Challenges When Cooking Lo Mein Noodles
I’ve made a lot of lo mein dishes in the past, both at home and in restaurants. It’s become a dish that I make on autopilot.
But over the years, I’ve noticed from reader comments and inquiries that a lot of you are having trouble making lo mein. Many of the issues, like sticky, raw, or dry noodles, are new to me.
I came to the realization that I was unintentionally making tiny, automatic adjustments to prevent these issues, and that a more thorough explanation was necessary. So let’s clear the air and impart those pointers to prevent kitchen letdown.
In This Post: What You Need To Know About Lo Mein
Our Lo Mein Noodle Recipes:
Here’s a brief summary of our top recommendations for chopping the noodles:
- Before you begin, confirm if you have cooked or uncooked lo mein. Since we’ve all accidentally grabbed the incorrect package, just be careful that you’re not stir-frying raw noodles or reheating cooked lo mein!
- Lo Mein packages can be kept in the refrigerator for up to one week or frozen for up to one month.
- Read the cooking directions on your uncooked noodles. Manufacturers’ cooking times vary, so this can serve as a useful starting point or point of reference when determining boiling time.
- To prevent them from drying out, cook the noodles just before you’re ready to prepare your lo mein dish. Cover them with a damp towel if you must cook them further ahead of time.
- Don’t walk away from your lo mein while it’s cooking. Things move quickly, and you don’t want to cook the noodles too much.
- When finished, immediately take the lo mein out of the boiling water and drain. Don’t wait, or the noodles may become overcooked and mushy.
- Rinse your drained noodles under cold water after cooking. This removes any surface starch, preventing sticky noodles.
- Rinse and boil the noodles, then drain well, shaking the colander to remove any remaining water. The noodles should then be quickly tossed in a neutral oil to keep them apart.
- Make sure the cooked noodles are at room temperature before using them. This keeps the wok heated during the stir-frying process and facilitates breaking them up. You can quickly reheat the noodles by dipping them into hot water if you’re in a hurry. Drain them well before stir-frying.
- After stir-frying, the easiest method to reheat lo mein is to simply microwave them!
