Take Out Fake Out Shrimp Lo Mein: Skip the take out and make this quick and authentic Chinese dish at home! Simple ingredients and made in under 20 minutes!
It’s no surprise to me that when we tried this recipe for the first time about 6 months ago, we loved everything about it. Well, except the noodles.
I know! How could we possibly not love noodles?!
I had been searching for probably a year and half for real lo mein noodles to use with this recipe and I finally just bit the bullet and made the recipe with spaghetti.
It just wasn’t right, people. Thin spaghetti may have worked better but I didn’t want to remake this shrimp lo mein and chance it turning out mediocre again.
So when I was perusing Whole Foods with my girls Josie, Courtney, and Annie back in February while stocking up to cook dinner that night, Annie found lo mein noodles for me.
I had searched high and low (no pun intended) in my Whole Foods and local grocery stores to no avail! And here they finally here!
I snagged that package and now I wished I had grabbed a few extra because I still can’t find them here!
Noodle issue aside, this shrimp lo mein was a perfect departure from the heavy and oftentimes greasy Chinese take out lo mein we’re used to.
I feel the same way about making Chinese food at home. This orange chicken, while not a healthy dish since it’s essentially fried chicken tossed in a sweet orange sauce, is definitely a better alternative to what you’ll find in most Chinese food restaurants. At the very least, you know all of the ingredients that go into the dish!
And this veggie fried rice? It’s not at all greasy and you can load it up with as many different kinds of vegetables as you’d like to! That’s a big time win in my book!
The flavors perfectly mimic what we know take out lo mein to be but there’s just something about controlling all of the ingredients of a dish that make it so satisfying.
We went with a vegetarian version, swapping out the original chicken broth and chicken breast for vegetable broth and shrimp, respectively. And I love the fact that the list of vegetables in the recipe is versatile enough to use up whatever you have hanging around in the fridge.
After some minimal prep work, the whole recipe came together rather quickly, so make sure you’ve got everything washed, chopped, and ready to go before you start. I love a good mis en place!
I saved the other half of the package of noodles for a “rainy day” which may come sooner rather than later because now I’m craving these noodles again!
Take Out Fake Out: Shrimp Lo Mein
Skip the take out and make this quick and authentic Chinese dish at home! Simple ingredients and made in under 20 minutes!
Ingredients
- 6 oz lo mein noodles
- 1 tbsp oyster sauce
- 2 tbsp low sodium soy sauce
- ¼ cup vegetable broth
- Pinch of red pepper flakes
- ½ tbsp canola oil
- 8 oz large shrimp, peeled and deveined
- 1 large carrot, cut into matchstick-sized pieces
- ½ small onion, diced
- 4 oz sliced mushrooms
- 1 cup sugar snap or snow peas
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tsp toasted sesame oil
- 1 scallion, chopped (for garnish)
- Crispy rice noodles (for garnish)
Instructions
- Cook the lo mein noodles according to the package directions; drain and set aside.
- While the noodles cook, make the sauce: whisk the oyster sauce, soy sauce, vegetable broth and red pepper flakes together in a small bowl; set aside.
- In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add in the vegetables, each a few minutes apart, starting with the carrots, then the onions, mushrooms, and the peas. When you add the peas, add in the shrimp as well and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are tender-crisp and the shrimp is pink and cooked through (about 4-5 minutes). Stir in the garlic and sauté just until fragrant, about 1 minute.
- Stir the sauce into the pan and then the cooked lo mein noodles. Toss the mixture well to coat everything. Drizzle with the sesame oil and toss once more. Serve immediately, garnishing with the scallions and crispy noodles.
Notes
adapted from Elly Says Opa! via Everyday Annie
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This really looks good, and although I don’t usually have shrimp as part of my budget, I’ll bet I could use chicken and still get a great flavor.
Plus, I’ve always wanted a way to make Asian take-out at home. 🙂
I have trouble finding the right noodles I want too…even when I go to the asian grocery! The best mimic I’ve found is ramen noodles. I was really skeptical, but it works fairly well, and definitely beats spaghetti noodles!
Will definitely try this. I like the suggestion of ramen noodles by Faith. BTW, Can you tell me why your website attempts loading 3 times until I can get to your page?
You can find Lo Mein noodles in your local H-Mart. It’s an Asian grocery store.