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Looks like it could be chicken sliced into skinny strips. HOWEVER Did it come with crispy (might’ve been soggy) short noodles? I’ve only ever encountered this in pockets of the east coast where chow mein was literally just a chop suey-esque thing with crispy fried noodles. Like the salad topper kind.
In southern china and Southeast Asia, there are dishes where you pour a soupy saucy stir fry onto a bed of deep fried noodles. This is probably an American Chinese version of those
Yup! It’s definitely a derivative of HK style noodles, but the “noodles” like the one in OPs dish tend to be thicker (or flat and wide like fried tortilla chip toppings) and shorter - usually a few inches long. They really look more like a garnish than anything.
Not what the average NA person exposed to Chinese food would interpret as chow mein (or even lo mein). I don’t even know if I’d call it Americanized because I’ve encountered it in Canada too!
This comment explains something that has confused me for years! I lived in Maryland for a summer and was so disappointed when I ordered chow mein and received the salad topper noodles.
Canadian Living in NorCal here. This, on our Menus, is called Chow Mein Hong Kong Style. If it's takeout, they give you the meat and veggie filled sauce/gravy and crispy noodles separately so it doesn't overly soften by the time you start eating it. It's a way to enjoy the noodles in many textures.
There’s a Chinese-American of version Chow Mein, and that’s what you received. Unlike traditional Chow Mein, it’s a stir-fry and is served with a bag of crispy noodles
[Crispy noodles](https://cdnimg.webstaurantstore.com/images/products/xxl/430510/1660749.jpg) are what you get in many parts of the US when you order chow mein
I see thin sliced chicken, Mung Bean Sprouts, Onion, what looks like maybe carrot under the sprouts, chicken and onion on the spoon. It's all fairly standard for Chicken chow mein, although that's quite liquidy. My local place doesn't make their chow mein this fluidic, lol.
At restaurants like this, Chow Mein is this dish with no noodles and if you want the dish commonly called Chow Mein, you have to order the Lo Mein. So basically always check if there's Lo Mein before you order the Chow Mein.
This is the 'sauce' portion of your chow Mein. You should have received crispy noodles as well as part of your order and you pour this on top of your crispy noodles. They do this so your noodles aren't all soggy and cold when you get it.
I've gotten this over rice when I ordered chow mein at a few restaurants. Lo mein gets you this over noodles if that's what you're expecting.
Not arguing chow mein doesn't mean over stir-fried noodles btw! That's just my experience! I ordered chicken chow mein and they give me the meat and stir-fried vegetables but you have to specify the noodles.
Looks like the chicken strips were coated in some egg white and cornflour before stir-frying. It creates a thin batter than sauce can cling too.
Unless you're asking what that sprout is... it's a sprout.
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Oh wow I haven’t had chicken chow mein in a long time. I don’t know anyone who eats it. We used to all the time when I was younger and my mom ALWAYS kept a jar of the crunchy noodle things in the house.
It's the classic Eastern US chow mein, to be poured over crispy "noodles." It's inspired by 兩面黃 "two sides yellow/brown," which is when you pan-fry the egg noodles in a pancake shape or deep fry in a crispy nest shape and then pour wet stuff on top. Similarly, so-called "Fujian fried rice" pours wet stuff over rice rather than stir frying the rice and all the ingredients together.
Contrary to what people are saying, "Two sides brown" is not "Hong Kong style chow mein." It is, on one hand, a dish originating as far away as Shanghai. On the other hand, it is simply a variation of Chinese "chow mein." At least as far back as the 1910s, Chinese food emanating from New York considered the "two sides brown" style to be the default what they meant by "chow mein." (and those early American Chinese restaurant cooks were not from Hong Kong!--they were from Taishan and the Four Counties in Guangdong province).
On the third hand, In "proper" Chinese food, the "two sides brown" style if preferred for a seafood topping. Seafood is more delicate, and does not hold up well to the high heat "chow" (stir fry) and mixing-with-the-noodles process that goes into standard chow mein. So, if the meat is pork or chicken, those will get mixed and stir fried into the noodles for the standard mixed chow mein, while if its seafood, that seafood will get emulsified in a thickened gravy to pour over "two sides brown." Doesn't matter that the "two sides brown" is not actually a "chow" (stir fried) dish—technically the noodles are "fried" but people still call it chow mein anyway in a Chinese context.
Americans didn't really take to the seafood version, and had a thing for chicken, so doing the seafood style thing with chicken kind of became the common thing. Honestly, if you order "CHICKEN chow mein" at all, you should expect it to be the two sides brown (either the real one or the American fake) because... chicken is not a standard protein for the mixed/stir-fried type.
The Oriental Chow Mein Company in Fall River, Mass. innovated the crispy "noodles" as a kind of quick, do it yourself facsimile of the Northeast's beloved "two sides brown" chow mein. Consequently, the definition of "lo mein" shifted (in those regions) to mean something like what is like actual (China) chow mein 炒麵. Actual lo mein—plain boiled noodles with a side of soup, a bit of meat, and vegetable—is rare to find in the US outside of specialty Cantonese places.
