---
title: 'Why learning how to make Lo Mein changed my life.'
source: 'https://youtube.com/watch?v=eoRrxpErI0o'
video_id: 'eoRrxpErI0o'
date: 2026-06-29
duration_sec: 1007
---

# Why learning how to make Lo Mein changed my life.

> Source: [Why learning how to make Lo Mein changed my life.](https://youtube.com/watch?v=eoRrxpErI0o)

## Summary



## Transcript

In this video, we're doing a deep dive
into Lain, and I'm going to show you
three very different versions you can
make. But first, I need to tell you why
I was wrong about Lain. You see, I've
never really been a big fan of this
dish. And that's mainly because every
time I order it for takeout, it looks
like this. Mostly noodles, barely any
protein or vegetables, and the flavor is
just fine. It's not bad, but I'd almost
always rather be going to town on
something like Sichuan beef or Kungpow
chicken instead. However, that
completely changed once I started making
it at home. And I now believe that low
mane is one of the most useful dishes
you can learn for three reasons. First,
it's one of the easiest ways to turn
random fridge leftovers into a great
weekn night meal. Second, it's
incredibly customizable. Once you
understand the framework, you can make a
high protein, low calorie version or go
all in on something like a spicy beef
lain that will surely tickle the taste
buds. And third, which is the biggest
one, it makes what might be the best
leftovers of all time. So throughout
this video, we're going to break down
the low main framework and I'll show you
all the choices I made to make three
different versions. And by the end, I
promise you'll know how to create a bowl
of glossy, deeply seasoned noodles with
crisp vegetables and tender, flavorful
protein exactly how you like it. So, I'm
going to meet you back here for a final
taste test with our three homemade
versions versus this takeout version.
But to start, let's talk about the
noodles. And I think this is one of the
biggest upgrades you can make over
takeout because of one thing, texture
control.
Traditionally, Lomain uses a wheat-based
noodle, and sometimes they'll be made
with egg like these fresh Lain noodles,
which gives them that slight yellow
color, and more importantly, that
springy, chewy texture that holds up
really well to the sauce, vegetables,
and protein. And how you cook your
noodles is really important because if
you go to a buffet or a lot of takeout
spots, those lowmade noodles have
usually been cooked ahead of time and
are sitting around in the sauce. So by
the time you actually eat them, they're
just kind of soft and not that
interesting. However, when you make them
at home, you have full control. You can
cook them fresh and keep that springy
chew and bite, which I find absolutely
addictive. Now, the biggest mistake that
most people make when it comes to the
noodles are not knowing which ones to
buy because there are definitely some
differences. However, if you go to an
Asian grocery store, you're usually
going to see three main categories.
First are fresh noodles. These are often
coated in a little bit of starch to keep
them from sticking and then need to be
boiled for a few minutes like fresh
pasta. Second are parcooked noodles.
These noodles are partially cooked and
then lightly coated in a bit of oil, so
they're very quick to work with. And
lastly are dried noodles, which are more
similar to something like a dried pasta
and need to be fully cooked in boiled
water before using. Now, you could
absolutely use things like spaghetti,
ramen, or really any stir- fry noodle
and still get a good result. But I do
think it's worth grabbing either the
fresh or parcooked noodles when you can
because part of the fun is just those
slight differences in the shape and
texture. And I found three different
versions at the store that I want to
try. So, for our classic takeout lain,
I'm going to use standard fresh lomain
noodles. For the spicy beef, I found
these thicker broad noodles, which you
can see they've just got a bit more
texture to them for the sauce. And then
for the high protein version, I found
these thinner noodles. I'm going to use
slightly less noodles. So, I want them
evenly spread throughout the dish. And
now that we have our noodle choices, the
next big mistake that most people make
after buying them is just overcooking
the noodles. So, whatever the package
says, I would recommend sticking to the
lower end of that range because they're
going to cook a little bit more once
they are tossed with the sauce. And this
brings us to our second component and a
question that I've had for a long time.
What actually is the difference between
lain and chowine? I've never fully
understood the difference here because
the way these terms are used and what
dish is actually served to you at a
restaurant could definitely vary quite a
bit from place to place. But as far as I
can tell, the key difference should be
how the noodles are actually cooked with
the sauce. Linguistically, chowine
translates to stir fried noodles, which
would mean they're cooked directly in
the pan, and you actually want to
develop some browning or crispness on
the noodles themselves. And like other
