Print

Chicken Chow Fun

Top view of stir-fried rice noodles with chicken, yellow chives, and bean sprouts on a plate.

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

5 from 2 reviews

Tender chicken pieces, chewy wide rice noodles, and crisp veggies get tossed with a delicious savory-sweet sauce in this quick & easy Chicken Chow Fun.

Ingredients

Scale

For the Chicken Marinade:

  • 250 grams / 8.81 ounces boneless and skinless Chicken Breasts (or thighs) – cleaned, pat-dried, thinly sliced into bite-sized pieces
  • 1 TSP Corn Starch
  • 2 TSP Shao Xing Rice Wine
  • 1.5 TSP Low Sodium Light Soy Sauce
  • ½ TSP Sesame Oil
  • ¼ TSP ground White Pepper
  • ¼ TSP Kosher Salt (use a little less than half the amount if using iodized table salt)

For the Stir-fry Sauce:

  • 2 TBLS Low Sodium Light Soy Sauce
  • 1 TSP Dark Soy Sauce
  • ½ TSP White Sugar
  • 1 TSP Oyster Sauce

For the Chicken Chow Fun Stir-fry:

  • 350 grams/12.35 ounces fresh Flat Wide Rice Noodles
  • ½ TSP Sweet Dark Soy Sauce (the thick and viscous type such as a Thai one or kecap manis)
  • 1 TBLS Dark Soy Sauce
  • ¼ TSP White Sugar
  • 3 TBLS + 2 TSP Canola or Peanut Oil (or any other neutral flavored oil with a high smoke point)
  • ½ Yellow Onion – sliced
  • 5 Garlic cloves – minced
  • 1 TBLS minced Ginger
  • 210 Red Chilies (I used Bird’s Eye, but any hot red chilies will work), to taste – chopped
  • 1 Spring Onion – cut into 1.5-inch pieces
  • 50 grams / 1.8 ounces Yellow Chinese Chives – cut into 1.5-inch pieces
  • 75 grams / about 1.5 cups Mung Bean Sprouts
  • ¼ TSP ground White Pepper
  • ¼ TSP Kosher Salt, to taste
  • To Serve: Chinese Chili Oil (optional)

Instructions

Prep:

  1. Prepare the fresh ingredients: Prepare the yellow onion, garlic, ginger, red chilies, spring onion, and yellow Chinese chives as indicated in the ‘Ingredients’ section. Place the mung bean sprouts in a bowl of water and place in the fridge for 15 minutes to revive them. Then drain into a fine mesh strainer and rinse.
  2. Marinate the chicken: Clean and pat-dry the chicken breasts, then slice as thinly as possible into bite-sized pieces. Add the chicken to a medium-sized bowl, followed by the corn starch, Shao Xing rice wine, low sodium light soy sauce, sesame oil, ground white pepper, and kosher salt. Mix with a spoon until combined well, then set aside.
  3. Make the sauce: Whisk together the low sodium light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, white sugar, and oyster sauce in a measuring cup or small bowl.
  4. Prepare the rice noodles: Combine the fresh rice noodles, sweet dark soy sauce, dark soy sauce, and white sugar in a medium-sized bowl. Use your fingers (or tongs) to gently toss until the noodles are evenly coated in the sauce mixture.

For the Chicken Chow Fun:

  1. Stir-fry the onion, spring onion, and Chinese chives: Heat 2 teaspoons of canola oil in a large wok over high heat. Once hot, add the yellow onion and stir-fry for 30 seconds. Add the spring onion and Chinese chives and stir-fry for another 15 seconds until slightly wilted. Transfer to a clean bowl and set aside.
  2. Cook the chicken: Heat 1 tablespoon of canola oil in the wok over high heat. Once hot, add the marinated chicken and spread the pieces out in the wok. Stir-fry for a minute, until 80% cooked and no longer pink. Transfer to a clean bowl and set aside. Wipe out the wok with paper towels and set it back on the stovetop.
  3. Char the rice noodles: Heat 1 tablespoon of canola oil in the wok over high heat. Once hot, add the rice noodles and cook for 15-20 seconds. Then toss and allow to cook for another 15-20 seconds. Repeat once more if needed, until the noodles are slightly charred. Transfer to a clean bowl and set aside.
  4. Stir-fry the aromatics: Heat the remaining tablespoon of canola oil in the wok over medium-high heat. Once hot, add the garlic, ginger, and red chilies. Stir-fry for 30-40 seconds until fragrant.
  5. Add the rice noodles: Add the charred rice noodles, ground white pepper, and kosher salt. Stir-fry briefly to combine.
  6. Add the veggies, chicken, and sauce: Add the yellow onion, spring onion, Chinese chives, the chicken and the resting juices in the bowl. Stir-fry for 20 seconds to combine. Then pour in the stir-fry sauce and toss for 10-15 seconds until everything is evenly coated in the sauce.
  7. Add the bean sprouts: Add the bean sprouts and toss for 20 seconds, until slightly softened. Then switch off the heat.
  8. To Serve: Divide the noodles evenly onto plates. Serve immediately, and with Chinese chili oil on the side if desired.

Equipment

Notes

  1. Fresh flat wide rice noodles. These are known as ‘hor fun’ or ‘ho fun’ in Cantonese, or ‘shahe fen’ (沙河粉) in Mandarin. Look for them in Asian supermarkets (outside Asia), or at shops that sell noodles and dumpling wrappers if you’re based in Asian cities. If unavailable, you can try making this dish with 175 grams/6.2 ounces dried wide rice noodles. Prepare them as per package instructions, then drain and rinse with cold water. Toss the noodles with a bit of oil (to prevent them from sticking) in addition to the sauces as indicated in step 4 of the ‘Prep’ section. Note that the texture will be different and not as great as using fresh wide rice noodles. So try to seek out the fresh noodles if you can, or have a go at making your own fresh wide rice noodles.
  2. Red chilies: Use less or more to suit your heat level preference, or omit if you prefer a mild noodles stir-fry.
  3. Mung Bean Sprouts: Try to get these with the roots trimmed off as that’s what is typically used in restaurant versions in Hong Kong. If you can’t find them with the roots trimmed off, buy the regular type and trim the roots off at home, or leave them on if it’s too much hassle. The noodles will taste good without or with the root part.
  4. Yellow Chinese chives: These are milder and sweeter in flavor in comparison to their green counterparts. They can be found at Asian supermarkets and wet markets. If unavailable, you can substitute with green Chinese chives or more spring onion.
  5. Storing: This chicken chow fun is best eaten immediately after cooking, and I do not recommend refrigerating or freezing it as the texture will altered when microwaving to reheat them and when thawing.
  6. See ‘Variations’ section in the post above if you’d like to customize this chow fun, and for more tips.
  7. Recipe adapted from Susan Jung at SCMP Cooking

Nutrition