Tender, thinly sliced steak tossed with extra-wide chewy rice noodles, this Beef Chow Fun recipe comes together easily at home with kitchen staples! This recipe will teach you how to make this restaurant-style fried noodles dish at home in a few simple steps.
I am beyond excited to share this homemade beef chow fun (干炒牛河) recipe today. Growing up and even now, it’s one of my favourite noodle dishes. At first glance, it might seem difficult to make and easier to just head to a food court to pick up a container but since moving, there’s only ONE place in the whole city that makes it, and the wait is long so I’ve just started making it at home.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- It’s super easy to make. While it may seem like a tedious recipe, each step is quite straightforward and easy to follow.
- Beef chow fun uses a ton of kitchen staples so most of the time, I don’t even have to run to the store. If you’ve cooked from my blog before, then you probably have the same pantry staples as I do and you can whip this up in no time.
- This recipe is a classic for a reason. Once you try it, you’ll fall in love. The noodles and beef are so flavourful and the steak is so tender that it’ll melt in your mouth. I always get a little sad when I share with H because I want the entire skillet to myself lol.
Ingredients You’ll Need
- flank steak — I love using flank steak but you can also use skirt steak or rib eye. You don’t want to use anything too lean or tough.
- soy sauce — I recommend using light sodium soy sauce. You’ll need it to marinate the steak and make the sauce for the noodles.
- Shaoxing wine — Shaoxing wine is also known as Chinese cooking wine, from the city, Shaoxing. It’s an amber-colored rice wine that can be found online or at your local Asian grocery store! I’ve read that dry sherry can be substituted for Shaoxing wine but I’ve personally never tried it.
- cornstarch — coating the sliced steak in cornstarch helps tenderizes and protect the beef from overcooking.
- dried wide vermicelli noodles — you should be able to find these noodles at most grocery stores. If not, you can get it online.
- sesame oil — I like to add a drizzle of sesame oil to the noodles once cooked. This helps keep them from sticking together.
- dark soy sauce — if you have mushroom flavoured dark soy sauce, even better!
- oyster sauce — don’t worry, while it’s made from oyster extract, it doesn’t taste like oysters! I have a post sharing what oyster sauce is if you’re curious.
- oil — you can use whatever oil you prefer to saute everything. I like olive oil and avocado oil.
- onion — I use a sweet onion but feel free to use a yellow onion.
- green onions — did you know green onions are freezer friendly? You can slice and freeze them until ready to use and toss them into the skillet, from frozen.
How to Make Beef Chow Fun
- Add soy sauce, shaoxing wine, and cornstarch to the sliced flank steak. Mix until combined. Set aside in the fridge for 20 minutes.
- In a small bowl, combine the soy sauce, dark soy sauce, and oyster sauce. Set aside.
These steps can be done simultaneously as you don’t want the noodles is sit out for too long:
- Bring a pot of water to a boil and add the dried rice noodles to the pot. Cook for 6 minutes before draining and rinsing under running water. Drizzle and coat the noodles with a bit of sesame oil to help keep the noodles from sticking.
- Heat up a tablespoon of oil in a large skillet and add the marinaded beef to it in a single layer. Cook for about 1 to 2 minutes per side, it does not have to be cooked all the way through. Set aside on a plate. Depending on the size of your skillet, you may have to do it in batches. I cook my beef in 2 batches.
- Give the pan a quick wipe with a paper towel and add another tablespoon of oil to the pan. Add the sliced onions and saute them for 3 to 4 minutes, or until lightly fried.
- Add the rice noodles to the skillet and gently spread them out in the skillet.
- Add the sauce to the noodles and toss until well combined.
- Add the sliced beef and green onions to the noodles and toss until the green onions are softened and everything is evenly mixed.
Recipe Tips and Notes
- Traditionally, restaurants put bean sprouts in the beef chow fun. It adds another layer of texture to the dish! However, growing up, I was never a fan and always picked it out, and it slowed me down on inhaling the entire plate. So, I skipped it entirely for this recipe. If you’d like to add bean sprouts, add them after the onions are sauteed. Make sure to wash them first!
- To get clean, thin slices of beef, I freeze my flank steak for 20 minutes. This helps the steak firm up enough that you can effortlessly slice the steak.
- I find it’s easiest to wear a pair of gloves and massage the marinade into the beef. It is super easy to help coat the beef evenly.
- I like my green onions a bit more crisp so I add mine at the end with the beef. If you want them to be softer, you can add them in with the onions.
- It is perfectly normal for the noodles to break up as you stir fry everything together. It’s no biggie.
- When slicing the steak, make sure to slice against the grain so the steak is tender.
- Different brands of noodles require different cooking times. Make sure to check the packaging for specific instructions. Mine take 6 minutes.
Make Ahead Tips
- Meal prep: once cooled, store the beef chow fun in an airtight container for up to 4 days in the fridge.
- Reheat: H reheats this in the microwave at work but since I WFH now, I like to reheat it on the stovetop as I have the time and access to. I add a splash of water to the skillet and cover it with a lid so the steam helps heat everything without overcooking the beef.
If you have access to fresh noodles, then I highly recommend it! I use dried noodles as I don’t have a store close to me with any. If your fresh noodles are stuck together, you can blanch them for a few seconds to loosen them up.
You can use a large non-stick skillet or a wok for this if you have one. This is the skillet I use.
Beef Chow Fun (干炒牛河)
Tender, thinly sliced steak tossed with extra-wide chewy rice noodles, this Beef Chow Fun recipe comes together easily at home with kitchen staples! This recipe will teach you how to make this restaurant-style fried noodles dish at home in a few simple steps.
Servings: 5 servings
Ingredients
For the Noodles:
- 1 lb dried wide vermicelli noodles
- 1 tbsp sesame oil, or more
For Everything Else:
- 2 tbsp oil, divided
- 1 medium sweet onion, sliced
- 3-4 stalks green onions, cut in half lengthwise
Instructions
Add soy sauce, shaoxing wine, and cornstarch to the sliced flank steak. Mix until combined. Set aside in the fridge for 20 minutes.
In a small bowl, combine the soy sauce, dark soy sauce, and oyster sauce. Set aside.
These steps can be done simultaneously:
Bring a pot of water to a boil and add the dried rice noodles to the pot. Cook for 6 minutes before draining and rinsing under running water. Drizzle and coat the noodles with a bit of sesame oil to help keep the noodles from sticking.
Heat up a tablespoon of oil in a large skillet and add the marinaded beef to it in a single layer. Cook for about 1 to 2 minutes per side, it does not have to be cooked all the way through. Set aside on a plate. Depending on the size of your skillet, you may have to do it in batches. I cook my beef in 2 batches.
Give the pan a quick wipe with a paper towel and add another tablespoon of oil to the pan. Add the sliced onions and saute them for 3 to 4 minutes, or until lightly fried.
Add the rice noodles to the skillet and gently spread them out in the skillet.
Add the sauce to the noodles and toss until well combined.
Add the sliced beef and green onions to the noodles and toss until the green onions are softened and everything is evenly mixed.
Notes
- If you would like to add bean sprouts, you can add them into the skillet after the onions.
- For softer green onions, add them after the onions.
Nutrition Per Serving
Calories: 584kcal | Carbohydrates: 85g | Protein: 26g | Fat: 14g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 7g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 54mg | Sodium: 1481mg | Potassium: 509mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 72IU | Vitamin C: 5mg | Calcium: 62mg | Iron: 3mg
More Noodle Recipes to Try
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