How to Serve Chinese Crispy Noodles
These Chinese crispy noodles pair best with soups you might find on a takeout menu because they are a staple of our American Chinese food culture. Such soups as wonton soup, hot and sour soup, and egg drop soup
They can be served over American Chicken Chow Mein or Chicken Chop Suey if you want to go all out retro.
You can even add as many as you like to those salads with an Asian flair that I mentioned. Not just the tiny pouch found in prepared salad mixes
Or, to keep it simple, they are delicious served alone as a snack or even on the table with any soup or stir-fry!
The contrasting sweet and spicy flavors of homemade restaurant-style duck sauce and Chinese hot mustard are delicious with these fried noodles no matter what dishes you serve them with.
What Are Crispy Noodles Made Of?
To make deep-fried crispy noodles, use any fresh egg noodle. The closest thing I could find was these Chinese wide egg noodles in our neighborhood Asian grocery store. (We used to use wider noodles in my parents’ restaurant, but these worked just fine.) ).
Egg wonton skins or egg roll skins can be used in place of noodles if necessary. Both can be cut into wide strips for frying.
Here are the Egg Roll Skins after frying:
And here are the fried wonton skins:
Wide egg noodles or egg roll skins produce the best results, according to our research.
Egg wonton wrappers are functional but are thinner and don’t have the same satisfying crunch. They can be a little bit oily because they also absorb more oil than the other two.
The information on this posting, our website, and our other publications, such as Vegetarian Journal, is not meant to be a substitute for consulting a physician directly. Medical advice should be obtained from a qualified health professional. We frequently rely on company statements for information about products and ingredients. A statement cannot be made with absolute certainty because data can change, opinions can differ, and mistakes can occur. To determine whether a product is suitable for you, please use your best judgment. To be certain, carry out independent research or confirmation.
1. Xiaojing Zhou, the R&D/QA manager of Wonton Food Inc. confirmed that the “all natural” wonton strips are vegan and contain only wheat flour, non-GMO canola oil, and salt in an email on 7/1/20. On August 17, 2020, they acknowledged that, despite ongoing efforts to grow their business in “all natural” products into the mainstream foodservice market, the majority of their “all natural” products are currently sold as a component in salad kits like those that one might find at neighborhood grocery stores rather than to restaurants.
If you’ve ever eaten at an Asian restaurant, chances are you’ve indulged in those mouthwatering wonton strips that are occasionally served as small bites and are frequently served with soups or chow mein. These deep-fried, crunchy noodles have generated discussion among vegans. A reader recently inquired about the veganism of the noodles and whether any healthier alternatives were available.
A lot of restaurants in your area may have only non-vegan wonton strip/chip options because they tend to order ingredients from suppliers. Many companies use eggs, especially for packaged dry noodles, to help preserve texture and color. If eggs are not used, the strips are often cooked in the same deep fryer as meat products. We contacted a number of Chinese or Asian Fusion restaurants which serve meat but also have vegetarian/vegan options (6 restaurants in MD, 5 in KY, 1 in IN, 1 in TN). All but one of these either obtain their noodle strips from a distributor who use egg, or make them directly in house using egg. Furthermore, most cooked them in the same deep fryer as meat products. The all-vegan Asian restaurants we contacted (5 in NY) said they do not serve wonton strips. Just one restaurant with a sizeable vegetarian/vegan menu, Mr Chan Restaurant in Pikesville MD, confirmed both that they sell these strips (they include them with all of their soups), and that they are suitable for vegans. They stated that they make them from scratch (with flour) without egg.2
The answer varies, since every Asian restaurant differs in their production or sourcing of these wonton strips. The strips typically include egg and may be cooked in animal fat. However, it is possible to make them without using animal products, and one company, Wonton Food Inc., makes a vegan-friendly version (which they call ‘All Natural’), and these are available for restaurants to buy in bulk if they choose.1 We have also included some vegan recipes for making your own wonton strips, as well as some healthier cooking methods.
FAQ
What are those crunchy Asian noodles called?
Mein gon, also known as crunchy noodles or crunchy chow mein, is a type of cracker (or dried biscuit) that resembles noodles that is used in American Chinese cuisine.
What are the crunchy white things on Asian food?
You probably already know a few things about water chestnuts, but what are those crunchy things in your stir-fry? They’re water chestnuts, and they’re surprisingly good for you. They are white and crunchy, and you can find them in a lot of stir-fry dishes with an Asian influence.
What are chewy Chinese noodles called?
Shanghai noodles are a chewy variety made from wheat flour and water. They are also known as cumian, which literally translates to “thick noodles.”
