Beef Pan-Fried Noodles: Crispy Noodle Cake with Oyster Sauce Gravy

⏱ Prep: 20 min 🔥Cook: 25 min 👤Serves: 4

Beef pan-fried noodles, or the crispy version (leung min wong, golden on both sides), is one of the most satisfying dishes in Cantonese cooking. Thin egg noodles pressed into a flat cake and fried in oil until both sides are deeply golden and crispy, then topped with velveted beef and vegetables in a glossy oyster sauce gravy that soaks into the top of the cake while the bottom stays crispy. Two textures in one dish, held together by the gravy.

Three techniques define this recipe. Velveting the beef, baking soda, soy sauce, cornstarch and egg white, produces the silky, tender slices that Cantonese restaurants are known for and home kitchens rarely achieve. Drying the noodles completely before frying produces the crispy crust. Not moving the noodle cake in the pan for four to five minutes produces the golden exterior. All three are simple. None can be skipped.

Ingredients

For the velveted beef

• 350g (12oz) flank steak or skirt steak, sliced against the grain into 3mm thin strips. Look at the muscle fibres running lengthwise through the steak and cut perpendicular to them. Cutting with the grain produces chewy, tough strips that no amount of velveting will fix.
• ¼ teaspoon baking soda, the velveting agent. Raises the pH of the meat surface, which disrupts protein bonds and produces dramatically more tender beef. A small amount makes a large difference. Too much produces a slightly soapy taste, measure carefully.
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon Shaoxing rice wine, or dry sherry
• 1 teaspoon cornstarch
• 1 egg white
• 1 teaspoon neutral oil

For the noodles

• 300g (10oz) fresh Hong Kong pan-fry egg noodles, thin, yellow egg noodles sold in the refrigerated section of Asian grocery stores, sometimes labelled “pan-fry noodles” or “Hong Kong style noodles.” They are partially pre-cooked and just need loosening in hot water before frying. Substitute: fresh thin egg noodles cooked until al dente and drained; or dried thin egg noodles cooked per packet and completely drained and dried.
• 3 tablespoons neutral oil, for frying the noodle cake. Enough to coat the pan base generously.

For the oyster sauce gravy

• 2 tablespoons oyster sauce, the backbone of the gravy. Use a good brand, Lee Kum Kee Premium is the standard.
• 1 tablespoon dark soy sauce, for deep colour and slightly sweet flavour
• 1 tablespoon light soy sauce, for salt and umami
• 1 tablespoon Shaoxing rice wine
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• ½ teaspoon toasted sesame oil
• ¼ teaspoon white pepper
• 250ml (1 cup) beef or chicken stock
• 1½ tablespoons cornstarch mixed with 3 tablespoons cold water, the slurry that thickens the gravy to the velvety, glossy consistency that defines this dish

For the stir-fry

• 3 cloves garlic, finely minced
• 1 teaspoon fresh ginger, finely grated
• 1 medium onion, halved and sliced
• 100g (3.5oz) bean sprouts
• 100g (3.5oz) snow peas or baby bok choy, halved
• 3 green onions, cut into 5cm lengths
• 2 tablespoons neutral oil

Step by step

1. Velvet the beef. Combine the sliced beef with baking soda, soy sauce, Shaoxing wine, cornstarch, egg white and oil in a bowl. Mix well and marinate for 15–20 minutes at room temperature. Before cooking, rinse the beef briefly under cold water to remove the baking soda, this stops the alkalising process and removes any soapy taste. Pat dry with paper towels. The baking soda rinse is important. Left on during cooking, excess baking soda gives the beef a slightly alkaline, soapy taste that is noticeable. Rinsed off after marinating, the tenderising effect remains but the flavour is clean. 15 minutes of velveting is usually enough, longer is fine but not necessary.
2. Prepare the noodles. If using fresh Hong Kong pan-fry noodles: place in a colander and pour a kettle of boiling water over them, using chopsticks or tongs to loosen the strands. Drain immediately and spread on a clean tray or board to dry for at least 5 minutes, the surface must be dry before frying. If using cooked noodles: drain and spread to dry the same way. Wet noodles steam in the pan instead of frying and will never develop a proper crust.
3. Mix the gravy sauce. Combine all gravy ingredients except the cornstarch slurry in a bowl. Stir until the sugar dissolves. Set aside. Mix the cornstarch slurry separately.
4. Fry the noodle cake, the centrepiece of the dish. Heat 3 tablespoons of neutral oil in a wide non-stick or cast-iron pan over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add all the dried noodles and immediately press them into a flat, even cake using a spatula, about the diameter of the pan and uniformly thick throughout. Reduce to medium heat. Cook without moving for 4–5 minutes until the bottom is deeply golden and the cake slides freely when the pan is shaken. Do not stir, push or disturb the noodle cake during these 4–5 minutes. Every time you move the noodles, you break the developing crust and reset the process. The cake is ready to flip when it slides freely as a single unit and the edges are visibly golden.
5. Flip the noodle cake. Place a large flat plate over the pan. In one confident motion, invert the pan so the noodle cake drops golden-side-up onto the plate. Slide the cake back into the pan with the uncooked side facing down. Add another tablespoon of oil around the edges if the pan looks dry. Cook for a further 3–4 minutes until the second side is equally golden. Transfer the finished noodle cake to a serving plate and keep warm. The inversion technique is the easiest way to flip a large noodle cake cleanly. A wide spatula flip risks breaking the cake in half. Confidence is the key, hesitating mid-flip produces a crumpled mess. Place the plate, commit to the inversion, done.
6. Stir-fry the beef. Wipe the pan clean. Heat 1 tablespoon of oil over the highest heat until just smoking. Add the rinsed, dried beef in a single layer. Do not stir for 30 seconds, let it sear. Then stir-fry vigorously for 60–90 seconds until just cooked through and lightly caramelised at the edges. Remove immediately and set aside. Velveted beef overcooks in seconds. It should go from marinated to plated in under 2 minutes of total heat exposure. Take it off the moment it is no longer pink, it will continue cooking slightly from residual heat.
7. Build the gravy. In the same pan, add 1 tablespoon of oil over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and ginger, stir 30 seconds. Add the onion and snow peas, stir-fry 1–2 minutes until just softened. Pour in the gravy sauce mixture. Bring to a boil. Give the cornstarch slurry a quick stir and pour it in while stirring. The gravy will thicken within 30–60 seconds into a glossy, velvety sauce. Add the bean sprouts and green onions, stir through. Return the beef to the pan, toss quickly to coat.
8. Pour over the noodle cake and serve immediately. Spoon the beef and gravy generously over the crispy noodle cake. Serve the moment it is assembled, the contrast between the crispy bottom and the sauce-soaked top is at its peak for about 5 minutes before the entire cake softens. Eat immediately.

