This Lo Mein Noodles recipe is easy to make in just 15 minutes with simple ingredients. It's so easy to customize however you'd like with vegetables and spices. And yes, it's better than take-out!
Lo Mein Noodles Recipe
If you are a lover of Chinese food, you need a great lo mein recipe in your life! Lo mein is a traditional Chinese dish made with egg noodles that are stir fried with other ingredients.
You may have enjoyed lo mein at your local Chinese restaurant or take-out. The name means "stirred noodles," and there are numerous ways to make it. You can easily incorporate all sorts of different vegetables and meats into your stir fried noodles.
I love chicken or shrimp lo mein noodles, but you can use other meats, like seafood, pork, beef brisket, even bacon for a quick and easy American version. It's so easy to customize, you can make this lo mein recipe your own.
Lo mein is not traditionally spicy, though this recipe incorporates sriracha for a bit of a kick to it. You can add in other spicy elements to satisfy the spicy food crave in you.
It's also quick to prepare. You can have it on the table in 30 minutes or less, including prep time. That is huge for a slow cook like me.
Lo Mein Noodles Ingredients
For the sauce:
- Dark AND Light Soy Sauces - You can use one or the other, but I like the combination.
- Oyster Sauce - For a punch of umami.
- Sesame Oil - You'll need this for cooking and for the sauce.
- Sugar - Or use honey, for a touch of optional sweet.
- Ground Ginger - You can also use fresh.
- Sriracha - Add to your own personal taste. I like mine extra spicy.
For the noodles:
- Sesame Oil
- Shrimp - Peeled and deveined. Any size is good. Optional ingredient. You can skip it for a vegetable lo mein.
- Salt and Pepper - To taste.
- Napa Cabbage - You can use other cabbage as well.
- Bell Pepper - I like red bell peppers here, and often slip in spicier peppers for my own heat preference, like jalapeno or serrano.
- Cremini Mushrooms - Other mushrooms can be used as well.
- Carrot
- Snow Peas
- Bok Choy
- Garlic
- Lo Mein Noodles - You can often find noodles labeled as "lo mein noodles" in the grocery store, but if not, sub in long egg noodles. In a pinch, you can make lo mein with spaghetti noodles or similar.
- Garnish - I like sesame seeds and red chili flakes, though fresh thin sliced green onion or other green herbs are a nice addition.
How to Make Lo Mein Noodles
Make the lo mein sauce. Whisk together the dark and light soy sauce, oyster sauce, sesame oil, sugar or honey, ginger and sriracha in a small bowl until well combined. Taste and adjust to your flavor preferences. Set the sauce aside until ready to use.
Cook the shrimp. Heat 1 tsp sesame oil in a large wok or large pan to medium heat. Season the shrimp with salt and pepper and cook them 3-4 minutes, or until cooked through. Set them aside.
Stir fry the vegetables. Heat 1 tbsp sesame oil in the same wok to medium high heat. Add the cabbage, bell pepper, mushrooms and carrot. Cook for 5-6 minutes to soften. Add the snow peas, bok choy and garlic. Cook, stirring, 2-3 more minutes to soften.
Boil the lo mein noodles. While the vegetables are cooking, boil the lo mein noodles for 3-4 minutes, or until cooked to your liking. Drain. Check the packaging for instructions when cooking the noodles, as cooking times will vary depending on the product.
Combine the ingredients. Stir the prepared lo mein noodles, reserved shrimp and reserved lo mein sauce into the cooked veggies. Toss and stir until well coated and warmed through.
Serve. Garnish with sesame seeds and red chili flakes and serve.
Recipe Tips & Notes
- Vegetable lo mein. While chicken lo mein and shrimp lo mein are common dishes, vegetable lo mein is made for loading up with lots of different vegetables. I use a big variety in my recipe, though you can easily incorporate others. Some other favorites include bamboo shoots, bean sprouts, baby spinach, snow peas and others. Feel free to use your favorites and really make this recipe your own.
- The noodles. As mentioned, you can often find products listed as "lo mein noodles" in the international section of some grocery stores. However, if you are unable to find them, any long egg noodle will work for making lo mein. You can realistically use any noodles, like soba noodles or vermicelli, and achieve good results.
- Meat options. I'm using shrimp here, but chicken is very common, as are different cuts of pork. Consider chopped pork loin for a leaner version. I've seen versions with chopped bacon, as well as brisket, which is more traditional of Cantonese lo mein. This would also work with meat substitutes, like tofu.
