Chow mein from memory

I have a few recipes in my head from memory. I would imagine many people are the same. Dishes you've made so many times you no longer need to look at the written instructions. But, when you do take a peek, you realise that you've adapted and innovated to your own tastes so often that the original recipe no longer bears much resemblance to yours. Maybe there isn't even a recipe written in ink, just something someone taught you which stuck. Spaghetti bolognese, chili, lasagna and this chow mein are some of my 'memory' recipes. The original came from a Chinese cookbook, full of semi authentic dishes which have some interesting instructions and ingredients: cucumber as a stir fry vegetable? It works brilliantly.

Another interesting technique in this recipe is the frying of the noodles. First boiled until soft, they are drained and placed into a bowl. A quantity of oil is then heated separately in a pan until smoking hot. This is then poured over the noodles and stirred to separate and coat and then everything is thrown back into the pan to be fried until crisp and golden. Perhaps this is the way it's been done for ever, but until last night I had forgotten this little detail, usually just throwing the noodles in to fry with everything else at the end. This way is better. The noodles are crisper and have a nice toasted flavour which doesn't get lost by being saturated with sauce. I can't claim this is a very authentic chow mein, but maybe it is more authentic than others.

The only thing I may have missed in this recipe is velveting the pork, whereby you coat it in a mix of egg white and cornflour before frying. This seals in the succulence and also acts as a batter, giving you a crispier exterior. It was fine without, but perhaps next time I will give it a go.

Recipe : Chow mein with pork and cucumber

Adapted from memory from 'An Encyclopedia of Regional Chinese cooking' by Kenneth Lo

2 tbsp peanut or vegetable oil

1 lb of pork loin, all fat and sinew removed, sliced into matchsticks

1/2 cucumber, cut lengthwise in half, seeds removed and finely shredded

4 scallions, (spring onions), finely shredded

1/2 medium green bell pepper, seeded and finely shredded

1/2 tin bamboo shoots

large handful of spinach

1 clove garlic, peeled and chopped finely

1/2 inch piece ginger, peeled and chopped finely

2 bundles of egg noodles

4 tbsp peanut or vegetable oil

Sauce (Mix all together in a bowl)

3 tbsp say sauce

2.5 tbsp Chinese wine or dry sherry

1 tsp salt

1 tsp sugar

1 tsp sesame oil

1 tsp cornflour (cornstarch)

Boil the noodles until soft in a pan of boiling salted water, drain well and refresh with cold water, then drain thoroughly again and place into a bowl.

Preheat the oven to a warming temperature, such as 250oF. Heat the 4 tbsp of peanut oil in a frying pan or wok over high heat until really hot and then pour over the noodles. (It should be hot enough to sizzle when it hits the noodles). Stir well to coat the noodles, then throw them back into the frying pan or wok, still on high heat and stir fry for about 5 minutes until they are crispy. Drain on paper towels and place into an oven proof bowl. Keep warm in the oven while you prepare the meat and veg. 

Wipe the frying pan or wok clean with paper towels and then add the 2 tbsp of oil. Heat over a high heat and add the pork. Stir fry for a few moments until the pork is browned and then remove from the pan and drain on kitchen towel. Reheat the wok, add the cucumber, scallions, bell pepper, bamboo shoots and spinach and stir fry also until softened. Remove to the plate with the pork to drain of a little oil. 

Reheat the wok and add the garlic and ginger. Stir fry for 30 seconds and then add all the sauce ingredients. Stir and then return the meat and vegetables. Stir thoroughly to reheat and coat in the sauce and then serve over the crisped, fried noodles.

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