stir fries, seasonings and sauces are
typically added, but it's definitely on
the drier side. Lain, on the other hand,
translates to toss noodles. And while
it's still made in the walk, you are
essentially tossing the noodles with the
sauce rather than focusing on kind of
stir frying them until they're crisp.
Now, in practice, there's definitely
some overlap and inconsistency here.
Like, I've definitely ordered a chowine
that was fairly saucy. So, you might
want to double check a menu or ask your
waiter if you are ordering this dish.
However, the best part again about
making it at home is that you can
control the texture exactly how you like
it. Now, the tricky part when it comes
to the sauce is everybody makes it
slightly different. And if you watch a
bunch of recipes online, it's actually
pretty hard to tell what every
ingredient is doing. So, I'm going to
break down the general sauce flavor
profile, then show you the three
specific variations I made so we can see
how the ingredients are going to change
the flavor in the final taste test.
At a high level, low main sauce is
primarily salty and umami with a little
bit of sweetness, some savory aromomas,
and then we want the texture thick
enough so it clings to the noodles. And
once you understand that, all of these
ingredients you'll see in recipes start
to make a lot more sense because they're
playing these specific roles. So, first
we have the salty and umami ingredients.
These are things like the oyster sauce,
light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, and
chicken bullion. They're all primarily
bringing salty and umami taste. Then you
have your sweet ingredients. Oyster
sauce actually has some sugar in it
already, but you'll typically see plain
sugar added as well. And other options
could be honey or even something like
hoen. Now, the goal isn't to make it so
sweet like a sweet and sour sauce, for
example. It's more just to have enough
sweetness to balance out the salt and
make everything more around it. Then
finally, we have what I think of as the
aroma and finishing ingredients. So
these are things like sesame oil or
chili oil, white pepper, chicken broth,
water, or some Chinese cooking wine. And
all of these are going to add a little
fragrance and complexity and make that
sauce feel more complete. And lastly,
there's typically a thickener like a
cornstarch lur to make it all saucy and
cohesive for the noodles. And now that
we understand the core elements at play
here, let me show you the three
different versions of the sauce that I
made. For the classic takeout version, I
started with two parts or 50 g of oyster
sauce, then one part of soy sauce, but I
split this up into 20 g of light soy
sauce and 5 g of dark soy sauce. Then I
added a spoonful of chicken bullyan
powder along with 10 g of sugar. And I
finished it with some white pepper and a
splash of water just to thin out the
sauce. And this first one is a pretty
classic slightly sweeter profile which
as you can see is going to create that
nicely seasoned noodle with that slight
brownish tint. Now if we take a look at
the spicy beef lain, you'll notice the
noodles are quite a bit darker. And this
is because I changed a few ingredients.
Again, I started with that 50 gram of
oyster sauce, but this time I went for
just 10 grams of light soy sauce and
then added 10 gram of dark soy sauce.
So, quite a bit more. I also added 5 g
of beef wan and I didn't add any extra
sugar. So, this is going to give us a
darker, more savory sauce. And the
reason this works is because it's going
to stand up to the rest of the dish,
which is richer beef, heavier spicy
aromatics. So, everything is going to
stay balanced instead of getting washed
out. Then lastly, if we look at the
chicken lain, this is going to have the
lightest of all the sauces. So for this
one, I used 25 g of light soy sauce, 10
g of sugar, 15 g of oyster sauce, 5 g of
some chicken bullion, and then just
added water to thin it out. So to sum it
up, we kind of have three different
sauce flavor profiles. First, we have
that balanced salty umami and slightly
sweet classic takeout sauce. Then we
have that darker, roastier sauce, which
is going to hold up really well to the
beef and the chilies. And lastly, a
lighter chicken forward sauce that is
going to pair very well with lots of
vegetables. And once you've chosen your
sauce, this is where things start to
open up because next we're going to
layer in the fresh aromatics. And this
is a very fun area of low mane you can
experiment with.
The way the aromatics work is simple.
Dice or mince them up, add them to the
hot oil to bloom, then pour your sauce
over the top. And this fresh aromatic
layer is going to balance the richness
of the sauce and make the dish feel more
complete. Now, traditionally, Lman keeps
it pretty simple. Usually, just some
garlic and maybe some ginger. But at
home, you can use up any aromatic
vegetable you may happen to have laying
around. This could be ginger, leaks,
fresh chilies, onions, shallots, any
pepper, or any vegetable that's
aromatic. So, for my versions, I went in
three different aromatic directions. For
the first one, I kept it simple with
just a lot of garlic. You can't really
