Chicken chow mein is probably already one of your favorite Chinese takeout dishes. This one-pan dinner is so satisfying with chicken, vegetables, classic chow mein noodles, and the best homemade chow mein sauce. Also, it’s way healthier than ordering takeout.
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I can’t wait to share this recipe for chicken chow mein with you because it hits all the marks!
Chicken Chow Mein
Chow mein is a traditional Chinese dish made with egg noodles and stir-fried veggies. We love adding a protein and our favorite is chicken, but you can try different meat or tofu. This dish is pan-fried so the noodles get a nice crisp to them and then tossed in a yummy sauce. Chow mein is perfect for those nights when you don’t want to dirty too many pans or make a big mess of the kitchen.
Chow mein gets its signature flavor from the thick, dark homemade sauce the noodles are tossed with. It’s the perfect balance of sweet and salty and makes putting down your chopsticks absolutely impossible.
Ingredients for Chow Mein:
- Chow Mein Noodles: Chow mein noodles are made with wheat and egg. They are very similar to Italian pasta noodles and have a wonderful bite to them. Most grocery stores carry dry chow mein noodles in the Asian aisle. But, if you are lucky, you will find pre-cooked chow mein noodles in the refrigerated section that can be thrown straight into your pan.
- Vegetables: Carrots, cabbage, green onions, and bean sprouts are the perfect combination of veggies to use for chow mein. However, they can easily be replaced with other veggies like bok choy, celery, broccoli, spinach, kale or baby corn. Feel free to get creative and use what you like or whatever you have hanging around in your fridge!
- Meats: Great quality chicken breasts are your best bet for slicing into chow mein-ready strips. If you like, feel free to swap chicken out for beef, shrimp or pork.
- Hot tip: Hosting vegetarians also? Use vegetable broth and set some of your noodles aside to toss them with cubes of baked tofu.
The BEST Chow Mein Sauce:
The homemade chow mein sauce is amazing in this recipe! Combine soy sauce, light sesame oil, oyster sauce, granulated sugar, cornstarch, and chicken broth to make the signature sweet and savory sauce that makes chow mein taste authentic.
How to Make Chow Mein:
- In a small mixing bowl, combine ingredients for chow mein sauce: oyster sauce, sesame oil, soy sauce, chicken broth, and cornstarch. Set aside.
- Cook noodles according to package instructions, set aside.
- Heat a large wok or pan. Add a bit of oil to the pan and cook chicken until it’s golden brown. Remove chicken and set aside.
- Add carrots, cabbage and pressed garlic and saute for a few minutes until veggies are slightly softened.
- Add chicken back to the pan, followed by cooked noodles and pour the sauce right on top. Cook for about 2 minutes, distributing all that saucy goodness around evenly.
- Add chopped green onions and remove from the heat. Serve hot!
We love recreating popular takeout recipes. Noodles are king in Chinese cooking! This Homemade Chow Mein Recipe is simple to make and oh-so-satisfying, these stir-fried noodles are sure to become a part of your weeknight dinner rotation.
More Quick Asian Recipes
- Chicken Stir Fry with Rice Noodles – Make this amazing dinner in just 30 minutes!
- Chicken Stir Fry– so much better than takeout.
- Beef Stir Fry Recipe with 3 Ingredient Sauce– So Easy- perfect weeknight dinner.
- Korean Stir-Fried Glass Noodles a.k.a Japchae– You will be going for seconds!
- Yakisoba Noodles Recipe– A Classic Yakisoba, made in one pan
Chicken Chow Mein with the Best Chow Mein Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 lb chicken breast, boneless, skinless
- 3 Tbsp oil
- 12 oz chow mein noodles, (uncooked noodles)
- 2 cups cabbage
- 1 large carrot, julienned
- 1/2 batch green onions
- 2 garlic cloves
Chow Mein Sauce
- 4 Tbsp oyster sauce, or added to taste*
- 3 Tbsp low sodium soy sauce
- 3 Tbsp light sesame oil, (not toasted)
- 1/2 cup chicken broth
- 1 Tbsp corn starch
- 1 Tbsp granulated sugar
Instructions
- In a small mixing bowl, use a whisk to combine oyster sauce, granulated sugar, sesame oil, soy sauce, chicken broth and cornstarch. Set aside.
