THE SECRETS FOR MAKING RESTAURANT QUALITY BEEF CHOW FUN

The secret to making restaurant quality beef chow fun is not in the ingredients. Nothing to do with the sauce or having a special cooking technique that requires dancing under a full moon. Nor is it in having soy sauce made by virgins born in April.

To make beef chow fun or ho fun noodles taste the same (or almost) as your favorite Chinese take out restaurant is all in the heat.

The all important fire. 

In Chinese cooking vernacular we have a specific word, a cooking technique called “Wok Hei” and it sounds mystical and far east but it’s not at all.

Wok hei means “breath of the wok” and by breath it means the high heat and flames burst forth out of restaurant quality hobs.

At home we don’t have kitchen stoves that spit out an enormous amount of fire. I don’t think your home insurance would cover it.

But what you can do is turn up the fire on your gas stove or induction stovetop to the highest temperature possible. And cooking your beef chow fun a little bit longer.

You’re looking for a bit of char or slight burn on your chow fun noodles. But you have to be mindful not to burn your ingredients while you cook.

This might take some practice to achieve at your home kitchen. But good food is worth the effort!

Ingredients:

  • 500 grams flat rice noodles (ho fun)
  • 1½ cup bean sprouts
  • 2 stems Chinese chives
  • ¼ yellow onion

For beef marinade:

  • 150 grams topside beef
  • 1 tablespoon soy sauce
  • 2 teaspoon Chinese cooking wine
  • 1 teaspoon pure sesame oil
  • Dash of ground white pepper
  • ½ teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 tablespoon cornflour (a.k.a. cornstarch)
  • 2 tablespoon water
  • 1 tablespoon oil

Let beef marinade for 5 minutes.

Chow fun sauce:

  • 2 tablespoon light soy sauce
  • 1 tablespoon dark soy sauce
  • 1 tablespoon oyster sauce

​Mix all in a bowl and set aside.

Cooking Instructions

Add 1 tablespoon vegetable oil to hot pan on medium high heat. Add beef and cook until medium rare. Remove and set aside.

This is where we start cooking the noodles. You need to have a high a heat as possible. Gather all your ingredients get ready to add them as the cooking should be fast.

Add a tablespoon of oil followed by the noodles. Move the noodles around so it won’t burn. Some of your noodles will develop brown and black marks and shrink a little. Cook for another minute then add the onions and bean sprouts.

Continue cooking for another minute or so until the onions start to look transparent. Add sauce, then beef. Continue stirring until all the ingredients are coated with the sauce.

​Then throw in Chinese Chives and cook for another minute. Dish and enjoy!