Claire’s note

The noodle cake is the dish. The beef and gravy are excellent, but what makes pan-fried noodles specifically pan-fried noodles, as opposed to a beef and noodle stir-fry, is the noodle cake’s two contrasting textures: crispy caramelised bottom, soft and sauce-soaked top. That contrast lasts about five minutes after the gravy goes on before the whole cake becomes uniformly soft. Which means: finish the gravy, pour it over the noodles, eat.

Do not pour the gravy early. Do not let it sit. The best bite of this dish is the one where you get crispy noodle from the bottom and sauce-drenched noodle from the top in the same forkful and it is worth rushing to the table for.

Serve with

Beef pan-fried noodles is a complete meal on its own, noodles, protein and vegetables in one dish. A small bowl of hot and sour soup or wonton soup alongside is the classic Cantonese restaurant pairing. For more Chinese cooking: Chinese egg cake, lo mein, and the full Chinese recipes collection.

Add beef pan-fried noodles to your weekly meal planner as a Friday night takeout replacement, active time is 25 minutes and the result is better than most delivery versions. And for more recipes, follow us on Pinterest.

Beef Pan-Fried Noodles

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• Author: Claire Bennett
• Total Time: 45 minutes
• Yield: 4 servings 1x
• Diet: Non-Vegetarian

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Description

Crispy pan-fried noodle cake topped with tender velveted beef and vegetables in a savory oyster sauce gravy.

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Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

• 350g (12oz) flank steak or skirt steak, sliced
• ¼ teaspoon baking soda
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon Shaoxing rice wine or dry sherry
• 1 teaspoon cornstarch
• 1 egg white
• 1 teaspoon neutral oil
• 300g (10oz) fresh Hong Kong pan-fry egg noodles
• 3 tablespoons neutral oil, for frying
• 2 tablespoons oyster sauce
• 1 tablespoon dark soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon light soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon Shaoxing rice wine
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• ½ teaspoon toasted sesame oil
• ¼ teaspoon white pepper
• 250ml (1 cup) beef or chicken stock
• 1½ tablespoons cornstarch mixed with 3 tablespoons cold water
• 3 cloves garlic, finely minced
• 1 teaspoon fresh ginger, finely grated
• 1 medium onion, halved and sliced
• 100g (3.5oz) bean sprouts
• 100g (3.5oz) snow peas or baby bok choy, halved
• 3 green onions, cut into 5cm lengths
• 2 tablespoons neutral oil, for stir-fry

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Instructions

1. Velvet the beef. Combine the sliced beef with baking soda, soy sauce, Shaoxing wine, cornstarch, egg white and oil in a bowl. Mix well and marinate for 15–20 minutes at room temperature. Rinse the beef under cold water and pat dry.
2. Prepare the noodles. If using fresh Hong Kong pan-fry noodles, pour boiling water over them and drain immediately. Spread on a clean tray to dry for at least 5 minutes.
3. Mix the gravy sauce. Combine all gravy ingredients except the cornstarch slurry in a bowl, stir until sugar dissolves.
4. Fry the noodle cake. Heat 3 tablespoons of neutral oil in a wide pan over medium-high heat. Add dried noodles and press into a flat cake. Cook without moving for 4–5 minutes.
5. Flip the noodle cake onto a plate, then return it to the pan to cook the other side for 3–4 minutes until golden.
6. Stir-fry the beef in a clean pan over high heat. Sear for 30 seconds, then stir-fry until lightly caramelized. Remove and set aside.
7. Build the gravy. In the same pan, add garlic and ginger, stir-fry briefly, then add vegetables. Pour in gravy mixture and bring to boil, thicken with cornstarch slurry.
8. Pour the gravy and beef over the noodle cake and serve immediately.

Notes

Serve immediately for the best texture contrast between crispy and soft noodles.

• Prep Time: 20 minutes
• Cook Time: 25 minutes
• Category: Main Course
• Method: Pan-Frying
• Cuisine: Chinese

Nutrition

• Serving Size: 1 serving
• Calories: 500
• Sugar: 6g
• Sodium: 900mg
• Fat: 20g
• Saturated Fat: 5g
• Unsaturated Fat: 10g
• Trans Fat: 0g
• Carbohydrates: 40g
• Fiber: 3g
• Protein: 28g
• Cholesterol: 60mg