Chinese people have spread all over the world for hundreds of years. And so is their incredibly delicious cuisine. Including the chop suey and the chow mein.
But a lot of people tend to get confused with this two so in this article, you'll be getting to know them so just keep reading and here is the Chop Suey VS Chow Mein: What’s the Difference
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WHAT IS CHOP SUEY?
- It is basically Chinese dish that literally means “assorted pieces”
- It consists of any meat like chicken, beef, pork or seafood. It also has eggs and vegetables like cabbage, celery and bean sprouts that are sautéed in the starch-thickened sauce
- It cannot just be found in a China but also is very known in the United States, Philippines, Canada, Germany and India. They all have their different versions of chop suey
- However, it is said to be invented in the US and not in China. It was apparently invented by Chinese immigrants in the US in the 1890s.
- There is also a story that chop suey was actually created during the Qing Dynasty when Li Hongzhang went to the US and his chef attempted to make a dish suitable for Chinese and Americans that led to this dish.
VARIATIONS OF CHOP SUEY
FILIPINO CUISINE
Chop Suey is a very famous dish in the Philippines. It is widely known to have mixed vegetables like carrots, cabbage, peas, cauliflower and etc.
A type of meat like pork, chicken, beef and even pork liver is added to it. It is often served with white rice.
AMERICAN CUISINE
Unlike the Filipino version of chop suey, the American version is a little bit different since it actually has pasta on it. It consists of elbow macaroni with ground beef that is sautéed in onions and green peppers together with thick tomato sauce that looks a lot like chili Mac.
It is often cook in a pan over stove top or being baked in the oven. It is served on a bowl with a bread and Worcestershire sauce but It is rather like a mix of Italian and American cuisine instead of Chinese and American.
WHAT IS CHOW MEIN?
Many people tend to think that chow mein is actually the same as chop seuy. But the truth is, the word chow actually means fried and the word mein means noodles.
Chow mein is popular in India, Nepal, England and United States.
VARIATIONS OF CHOW MEIN
AUSTRALIAN CHINESE CUISINE
The traditional chow mein has noodles from eggs and they will stir fry it until the noodles are crispy enough. It is combined with seafood or barbecue pork.
Their sauce has garlic, red wine, salt and corn flour. There are no specific vegetables for this, any type of greens will do.
PERUVIAN CHINESE CUISINE
This Chinese dish from Peru is quite different from the others since it has peppers, onions, green onions and tomatoes on it.
NEPALESE CHINESE CUISINE
What is so unique about the Nepalese version of chow mein is that they use water buffalo meat from the Kathmandu Valley.
Although, they also use chicken, they use the water buffalo more and mix it with vegetables and fried noodles.
INDIAN CHINESE CUISINE
Another version is the one from India where they add gravy on their chow mein. It also has mixed vegetables and noodles but some add chili garlic or hot garlic on it.
AMERICAN CHINESE CUISINE
The American version is just like the typical chow mein but they offer to kinds of noodles which are crispy and steamed.
The crispy chow mein are flat and fried whereas the steamed chow mein are long and rounded. And since this is American, they also made a hamburger style chow mein.
RECIPE FOR CHOP SUEY
INGREDIENTS NEEDED:
Chicken & Marinade
12 oz Chicken thighs pieces
1 tsp Shaoxing Chinese Wine
2 tsp Oyster sauce
2 tsp Corn Starch
Vegetables & Sauce
2 TBS Vegetable oil
2 tsp Garlic
1 Celery Stalk
Bok Choy Stalks
1/2 Bell Pepper
3 Green Onions
6 - Snow Peas
6 - Mushrooms
1/4 Cup - Carrots
1/2 tsp - Salt
1/2 tsp - White Pepper
1 Cup - Chicken broth
2 TBS - Oyster Sauce
1 TBS Cornstarch and 1 TBS Water (mixed together)
Directions
- STep 1
- Step 2
- Step 3
- STEP 4
- STEP 5
- STEP 6
- STEP 7
Firstly you have to combine chicken, wine, oyster sauce and cornstarch together and let it sit and marinade for about 15 minutes.
How to Make the BEST Chicken Chop Suey - Chinese Food Recipe Via TheWolfePit
RECIPE FOR CHOW MEIN
INGREDIENTS
For Marinate Chicken
1 (1/2 lb.) Boneless, skinless chicken breast
1 tsp. Soy sauce
1 Tbs.Shaoxing wine (Chinese cooking wine), sake or dry sherry wine
½ tsp. Chinese five spice
½ tsp. Baking soda
Pinch of black pepper
For the Sauce
3 Tbs.Oyster sauce
½ cup Chicken stock
3 Cloves garlic (approximately 1 Tbs.)
1 oz. Fresh ginger (approximately ½ Tbs.)
1 Red chili
For the Vegetables & Noodles
10 oz. Precooked & ready to use Chinese egg noodles
2 oz. Shiitake or button mushrooms
4 oz. Bamboo shoot
4 oz. Baby bok choy
3 Green onions
4 oz. Bean sporouts
For Garnish
1 tsp. Toasted sesame oil
1 tsp. Toasted sesame seeds
For Stri Fry
3 Tbs. Cooking oil
Procedure
- STep 1
- Step 2
- Step 3
- STEP 4
- STEP 5
- STEP 6
- STEP 7
- STEP 8
- STEP 9
- STEP 10
- STEP 11
Firstly you should slice chicken the breast into bite sizes by using a sharp knive.
Asian at Home | Easy Chicken Chow Mein Via Seonkyoung Longest
CONCLUSION
Let's summarize the differences of chop suey and chow mein shall we? Chop suey is paired with rice and has a little bit of sauce on it while chow mein can have different noodles on it. Ther ar more varieties of chow mein than chop suey.
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