March 20, 2010 - 12:20 am

Jamie, quick question…what kind of boullion do you use?

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Jamie Cooks It Up! March 20, 2010 - 1:12 am

Kim,
Chicken Bullion Cubes.
~Jamie

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Becky B. May 26, 2010 - 12:18 am

I made this tonight and it was very good. I used Jasmine rice and added a splash of sesame seed oil when cooking the chicken. I wish I had cooked the celery and onions first for five minutes before adding the rest of the veggies as my mushrooms were a little limp by the time my celery cooked to where I like it. It made enough to feed my family of 6 (two teens) but my two youngest just ate the rice and chicken.

I'm adding this one to my recipe box. Thanks Jamie!

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Anonymous August 24, 2010 - 4:26 pm

What a great dish! My family all seem to really liked this. I liked how light it was. Thank you for sharing great recipes.

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Anonymous September 9, 2010 - 12:37 am

Wow this is really fun, it is so good.
One Proud Dad

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Mandi and Adam April 5, 2011 - 2:02 am

This looks great! Would you ever use canned bean sprouts in place of fresh ones?

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Maureen Bullock ?? February 23, 2023 - 11:09 am

Omg Jamie I tried this and it was fabulous, changed a few things such as: 4cups of bean sprouts, no rice or Chinese noodles and I added in 1cup of carrots shredded.
Absolutely fabulous.

One question Jamie, when you make your own stock, how long can you keep it in the fridge or freezer?

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Jamie Cooks It Up! April 6, 2011 - 1:21 am

Hi Mandy,
I haven't ever tried canned bean sprouts. As a general rule canned veggies don't work very well in asian style cooking because the veggies are already soft. Hope you give the recipe a try and that it turns out well for you!
~Jamie

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Anonymous April 28, 2011 - 11:43 pm

Do you trim the ends off the bean sprouts before adding them to the recipe? I always do but, I have friends who don't. Just wondering. Love your blog. Everything I have made my family loves!

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Jamie Cooks It Up! May 2, 2011 - 1:49 am

Anonymous,
I haven't ever trimmed off the ends. Haven't even considered it, actually! Thanks for letting me know that your family is enjoying the recipes. That is music to my ears. Have a great night.
~Jamie

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Timothy Eastwood June 6, 2011 - 3:02 pm

Aah! Want to try some! It's nice eating these, especially when we are super hungry. Haha! How long will it take to make this one?

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Anonymous October 17, 2011 - 11:39 pm

I love water chestnuts, so I add a can. Also, while in Wyoming, I couldn't find bean sprouts so I used Chinese cabbaage instead. It turned out great and didn't change the taste.

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Menu Plan Monday: 9/3/12 « Yaya & Buds September 4, 2012 - 2:45 pm

[…] Chicken Chow Mein — with Zucchini Bread if I have enough time after […]

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Susan September 20, 2016 - 8:20 am

This looks delicious. I’m making it tonight. I do have one question – what type of onion did you use? Yellow, white, etc?

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Julius Rosen April 15, 2021 - 6:04 am

Thanks for your recipe finally someone who understands that you don’t put pasta in chow mein. As someone said above chestnuts definitely a good dad and some people like to chop up a little bok choy or cabbage, a little soy sauce or sesame sauce or olive oil helps. As a final measure you can sprinkle sesame seeds on top when you present the plates to your guests or family

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Mebs October 21, 2021 - 2:12 pm

“Mein” means NOODLES in Chinese, idiot.

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