Homemade Chinese - Lo Mein

Here is another favorite Chinese dish that we typically have on Christmas Eve (although this past year we ended up doing the Sesame Noodles instead). I actually make this for dinner quite often throughout the year because it is easy to make and everyone loves it. It makes quite a bit so perfect if you are feeding a crowd. If you aren't feeding a crowd you can definitely half this recipe, I do it all the time. This recipe is from Rachael Ray and I make it pretty close to the original recipe. You can use any combination of veggies you like and can add chicken if you want. Having a large wok is pretty essential to Chinese cooking. I love my Joyce Chen wok, which came from my mom, who got it back in the 80s. It still works great.

No-Pain Lo Mein
recipe from Rachael Ray

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons vegetable or canola oil
1 cup snow peas, halved on a diagonal
1 large carrot, peeled and sliced thinly on an angle
1 red bell pepper, seeded and cut into match stick size pieces
1/2 pound sliced mushrooms (I like to use baby bella but white mushrooms are fine too)
2-4 scallions, thinly sliced on a diagonal
1 cup fresh bean spouts
2 inches fresh ginger root, minced or grated with hand grater
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
1 pound thin spaghetti, cooked to al dente and drained well
1/2 cup tamari soy sauce
1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil, several drops

Directions:
Heat a wok or large non-stick skillet over high heat. When pan is very hot, add oil, (it will smoke a bit) then, immediately add the snow peas, carrot, pepper, mushrooms, scallions, and bean sprouts. Stir fry for 2 minutes to flavor the oil, then add the ginger and garlic, and stir-fry 3-4 minutes. Add the cooked noodles and toss with to combine. Add the soy sauce and toss the ingredients to coat noodles evenly with sauce. Transfer the lo mein to a serving platter and garnish with a drizzle of toasted sesame oil.
Using tamari, aged soy sauce, really heightens the flavor of this dish since the noodles are the main ingredient. You can find it (and sesame oil) in the ethnic food aisle of your grocery store. I have made this with regular soy sauce though too, and it is still great.

Enjoy!