- The heat factor. As mentioned, lo mein is not traditionally spicy, but that doesn't need to stop you from adding in a bit of heat. You can easily up the amount of sriracha in the recipe, or incorporate spicy peppers into the overall vegetable mix. And, you can always dash in some spicy chili powder or hot sauce throughout the cooking process. Heat it up, my chilihead friends
Storage
Typically, lo mein will stay good in the fridge for 3-4 days when kept in an airtight container. For the best reheated results, I recommend popping it in the fridge for 30 seconds at a time, stirring each time it stops. You don't want to overcook it and dry out the noodles.
Try Some of My Other Popular Noodle Recipes
- Chow Mein
- Spicy Ramen Noodles
- Chicken Ramen
- Miso Ramen
- Drunken Noodles (Pad Kee Mao)
- Yakisoba Noodles
- Dan Dan Noodles
- Spicy Noodles
- Chili Oil Noodles
- Mie Goreng (Indonesian Stir Fry Noodles)
Got any questions? Ask away! I’m happy to help. If you enjoy this recipe, I hope you’ll leave a comment with some STARS. Also, please share it on social media. Don’t forget to tag us at #ChiliPepperMadness. I’ll be sure to share! Thanks! — Mike H.
Lo Mein Noodles Recipe
Ingredients
FOR THE LO MEIN SAUCE
- 1 tablespoon dark soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon light soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon oyster sauce
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon sugar or use honey
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon sriracha or to taste
FOR THE LO MEIN NOODLES
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil + 1 tablespoon divided
- 1 pound shrimp peeled and deveined
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 1 cup napa cabbage shredded
- 1 red bell pepper chopped (or use hotter peppers as desired)
- 1 cup cremini mushrooms sliced
- 1 large carrot julienned
- 1/2 cup snow peas
- 2 cups bok choy
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 8 ounces lo mein noodles egg noodles
- For Garnish: sesame seeds, red chili flakes
Instructions
- Make the Lo Mein Sauce. Whisk together the dark and light soy sauce, oyster sauce, sesame oil, sugar or honey, ginger and sriracha until well combined. Set aside until ready to use.
- Cook the Shrimp. Heat 1 teaspoon sesame oil in a large wok or pan to medium heat. Season the shrimp with salt and pepper and cook them 3-4 minutes, or until cooked through. Set aside.
- Stir Fry the Vegetables. Heat 1 tablespoon sesame oil in the same wok to medium high heat. Add the cabbage, bell pepper, mushrooms and carrot. Cook for 5-6 minutes to soften.
- Add the snow peas, bok choy and garlic. Cook, stirring, 2-3 more minutes to soften.
- Boil the Lo Mein Noodles. While the vegetables are cooking, boil the lo mein noodles for 3-4 minutes, or until cooked to your liking. Drain.
- Combine. Stir the prepared lo mein noodles, reserved shrimp and reserved lo mein sauce into the wok. Toss and stir until well coated and warmed through.
- Serve. Garnish with sesame seeds and red chili flakes and serve.
Nutrition Information
DEBORAH Roundtree says
I made this for my dinner, it looks soooooo good, thanks for sharing
Mike Hultquist says
Great!! Glad you enjoyed it, Deborah! Thanks for sharing this.
Robert says
I made this tonight for the family and it was GREAT! I used chicken and schrimp since I had both in the freezer and I also added 4 additional jalapena peppers along with the bell pepper. Thanks for making me a hero!
-Bob
Mike Hultquist says
Nice and spicy, Robert! I love to hear it! Very happy you enjoyed it.
Doug Meador says
Just a note to thank you for your fine recipes. I've made many of them and they mostly turn out delicious, some I have made mistakes in. I am learning about peppers and you are a great teacher.
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Thanks so much, Doug. I greatly appreciate the comments, and am very happy you are enjoying the recipes and cooking.
Kathy says
I made this last night and it sooooooo tasty.
My husband just loved it. I can see that this would be so easy to fix with pork or beef. I used shrimp. The veg were outstanding. We finished up in one sitting even though I made the dinner for 4.
Quick to make and FUN to eat.
Thanks Mike.
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Nice! Glad you enjoyed it, Kathy! Thanks for commenting and sharing! I greatly appreciate it. =)