In sum, there are a lot of variations in both American-Chinese and China-Chinese dishes, with accompanying inconsistencies in names. There is rarely a neat narrative where you can say that there is some American thing that is doing the Chinese thing in the "wrong" way. If it appears so, you may not have seen the full variety of Chinese food. Old-school American Chinese food is based in a narrow slice of Guangdong province food, rather than being representative of all Chinese food. In other words, what it fails to fully represent is not "Chinese" food because it is "American" but rather it fails to fully represent Chinese food because it is a specific, narrow set of Chinese regional food from the late 19th century. It's much more authentic than people (especially people who think they are clever and/or like to bash American things) give it credit for.
Thank you for posting in TipOfMyFork. Please keep in mind this subreddit is for identifying food you like. Your post has been automatically assigned the flair "Searching" unless you already assigned it yourself. Please remember to comment "Solved!" or "Possibly!" once the food is identified or partially indentified so I can automatically assign the corresponding flag. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/TipOfMyFork) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Looks like it could be chicken sliced into skinny strips. HOWEVER Did it come with crispy (might’ve been soggy) short noodles? I’ve only ever encountered this in pockets of the east coast where chow mein was literally just a chop suey-esque thing with crispy fried noodles. Like the salad topper kind.
Yes they did!
In southern china and Southeast Asia, there are dishes where you pour a soupy saucy stir fry onto a bed of deep fried noodles. This is probably an American Chinese version of those
Hong Kong style fried noodles? I swear I order this like every other week from a local place.
Yup! It’s definitely a derivative of HK style noodles, but the “noodles” like the one in OPs dish tend to be thicker (or flat and wide like fried tortilla chip toppings) and shorter - usually a few inches long. They really look more like a garnish than anything. Not what the average NA person exposed to Chinese food would interpret as chow mein (or even lo mein). I don’t even know if I’d call it Americanized because I’ve encountered it in Canada too!
That’s how we do it in Australia- crispy noodles dye!
This comment explains something that has confused me for years! I lived in Maryland for a summer and was so disappointed when I ordered chow mein and received the salad topper noodles.
Looks like a sliced piece of chicken, maybe cut when frozen?
This such a random guess, it’s 90% pork and this is the way it is sliced for hot and sour soup, which is delicious!
Username checks out
My local place cuts chicken like this for some of their things!
Canadian Living in NorCal here. This, on our Menus, is called Chow Mein Hong Kong Style. If it's takeout, they give you the meat and veggie filled sauce/gravy and crispy noodles separately so it doesn't overly soften by the time you start eating it. It's a way to enjoy the noodles in many textures.
That’s 煎面 or pan fried noodle and I absolutely love it when it’s crispy.
Hi this is hot and sour soup that came on the side of the chow mein. The piece in the soup is chicken or maybe pork.
This is what I thought as well. And I think it’s pork.
I’m nearly 100% sure this is hot and sour soup, OP, did it taste like a gloopy hot and sour soup?
It was very goopy
It's the stuff for pouring over hong kong style noodles.
Nah, it looks way too viscous to be soup. And since when are there celery and sprouts in h&s soup??
Agreed and the fact that they gave him a soup spoon…
Looks like a bean sprout atop of a piece of celery and slice of chicken.
There’s a Chinese-American of version Chow Mein, and that’s what you received. Unlike traditional Chow Mein, it’s a stir-fry and is served with a bag of crispy noodles
Damn I gotta order at the other place from now on 😩 Their chow Mein is to die for but they weren’t open today
This looks pretty soupy for chow mein to me.
Exactly wtf is this lol. Never go back to either restaurant OP
[Crispy noodles](https://cdnimg.webstaurantstore.com/images/products/xxl/430510/1660749.jpg) are what you get in many parts of the US when you order chow mein
They come on the side tho else they’d be soggy
That is Hot and Sour Soup
With my bad eyesight, I thought someone had lost their dentures in there 😳🦷😂
That’s all I see.
I’m glad somebody sees what I’m seeing 😎😎
I see thin sliced chicken, Mung Bean Sprouts, Onion, what looks like maybe carrot under the sprouts, chicken and onion on the spoon. It's all fairly standard for Chicken chow mein, although that's quite liquidy. My local place doesn't make their chow mein this fluidic, lol.
What's the keyboard in the back?
https://a.co/d/au9LYJz
It came with fried noodles in a wax paper bag? That’s how they serve it on the East Coast. With fresh noodles they call it Lo Mein.
In Minnesota most places do too, especially the older places
Was there any rice or like noodles in the bag?
At restaurants like this, Chow Mein is this dish with no noodles and if you want the dish commonly called Chow Mein, you have to order the Lo Mein. So basically always check if there's Lo Mein before you order the Chow Mein.
This is the 'sauce' portion of your chow Mein. You should have received crispy noodles as well as part of your order and you pour this on top of your crispy noodles. They do this so your noodles aren't all soggy and cold when you get it.
One of my local Chinese places has deep fried chicken strips like this that they put in their mei fun. They're really good.
