This Is The Secret To Perfecting Takeout Style Chow Mein At Home

If chow mein is one of your favorite dishes to get for takeout, then you may have tried making it yourself at home — only to find that it isn't nearly as good as when you get it from your favorite Chinese restaurant. To find out all of the tips and tricks for making takeout style chow mein at home, Daily Meal spoke with an expert: Rich Wang, the founder and executive chef at Minyoli, a Taiwanese noodle shop in Chicago. He's also a certified noodle artisan who learned the art of hand-pulled noodles in Lao Zhou, China.

Wang says, "Chow-mein means 'stir-fried noodles' in Chinese. The secret to making restaurant level chow mein is to use a well-seasoned wok or pan that is capable of high heat cooking. Cast iron is the best." In fact, the stir-fry element is the main detail that differentiates chow mein from lo mein, another popular noodle dish, which is tossed instead of fried.

The chef continues, "Cooking on high heat gives chow mein that toasty 'wok-hei' aroma that regular non-stick saute pans won't be able to achieve." The Cantonese phrase, "wok-hei" translates to "breath of the wok" and represents the indefinable quality of a perfect wok aroma. Essentially, the term refers to the specific smokiness and strong umami nature of a dish that's a result of it being cooked in the wok.

In addition to using the right pan, there are other tips that you can keep in mind when making chow mein at home to ensure that it's as close to takeout quality as possible. For one, use the right noodles. Chef Rich Wang told Daily Meal he recommends alkaline or egg noodles "to prevent sticking." If you're feeling ambitious, you can even make egg noodles from scratch with our recipe.

Wang also told us to be sure to use a seasoned wok or pan. If you're unfamiliar, the process of seasoning a wok refers to creating a protective layer to ensure that the pan's surface remains nonstick, as well as imparting a smoky element to the flavor of whatever dish you're cooking. Not seasoning your wok is actually one of the most common wok mistakes that everyone makes. And if you're working with a pan instead of a wok, you should be sure to season your cast iron pan as well.

With a well-seasoned pan or wok, you can take chef Wang's advice to cook your chow mein on very high heat. And for an extra boost of flavor, Wang says "Use minced ginger and minced garlic to impart an allium aroma." Additionally, he advises us to be careful with any acid in the recipe, explaining, "If there is acid in your recipe (such as vinegar or citrus), you should add that towards the end of the cooking process because acid tends to break the non-stick season of the wok and make stir-frying more challenging."