Quick 30-minute Chicken Chow Mein recipe with chicken, veggies, and a delicious sauce, better than takeout.

Chicken chow mein in a skillet with tongs, filled with fresh vegetables, perfectly cooked and seasoned.

Freshly chopped vegetables ready to be added to the chicken chow mein, including cilantro, carrots, green onions, and cabbage.
Cooked pasta ready to be added to the chicken chow mein recipe, perfectly cooked and ready to absorb flavors.
  1. Chicken Prep: Cut chicken, toss with baking soda, refrigerate 15 mins, rinse, dry.
  2. Veggie Prep: Shred cabbage, julienne carrots, slice celery and green onions, mince ginger and garlic.
  3. Sauce: Mix cornstarch, soy sauce, oyster sauce, chicken stock, brown sugar, sesame oil, pepper.
  4. Noodles: Cook, rinse, set aside.
  5. Cooking: Sauté onion whites, garlic, ginger, add chicken, then veggies, and noodles.
  6. Final Step: Add sauce, toss until evenly coated and heated.

A flavorful sauce being poured over the meal, enhancing the dish with rich and savory flavors.

Tips For Success

  1. Healthier Noodles: Substitute regular noodles with spiralized zucchini in you chicken chow mein.
  2. Ultra-Tender Chicken: Cut into small pieces, toss with baking soda, rinse, and dry. This method ensures tender chicken.
  3. Even Veggie Chopping: Chop vegetables in uniform sizes as specified for even cooking. Thin celery slices, julienned carrots, and shredded cabbage are ideal.

Bowl of the warm meal ready to be enjoyed, with perfectly seared vegetables and rich, flavorful sauce.

More Delicious Chicken Dinners

4.82 from 11 votes

Chicken Chow Mein

With chicken, veggies, and a delicious sauce, this simple Chicken Chow Mein is better than takeout.
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
Servings: 2 servings

Equipment

  • Large pan

Ingredients 
 

  • 1/2 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs
  • 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
  • 3 cups shredded green cabbage
  • 1-1/2 teaspoons minced ginger
  • 1-1/2 teaspoons minced garlic cloves
  • 3/4 cup julienned carrots
  • 3/4 cup thinly sliced celery
  • 1/4 cup green onions
  • 1-1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 1 (6-ounce) package chow mein noodles
  • 1/2 tablespoon cornstarch
  • 1-1/2 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce
  • 1-1/2 tablespoons oyster sauce
  • 1/3 cup chicken stock or chicken broth
  • 1 tablespoon light brown sugar lightly packed
  • 1/2 teaspoon toasted sesame oil or plain
  • 1/2 teaspoon pepper

Instructions 

  • Cut the chicken into small bite-sized pieces. Place in a small bowl and toss with baking soda. Place in the fridge, covered, for 15 minutes. This will make the chicken super tender! After 15 minutes, place chicken in a fine mesh sieve and rinse thoroughly. Pat dry with paper towels. This step is optional; you can simply chop the chicken and use it like that.
  • Have all the ingredients ready before beginning, because the cooking goes fast! Finely shred the cabbage, coarsely mince the ginger and garlic. Peel the carrot and then julienne into very small and thin pieces. I cut it into rounds and then matchsticks. Very thinly slice the celery. Thinly slice the green onions and separate the white root from the green. You should get about 1/4 cup thinly sliced white roots. Reserve the thinly sliced green part for later.
  • In a small bowl, whisk the cornstarch and soy sauce with a fork until completely smooth. Stir in the oyster sauce, chicken stock, brown sugar, sesame oil, and pepper. Whisk until smooth. Reserve for later.
  • Follow package directions to prepare the chow mein noodles. Rinse in cold water and set aside.
  • Heat vegetable oil over high heat in a large pan. Add the white roots of the onion for a minute or two and then the garlic and ginger. only cook for about 20 seconds and be very careful to make sure they don't burn. Add chicken and stir constantly for about 1 minute or until both sides are lightly browned.
  • Add shredded cabbage, julienned carrots, and thinly sliced celery to the pan. Stir continuously for about 1โ€“2 minutes, until the vegetables are crisp on the outside and tender inside, with the cabbage wilted. Then, stir in the cooked noodles and sauce mixture, tossing with tongs for 1 minute until the sauce thickens. Finally, add the thinly sliced tops of the green onions.

Video

Recipe Notes

Nutrition: The nutritional information includes chow mein noodles, but using a different type will affect the calculations.
Storage: Let the chow mein cool to room temperature, then transfer it to an airtight container and refrigerate for 3-4 days.

Nutrition

Serving: 1serving | Calories: 351kcal | Carbohydrates: 25g | Protein: 29g | Fat: 15g | Saturated Fat: 10g | Cholesterol: 74mg | Sodium: 1812mg | Potassium: 955mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 13g | Vitamin A: 8450IU | Vitamin C: 47mg | Calcium: 88mg | Iron: 2mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

 

Easy 30-minute chicken chow mein with tender chicken bites, plenty of veggies, and an addictive savory sauce coating it all. Today I'm sharing all my tips and tricks for how to make chicken chow mein BETTER than takeout! This is sure to be a hit! Recipe via chelseasmessyapron #eay #chinese #best #withcabbage

Meet Chelsea


Hello, and welcome to Chelseaโ€™s Messy Apron! Iโ€™m Chelsea, the recipe developer, food photographer, and writer behind the site. Iโ€™m passionate about creating simple, reliable, and delicious recipes that anyone can make.

Thanks for stopping byโ€”I hope you find something delicious to make!

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4.82 from 11 votes (1 rating without comment)

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27 Comments

  1. Erin says:

    5 stars
    Such an easy dinner and so good. It is a great way to us up whatever veggies I have in my fridge and avoid take out!

  2. Katerina says:

    mmm..this sounds incredibly delicious!! A must make!!

  3. Courtney says:

    5 stars
    This chow mein is just like takeout but so much better! Cant believe how easy it was.

    1. chelseamessyapron says:

      Thanks sooo much!! ๐Ÿ™‚

  4. Taylor says:

    5 stars
    Love the idea of making this at home! Healthier and just as delicious!

    1. chelseamessyapron says:

      That’s what I love about it too!! Thanks Taylor!! ๐Ÿ™‚

  5. Aimee says:

    5 stars
    This turned out fantastic. Can’t wait to eat the leftovers for lunch today.,

  6. Lallie says:

    5 stars
    Beautiful n delicious recipes
    Especially the noodles.

  7. Brenda says:

    Why can’t you use bottled chopped garlic in oil. It’s a time saver.

    1. chelseamessyapron says:

      It will burn at the high heat and give the whole dish an “off” (burned) taste.

  8. Lallie says:

    Thank you for sharing these amazing recipes.
    I love chow me In
    With some crunch in vegetables

    1. chelseamessyapron says:

      Hope you love it! ๐Ÿ™‚

  9. Malinda says:

    This looks like an awesome way to sneak in some extra veggies!!

  10. Cindy Ward says:

    HI Chelsea,

    I was turned on to your website by a co-worker and absolutely love your recipes! I’m a Type II diabetic so I can use a lot of the recipes however is there anyway you can start adding nutrition value? I shouldn’t have anything high in carbs and can’t tell just how high some of the recipes are.

    Thanks!