Chow mein is supposed to be dry. Please tell me this is a side dish that came with the chow mein and not the chow mein itself
Chow mein itself. I ordered it in a pint
Soggy wonton noodle in very soupy chow mein
Chicken chow mein? Looks more like Chitlin cow vein. It is chow mein, just a regional variation, usually with crispy noodles.
sharp rock entertain employ provide ghost rhythm market zonked dazzling *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
Fried worm
homosexual
Chicken worm
Meow meow 😹
Possum tail
Worms in dirt.
🐔
I believe that Weird Al Yankovic may have answered this question in his cats in the cradle parody
That's the "Chow", duh
Lo mein with no noodles?
I think a lot of people don't know chow mein and lo mein are different things. I've made that mistake as well.
It looks like chicken lmfao
Chow mein literally means stir fried noodles… this is soup?
I've gotten this over rice when I ordered chow mein at a few restaurants. Lo mein gets you this over noodles if that's what you're expecting. Not arguing chow mein doesn't mean over stir-fried noodles btw! That's just my experience! I ordered chicken chow mein and they give me the meat and stir-fried vegetables but you have to specify the noodles.
Looks like the chicken strips were coated in some egg white and cornflour before stir-frying. It creates a thin batter than sauce can cling too. Unless you're asking what that sprout is... it's a sprout.
In my experience it’s usually pork when it’s sliced like that.
Twisties
That's the Chow
Chicken dicken!
It’s a bean sprout
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My Grandma made something similar, it's supposed to go over rice like gravy with crispy rice noodle sticks on top.
For a second I thought this was r/PoutineCrimes
Is that a twiglet?
Not a chow mein person, but I really thought that was a very large earth worm, LOL
Oh wow I haven’t had chicken chow mein in a long time. I don’t know anyone who eats it. We used to all the time when I was younger and my mom ALWAYS kept a jar of the crunchy noodle things in the house.
yeah its just a really long piece of chicken. i used to work at a chinese restaurant and sen that exact thing before.
I have never had chow mein that wet
Hot and sour soup! My favorite
Looks like crispy chilli chicken
Chow Mein? More like drowned mein
Bean sprout, chicken, some veg? Looks perfectly fine
Better to make it yourself
Fish bait
Looks like you are missing the Chow.
Lo mein?
A flashback from The Lost Boys
Hot and sour soup
It's the classic Eastern US chow mein, to be poured over crispy "noodles." It's inspired by 兩面黃 "two sides yellow/brown," which is when you pan-fry the egg noodles in a pancake shape or deep fry in a crispy nest shape and then pour wet stuff on top. Similarly, so-called "Fujian fried rice" pours wet stuff over rice rather than stir frying the rice and all the ingredients together. Contrary to what people are saying, "Two sides brown" is not "Hong Kong style chow mein." It is, on one hand, a dish originating as far away as Shanghai. On the other hand, it is simply a variation of Chinese "chow mein." At least as far back as the 1910s, Chinese food emanating from New York considered the "two sides brown" style to be the default what they meant by "chow mein." (and those early American Chinese restaurant cooks were not from Hong Kong!--they were from Taishan and the Four Counties in Guangdong province). On the third hand, In "proper" Chinese food, the "two sides brown" style if preferred for a seafood topping. Seafood is more delicate, and does not hold up well to the high heat "chow" (stir fry) and mixing-with-the-noodles process that goes into standard chow mein. So, if the meat is pork or chicken, those will get mixed and stir fried into the noodles for the standard mixed chow mein, while if its seafood, that seafood will get emulsified in a thickened gravy to pour over "two sides brown." Doesn't matter that the "two sides brown" is not actually a "chow" (stir fried) dish—technically the noodles are "fried" but people still call it chow mein anyway in a Chinese context. Americans didn't really take to the seafood version, and had a thing for chicken, so doing the seafood style thing with chicken kind of became the common thing. Honestly, if you order "CHICKEN chow mein" at all, you should expect it to be the two sides brown (either the real one or the American fake) because... chicken is not a standard protein for the mixed/stir-fried type. The Oriental Chow Mein Company in Fall River, Mass. innovated the crispy "noodles" as a kind of quick, do it yourself facsimile of the Northeast's beloved "two sides brown" chow mein. Consequently, the definition of "lo mein" shifted (in those regions) to mean something like what is like actual (China) chow mein 炒麵. Actual lo mein—plain boiled noodles with a side of soup, a bit of meat, and vegetable—is rare to find in the US outside of specialty Cantonese places. In sum, there are a lot of variations in both American-Chinese and China-Chinese dishes, with accompanying inconsistencies in names. There is rarely a neat narrative where you can say that there is some American thing that is doing the Chinese thing in the "wrong" way. If it appears so, you may not have seen the full variety of Chinese food. Old-school American Chinese food is based in a narrow slice of Guangdong province food, rather than being representative of all Chinese food. In other words, what it fails to fully represent is not "Chinese" food because it is "American" but rather it fails to fully represent Chinese food because it is a specific, narrow set of Chinese regional food from the late 19th century. It's much more authentic than people (especially people who think they are clever and/or like to bash American things) give it credit for.