Resolve the Crispy Panfried Noodles Quandary by Doing things Differently

a blue-print and flexible plan for low-guilt veggie packed noodles

After successfully improving my Japanese-style orange salad dressing last week, I was feeling lucky. I decided to tackle another long-standing issue for you and me — crafting crispy panfried noodles that are loaded with vegetables and flavor.

I was somewhat scarred by a brother in law who’d frequently order panfried noodles at Chinese restaurants, saying something like, “Fry the noodles extra crunchy. Burn them.” The waitstaff would politely nod but the noodles would rarely be crunchy enough for Quan. On the many occasions when that happened, he’d send the dish back to the kitchen for a redo. The noodles would get refried, but with the heavy sauce already on them, they’d be returned to us as sad chewy-hard tangle of carbs.

It’s hard to make good crunchy, crispy panfried noodles because (1) the noodles have to be hearty enough and (2) the saucy topping should be light enough to not weigh the noodles down but flavorful enough to make you want to scarf down the whole plate! And now that I’m a pro-vegetable eater, here’s issue number 3: there’s never enough vegetables or protein in the stir-fry topping to make the noodles healthy and substantial. I always need another dish.

So, I’ve been thinking about making crispy panfried noodles for a healthy-one dish meal. It’s a quandary but spring’s produce bounty got me playing with a new crispy panfried noodle recipe that’s loaded with handsome, tasty vegetables plus some meat and or tofu.

I don’t know about you but as the weather warms up, I tend to overbuy produce. Things look so damn fresh that they practically glow! Above is what’s in my fridge this week.

The resulting recipe and blueprint is for “Upside-down Crispy Panfried Noodles”. I built the recipe so the noodles retain lots of crispy crunchiness. No more soggy noodles under the weight of a heavy saucy stir-fry — but you still get the sauce! And, you get plenty of nutrition including fiber, which few people want to publicly admit that they need more of. 🙂🙃😉

Don’t outsource your panfried noodle pleasures to a restaurant because the noodles are seldom crispy enough and the vegetables and toppings are not particularly exciting. Make panfried noodles at home and you can get them the way you want them.

I built is as a one-dish meal so all your cooking is very focused. This method allows you to polish your stir-frying, pan-frying, and vegetable cooking chops. Maybe this kind of action is in your future? You don’t have to do this flip to make these noodles but here’s your chance to practice.

The following content encourages you to noodle around:

• Crispy pan-fried noodle blueprint (you can serve 2, 4, or 6) plus a video tutorial

• Noodle sourcing tips (like people, Asian noodles aren’t all the same!)

• Flexible, detailed guide to build panfried noodles with lots of vegetables plus meat, seafood, and/or tofu.

• Stir-frying recipe for the veggies and toppings in text and downloadable PDF. There’s a version for meat eaters and vegans too!

• Step-by-step photos because even though this is a simple method, the recipe will appear long. I want you to practice and succeed.

I went three (3) rounds with the recipe. You're looking at round 2 with chicken and mushroom, then there was a vegan tofu and mushroom panfried noodle too. Yes, it's all here for you to cook up!