- Cook your noodles according to package instructions then drain, rinse with cold water and set aside.
- Heat a large wok or pan with olive oil over medium-heat. Cut your chicken breasts into bite-sized strips and cook them in the oil until golden brown. Remove strips and set aside.
- Add carrots, cabbage and pressed garlic and saute for a few minutes until veggies are slightly softened and the cabbage is a bit translucent.
- Add chicken and noodles back into the pan. Pour sauce over the top and continue cooking all the ingredients together for another 2 minutes.
- Garnish your chow mein with chopped green onions and serve the noodles straight from the pan and piping hot!
Notes
*Oyster sauce can vary in salt content and if you use regular soy sauce rather than reduced, you will want to adjust the oyster sauce to taste.
Nutrition Per Serving
Filed Under
If you make this recipe, I’d love to see pics of your creations on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter! Hashtag them #natashaskitchen
Hi! I’m Natasha Kravchuk, a New York Times bestselling cookbook author, recipe developer, food photographer, and writer. Here you’ll find delicious, reliable recipes made with simple ingredients, plus easy step-by-step photos and videos to help you cook confidently at home. 
I made this recipe this evening. It is so delicious!
I used pork instead of chicken since it was already defrosted.
I did cut back the Sesame Oil by 1 tablespoon as it can be overpowering to me.
In the future, I’ll add more of the cabbage and carrots.
Sounds great, Kobey! I’m glad you enjoyed it!
Love this recipe! Can I freeze it? I’d like to cook it ahead of time.
Hi Sharon! I haven’t tried freezing this to advise.I think you can. Some noodles freeze better than others so you can experiment with a smaller batch to see if it works well. The noodles will absorb some of the moisture from the sauce, if they are dry, you can add more sauce as needed when you reheat it.
What can I use instead of oyster sauce, I have a shellfish allergy.
Hi Marcia, the oyster sauce will give you the most authentic flavor, but most people would substitute oyster sauce with soy sauce (to taste) if the oyster sauce is left out. You can also mix equal parts of soy sauce and hoisin sauce to get that sweet and salty flavor you are looking for here. I hope this helps!
I used beef instead of chicken with angel hair pasta. It was insanely good. We all agree it needs to be in meal circulation! The only other thing I’d do is cut back on the amount of oil. It was a bit oily but delicious.
Hi Lori, thanks a lot for your comments and feedback. Great to hear that you enjoyed it with beef too!
Delicious!! The recipe is so organized and simple to follow. I added bean sprouts too. Will definitely be making this again!
Hi Judy! I’m so glad you loved it.
I liked the recipe but not the sauce. Next timeI make it I will adjust the sauce. I think it was the sesame oil. At the time I was making it I thought 3 Tbsp was too much but followed it anyways. My husband loved it.
This is the best dinner recipe. I have modified a little according to my style. Love it
No worries and thank you for your great comments and review!
This has become one of my dinner staples – so tasty! Have modified a bit. Since I’m making for 2 people I half the recipe except for cabbage and sauce. The crunch from the cabbage is amazing so if you’re making the full recipe, double it. I also make all the sauce as there are leftovers and next day I add sauce when reheating. Tonight’s new modification – I made with shrimp – delicious! Also added a bit of sriracha for heat. Love love love this recipe!
Hello Cindy, thank you for your good comments and suggestion. We appreciate it and we’re so glad that you enjoyed the recipe too!
Have made this several times and we love it. The sauce is the best! I wonder if I could prepare it early in the day, refrigerate it and reheat for dinner. Having guests and don’t want to be in the kitchen cooking.
Hi Alice, yes, you can make this ahead and reheat it. The noodles will absorb some of the moisture from the sauce, if they are dry, you can add more as needed.
