Char Siu Noodles (叉烧捞面)

These slurp-worthy Char Siu Noodles will be your new favorite noodle recipe! With thick egg mein tossed in a sweet and savory sauce, it comes LOADED with Chinese BBQ pork, snap crunchy greens and sliced omelette so there’s never a dull moment. You’ll be surprised at just how easy it is to make!

The most exciting noodle experience!

I must admit, soupless noodle dishes aren’t something my family eat often. While ridiculously simple to make, Mum and Dad only ever make them for parties along with sides like Vegetarian Spring Rolls, Vietnamese Grilled Pork Skewers or Seafood Rolls.

Little do they know, despite all the marvellous noodle soups they make, my guiltiest pleasure is still a hearty plate of Char Siu Noodles.

It’s one of those culinary wonders that your food-loving subconscious will drag out from a childhood memory bank and demand to be made again.

You’ll get to enjoy a variety of textures from juicy BBQ pork slices to crisp Asian greens. This dish comes exploding with bold flavors and there’s no saying where your noodle adventures will take you!

What exactly is lo mein?

‘Mein’ in Chinese simply means noodle. More specifically, it refers to EGG noodle made of eggs and wheat flour.

So the next time you’re at a Chinese restaurant and see or hear the dish being referred to as ‘mein’, you can be confident that you’re getting egg noodles.

But it doesn’t just end there!

‘Mein’ then gets further categorized into thin and thick noodles. I personally prefer the thicker version for Char Siu Noodles because its width soaks up all the sauce and thinner ones to have with my Wonton Soup, but at the end of the day it’s up to what YOU like.

What’s the difference between lo mein and chow mein?

There is one thing they have in common: both use egg noodles as their base. The main difference, really, comes down to the cooking technique. 

‘Lo’ in lo mein refers to tossing. Think of those get-your-hands-in-and-mix type dishes, the ones where your hands are covered in sticky sauce afterwards.

The sauce tends to sit, then get absorbed into the noodle. This cooking process is a lot simpler and doesn’t involve heat. 

Chow mein, on the other hand, means to stir fry noodles. The ‘chow’ in chow mein translates to ‘stir fry’. If we put them together, you literally get stir fried noodles.

People who talk about ‘wok hei’ (or breath of the wok) are mainly referring to chow mein. It’s one of those dishes that tastes exponentially better with that smoky char you can only get with stir frying.

We use the tossing ‘lo’ technique for this Char Siu Noodles recipe, but at the end of the day, both are incredibly delicious and great fun for the family to eat!

Why this recipe works

• The sauce is cooked over a low heat to infuse all the flavors together so the taste is smooth and seamless.
• Cooking the Asian greens until they’re just cooked adds a crunchy texture.
• Using an ice bath keeps the noodles springy and fresh.

What you’ll need

For the toppings

About the ingredients

The best part about making homemade lo mein is that you can use whichever vegetables you like. We opted for choy sum, but there are many other options including bok choy, Chinese broccoli, carrots, snow peas and sugar snap peas.

We got our BBQ Pork from the local Chinese BBQ shop, but if that’s not available then you can make your own using the recipe from The Woks Of Life. Alternatively, you can skip it and make the dish vegetarian using mushrooms or tofu.

For the sauce

About the sauces

We get all the sauces from Asian supermarkets. The main sauce is oyster sauce, but if you can’t find any or would like to make it vegetarian, you can use an oyster sauce substitute.

How to make this recipe

For the mein

Divide the bag of noodles into halves or thirds, then start the process of boiling a pot of water while you microwave the noodles for 1 minute and 30 seconds on one side.

Take it out of the microwave and flip it over, then repeat the microwaving for another minute and a half.

Pro Tip: Use a large plate so you can spread the strands out flat.

Put the microwaved noodles into the boiling pot of water to cook for 2 minutes or until just under al dente.

Meanwhile, set up an ice bath in a large bowl or in the sink. 

Transfer the noodles into a colander with cold water running.

As soon as each strand is cool to touch, put them into the ice bath. After a minute, take the noodles out to strain in a colander.

Repeat these steps to cook the rest of the noodles.

Pro Tip: Drizzle some sesame oil over the noodles and mix it in to stop any clumping.

For the omelette and BBQ pork

Lightly beat the eggs with the chicken bouillon powder fish sauce until combined.

Add 1 tbsp cooking oil into a hot pan and turn the heat to medium.

Pour in some of the egg mix and swirl it around until there is a thin layer across the pan’s surface. Keep it on medium heat until the egg is no longer runny.

Pro Tip: Use a soup ladle to ensure they’re all roughly the same size each time.

Use a spatula or chopsticks to fold the egg crepe onto itself from either side.

Plate the cooked egg crepe then repeat until all the mixture is done.

Thinly slice the egg crepe and BBQ pork.

For the greens

Heat up a wok or pan and add 2 tbsp cooking oil. On a high heat, stir fry the stems for 3 minutes with 1/2 tsp chicken bouillon powder.

After that, add the leaves in along with 1/2 tsp chicken bouillon powder and cook for another 2 minutes or until just cooked. As soon as the greens are cooked, plate it.

Making the sauce

In a bowl, combine the oyster sauce, light soy sauce, chicken bouillon powder, sugar and sesame oil.

Heat up a wok or small pot with 1 tbsp of cooking oil, then pour the mixed sauce in and simmer for 2-3 minutes or until the sugar has dissolved.

Putting it all together

In a large mixing bowl, put the mein and sauce in. Mix everything until well combined.

Add in the BBQ pork, egg, choy sum and fried onion, then toss until well incorporated.

Enjoy as is, or if you like it with a spicy kick, drizzle on some Sichuan Garlic Chili Oil or Lemongrass Chili Sauce!

Recipe FAQs

Tips for the best results

• Use a flat wok or pan to cook the omelette. Doing so helps to keep the omelette flat and even.
• Mix the sauce in just before serving. This will prevent the ingredients from getting soggy.
• Mix the Char Siu Noodles in smaller batches. Instead of dumping everything together, separate them into smaller parts so everything can be evenly coated in sauce. It’s also easier to toss together.

More of our favorite noodle recipes!

• Crispy Egg Noodles with Seafood (海鲜炒面)
• E-Fu Noodles with Roast Duck
• Bun Chay (Vegetarian Noodle Salad)
• Bun Thit Nuong (Grilled Pork Noodle Salad)
• Vietnamese Rice Paper Rolls (Gỏi Cuốn)

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This post was originally published on 06/08/19 and updated with tips and FAQs in April 2021.

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