Most of This Chicken Chow Mein Is Done Before the Chicken Goes In

Chicken sounds like an ingredient that should hit the skillet near the start of chicken chow mein. In this version, most of dinner is already cooked before the chicken enters the pan.

Tanya Schroeder uses shredded rotisserie chicken, so there is no raw chicken to brown. The noodles cook first, mushrooms soften with garlic and ginger, and the sauce gets its own minute in the skillet. Chicken joins the noodles at the end for one final toss.

The Noodles Get Cooked on Their Own

Start with the noodles rather than the chicken.

Cook the noodles in boiling water for about five minutes, then drain them. Chinese egg noodles or lo mein noodles work here, but linguine, fettuccine, spaghetti, or ramen can stand in if needed.

Keep the drained noodles aside while the skillet gets started.

Mushrooms Hit the Skillet Before the Chicken

Heat two teaspoons oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.

Add shiitake mushrooms, garlic, and ginger. Cook until the mushrooms soften.

There is still no chicken in the skillet. Because the recipe starts with cooked rotisserie chicken, the vegetables get the first contact with the hot pan.

The Sauce Gets a Minute Before the Noodles

Combine soy sauce, chicken broth, oyster sauce, sugar, and red pepper flakes.

Pour the mixture over the mushrooms and cook for one minute.

This gives the sauce time in the skillet before either the cooked noodles or shredded chicken joins it.

Chicken Goes in With the Noodles

Now add the drained noodles and shredded rotisserie chicken at the same time.

Cook for about one minute, tossing everything together so the noodles and chicken get coated with the sauce.

That short final cook works because the chicken isn’t raw. It only needs to heat through while the ingredients come together.

Green Onions Finish the Chow Mein

Take the chow mein off the heat and scatter green onions over the top before serving.

Bell peppers or spinach can join the vegetables if there’s some in the refrigerator. The rotisserie chicken can also be swapped for cooked pork, shrimp, or tofu.

What changes the order here is starting with chicken that’s already cooked. By the time it reaches the skillet, the noodles are done, the mushrooms have softened, and the sauce has cooked. Chicken gets the final minute instead of the first.

Do you start chow mein with raw chicken, or use cooked chicken at the end?