Hi Natasha, this recipe looks delicious. Can I use any other noodles instead of Chow Mein Noodles? Im having hard time finding chow Mein. Thanks
Hi Lydia, chow mein are really the best for this recipe but substitutions may work. Also, if you are lucky, you will find pre-cooked chow mein noodles in the refrigerated section that can be thrown straight into your pan. I also have them linked on the ingredient list where you can purchase them on Amazon. I hope that helps.
Very delicious! I added a little chili sesame oil for some heat and I added a can of bean sprouts. Other than that, perfect! Next time I might add celery and red peppers.
Sounds great! We’re glad to hera that you loved this recipe.
Fantastic sauce and a quick meal. I added 1/2 C. each slivered onion, diagonally-sliced celery and broccoli florets and, right before it was done, I added a 14 oz. can drained bean sprouts.
Sounds wonderful! Thank you for sharing.
Hello Natalya! One of my grandsons’ had to do an Asian dish for his assignment in 8th grade. He decided to try this recipe, and we went to the store, got the ingredients, and made it together. We had so much fun he has decided he wants to learn more about cooking. I am originally from the south, and learned a great deal of southern cooking, and I’m hoping to continue the tradition of passing on recipes. Thank you so much for the recipe. It was terrific! I am hoping he saved a pic of the finished product just so I can post it!
Aww, that’s the best! Thank you so much for sharing that with me. I’m all smiles
Just made this recipe using low calorie Shirataki noodles and it still tasted great! Thank you for the recipe! 🙂
You’re welcome! I’m so happy you enjoyed it, Nami!
Great recipe. I followed the recipe except added sliced yellow onion. From the first bite, it tasted like the best Chinese takeout I can imagine.
Hello Warren, thanks for following the recipe exactly as written. Great to hear that you enjoyed it!
Absolutely delicious. I always use shrimp instead of chicken and the recipe comes out wonderful every time.
Great to hear that this works so well with shrimps too!
Great recipe. We used this on spaghetti squash instead of the noodles and it was fantastic! Great low carb meal with this substitute. Only other change was I added mushrooms and used a bag of coleslaw mix. It was an easy weeknight dinner.
Sounds great! I’m glad that you enjoyed it.
What light sesame oil ( not toasted) do you use. I have not found any
Hi Mirian. Any brand will do. You often find them in the Asian aisle of the grocery store or at Asian markets. You could also order it from Amazon if you have trouble finding this where you live.
Another great recipe from Natasha! I followed it pretty closely. Just added in some julienne cut red bell pepper with the carrot and some fresh bean sprouts at the very end. Kept the sauce the same as written. I used boneless skinless chicken thighs because they were on sale. And this recipe just came out great!! My family loved it and some were vying for the leftovers to take for lunch tomorrow! I was able to find cooked chow mein noodles in a refrigerated section of our grocery store. And they worked great. Although we have an extensive Asian section in our grocery store (in California) but the packets of dried chow mein noodles looked too thin, like top ramen noodles) so I bought the cooked noodles and the were the perfect thickness and texture! I served this with some potstickers from Trader Joe’s and some fresh pineapple. And offered Asian Chile paste and sriracha at the table for anyone who wanted more kick. I wish I could post a picture here of how good it looked! (I’m not on social media anymore so those aren’t options) but the recipe gets an A+ from this chef!! Thank you for sharing it!
Hi Paulette, thanks so much for sharing your experience trying out our recipe. I’m so glad that you loved it! Feel free to share some photos of your cooking creation on our Facebook page or group so others can see them too and become inspired!
Sounds awesome. This recipe does too. I will be also be adding bean sprouts and using toasted sesame oil and adding mushrooms, juilliene carrots , naptha cabbage green onions and using chicken thigh pieces.What I’m looking for is a really good chow mein sauce. I’m hoping this is it.
What are chow mein noodles? What do they look like. Sorry. It’s been some time since I cooked or shopped so I’m not sure if I can get them where I live.
Hi! Please refer to the images above in the blog post. You can see what mine looked like. You can find them in Asian markets or the Asian food aisle at the grocery store if you have this available.