Indian Chinese Noodles/Vegetable chow mein/sweet and sour gravy/ Crispy veges and noodles

I am a great fan of Mrs, Chellam Gopalakrishnan (Menu rani), an experienced teacher and cook. I follow all her programmes both live and cookery shows, where she shares her culinary knowledge and tips. This Indo-chinese dish was one which i watched in a popular tamil TV channel.
The recipes contains:
1. Vegetable Chow Mein (with stir fried noodles and not deep fried noodles)
2.Sweet and sour vegetables
3. Crispy vegetables
4. Crispy Noodles (deep fried half cooked noodles)
The list of ingredients that go into this is quite big. Also the method to prepare takes time. This involves lot of cutting vegetables (julienne,shred and chop), boiling, stir frying, and deep frying .To make it easier it is done in four stages. When planned well in advance and prepared with interest, the final product will be so yummy and a healthy one. Give a try to this budget friendly recipe at home.

1. Vegetable Chow Mein is a quick and easy stir fry vegetable and noodles.

INGREDIENTS FOR VEGETARIAN CHOW MEIN (WITH STIR FRIED NOODLES)

Hakka noodles	1 pkt
Carrot	1
Beans	10 to 15
Red,green and yellow bell peppers	½ each
Onion	1
Green chili	1 to 2
Celery	1 stalk
Leek	1 lea
MSG,Sodium Glutamate (Ajino moto)	¼ tsp
Soy sauce	1 tblsp
Salt	To taste

 

Preparation:
Cut vegetables in julienne, slice onion and slit green chili.
METHOD
Cook noodles, drain and run under cold water. Toss with a teaspoon of oil and keep aside.
Heat oil (1/4 cup) in a wok.
Add sliced onion and slit green chili and saute.
When the onion turns light pink, add celery and leak. Then add carot, beans and stir fry. Add the three colors of capsicum and stir,
Add salt, soy sauce and MSG and mix.
Add the cooked noodles and mix well when the wok is still on high heat.
Remove and set aside.

2. Sweet and sour vegetables. This is a spicy gravy a combo for stir fried chow mein noodles and fried noddles too.

INGREDIENTS FOR SWEET AND SOUR VEGETABLES

Cucumber	1
Carrot	1
Green bell pepper	1
Onion	1
Sugar	¼ cup
Vinegar	¼ cup
Tomato sauce	1/2 cup
Corn flour	¼ cup
Celery, leek and spring onion	For garnish and salt to  taste

Preparation:

Cut Onions into rings, carot and cucumber into round slices and green bell pepper into big flat pieces. Finely chop celery, leaks and spring onion for garnish.

METHOD

Boil water in a sauce pan/vessel. Add the cut vegetables  and cook adding salt.

When the vegetable is cooked, add sugar, vinegar and tomato sauce and mix.

Meanwhile in a bowl take cornflour and add 1/4 cup water and mix well.

Add this to pan and stir briskly. Finally add cut celery,leek and spring onion and remove. Set this aside.

3.& 4.Crispy vegetables and crispy noodles. This is a snack by itself. The veges used are easy to cook and takes less time to fry.  The vegetables need to be cut in stripes and marinated for a while, then coated in corn slurry and deep fried.

Noodles	½ to 1 pkt
Oil	For deep fry
Cabbage	1 cup shredded
Spring onion	2 stalks
Celery	1 stalk
Leek	1 leaf
Corn flour	½ cup
Soy sauce	1 tblsp
MSG,Sodium glutamate (Ajino moto)	½ tsp
Chilli sauce	2 tblsp
Salt	To taste

Preparation:

Make jullienne of celery, leek,spring onion and cabbage.

In a bowl take the cut vegetables and add salt, MSG, chilli sauce and soy sauce and mix well and leave it for 10 min to marinate.

Cook noodles in boiling water till half done. Drain and keep aside.

METHOD

Heat oil in a frying pan.

In a bowl take corn flour and add 1/2 cup water to this and mix.

Dip the marinated vegetable strips in the corn slurry and deep fry in hot oil in batches and keep aside.

Fry the cooked and drained noodles in batches and keep it ready.

For final presentation we need to

Garnish with raw Vegetables (julienne of) 3 colors of bell peppers, spring onion and shredded cabbage. Dash of tomato sauce and chilli sauce.

Assembling the dish before serving:

1. Take chow mein in a plate and spread.

2. Pour sweet and sour gravy all over it.

3. Sprinkle the fried vegetables.

4. Place the fried noodles on it,

5. Sprinkle tomato sauce and chilli sauce. Garnish with raw vegetables.

Assembling can be done in batches as required per person. 

The recipe prepared as above serves 4 people.

Note :

For crispy fried vegetables you can refer this link.

https://smokeandthyme.com/2013/10/21/crispy-leek-and-celeriac-fritters-and-tips-for-deep-frying/

My long cherished wish was fulfilled when I made this. I dedicate this to Mrs. Chellam.