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chinese noodle soup with egg & veggies
A basic recipe – this egg and veggie noodle soup is typically known as da lu mien. It’s very tasty as is, but don’t let the absence of some ingredient stop you; feel free to adapt at will.

1 boneless skinless chicken breast cutlet
1 tsp. soy sauce
1/2 tsp. cornstarch
a couple dashes of salt

1 thin slice of ginger
1 clove garlic
4-6 leaves of napa cabbage (enough to yield 3 loosely packed cups, chopped)
4 small dried shiitake mushrooms
3 cups of chicken stock
1 egg
1 stalk scallion
toasted sesame oil (optional)
salt and pepper (white pepper if you have it) to taste

6 oz. dried noodles, fat flat Japanese/Chinese noodles if you can get them, or spaghetti/linguine otherwise

time 20-25 minutes
serves 2

1 Cut the chicken breast into skinny strips (no more than 1/4” thick and 2-3” long). Marinate in the soy sauce, salt and cornstarch mixture for 15 minutes.
2 Toss the dried mushrooms in a bowl and pour about a cup of boiling water over the shrooms, enough to cover. Let them sit for 15 minutes, until they’re mostly softened. Remove from the water and cut in half. Reserve the soaking liquid.
3 While you’re waiting for your chicken and shrooms to do their thing, bring a big pot of water to boil for the noodles. When the water’s boiling, cook the noodles until just done, and drain.
4 Prep your veggies after you start the water boiling. Cut up the napa cabbage into thin strips (about ¼” thick). Lightly smash the garlic with the flat side of a chef’s knife, and remove the peel. Give the ginger slice a light smash with the side of your knife while you’re at it. Chop up the scallion.
5 When the chicken’s all marinated, add a smidge of cooking oil (maybe a tsp or two) to a small-medium pot (or a wok if you prefer), and heat on medium. Add the garlic and ginger and stir-fry for a minute or so, until sizzling and aromatic; add the chicken and continue stir-frying until the chicken turns white. Slide in the napa cabbage, stir (as best you can; it’ll take up a fair bit of room in the pot at first) and cook for a minute or so. Pour in the stock, and toss in the mushrooms. Add enough mushroom soaking liquid as necessary to just about cover the ingredients. If you can locate the ginger and garlic, fish it out at this point, as it can be disconcerting to be eating your soup later on and get a big pungent bite of either one.
6 Nudge the heat to medium high, and bring to a bubble. (You’ll want to cook for about 5 minutes or so, until the cabbage is cooked down.) Meanwhile, beat the egg in a small bowl. When the soup’s just bubbling, quickly pour in the egg and stir, turn off the heat, and remove the pot from the burner. Season with plenty of salt and pepper. Drizzle in a few drops of sesame oil.
7 Divide the cooked noodles between two big bowls. Divvy up the soup; top with chopped scallions and enjoy.

o

check out these related articles:
the chinese pantry | wok this way | stock tricks | zha jiang noodles | hot pot how-to

or check out the recipe index!

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