go wrong there. But for the spicy beef
version, I use diced shallot and Thai
bird's eyee chilis. And this is where
I'm going to build in that heat and
intensity. The chilis are going to bring
that sharp, punchy spice that is going
to help cut through the richer beef and
sauce. Then for the lighter chicken
lain, I went with the classic ginger and
garlic combo. The ginger just helps keep
everything fresh and almost clean while
making that dish feel light and on your
feet, ready to go after a workout. So,
now that we have our noodles, sauce, and
aromatics, you could technically stop
right here and have a really solid lain.
But to me, where this dish becomes
genuinely useful and almost kind of
life-changing is in the proteins and
vegetables because this is where lain
turns into a system. You can make it
lighter, you can make it high protein,
you can use up leftovers or build it
around whatever you have in your fridge.
So, let me show you the choices that I
made for the vegetables and protein, but
try to keep in mind the choices that you
may want to make as we go.
For the protein, the process is simple.
We're first going to lightly marinate
it, then just cook everything separately
in a high heat walk to develop some
browning. And the three most common
options you'll see at a takeout spot are
chicken, beef, and shrimp. So, that's
what I'm doing today. Starting with the
shrimp, I added some frozen, peeled, and
de vained shrimp into a bowl. And then
added a sprinkle of salt and just a tiny
drizzle of sesame oil. And when this
cooks up, the shrimp is going to be nice
and tender and just add that little bit
of sesame aroma. Now, for the beef, I'm
doing a slightly more involved marinade.
So, I started by slicing a piece of
sirloin into strips, but really any cut
of beef will work. Then I added the beef
to a bowl along with a splash of light
soy sauce, a little bit of sugar, a
pinch of baking soda to help tenderize
it, a spoonful of chili crisp for some
heat and fat, then a bit of cornstarch
to help it brown and stay juicy. Mix
that together and you get these nicely
coated, well seasoned pieces of beef.
Then for the chicken, again, I'm keeping
it pretty simple here. A splash of light
soy sauce, a little chicken bullion
powder to really boost that chicken
flavor, some sesame oil for more aroma,
and then a bit of Chinese cooking wine.
Mix that up and you've got a really
clean, wellseeed base. And now that
we've got our proteins covered, let's
talk the vegetables. And this is where I
think Lain really starts to shine
because the vegetables are what are
going to bring the color, texture, and a
lot of the visual appeal.
So, the general approach is simple.
First, we're going to choose a variety
of colored vegetables. Then, we're going
to slice the vegetables to roughly match
the shape of the noodles. So, longer and
thinner pieces. Then we're going to cook
the hearty vegetables in the walk with a
little salt or soy sauce and a splash of
Chinese cooking wine. And lastly, stir
the fresher vegetables in at the end. So
these are things like bean sprouts and
scallions. So for a shrimp version, I
went pretty classic with carrots, red
onion, cabbage, and then some bean
sprouts and green onions, which I'm
going to toss in at the end. So you can
see me cooking up the carrots, onions,
and cabbage first. Then once everything
else is in there, I threw the sprouts
and scallions in with those noodles. For
the spicy beef, I mixed it up a little
bit. I used some bell peppers, carrots,
green onions, and then I found these
really nice mushrooms. And this is a
good example of thinking about contrast.
You've got the darker mushrooms, the
bright peppers, and everything's going
to play off each other nice and
visually. Then for the chicken version,
to make a lower calorie version, I kind
of upped the amount of vegetables. I use
some Chinese broccoli, yellow squash,
bell pepper, red onion, and bean
sprouts, which are tossed in at the end.
And as you can see, all of these choices
really layer together. They're all low
main, but visually they have a
completely different feel depending on
the vegetables we use. So now let's do a
final taste test and compare them to the
takeout version. Okay, so let's do the
final taste test. I have already kind of
tasted them individually as I was making
them. But it's always so illuminating
when you actually taste things side by
side. So let's do just that. And I think
right away we can see the takeout lain.
Like this is what I feel like I would
always get into. It feels like it's
mostly noodles. Like there are some
vegetables. There's some bell peppers.
There's a little broccoli in here. There
are some pieces of chicken, but overall
it kind of feels like more of noodles.
But let's give it a shot.
So, I've not ordered from this
particular place before, but I would say
that echoes my common experience with
lain and why I was never a big fan of
it. It's kind of one of those dishes
where it's just kind of fine. It doesn't
make me feel anything. It's it's a dish
that I would hope maybe someone else
would order so I could have like a bite
or two of it, but I would much rather be
ordering a lot of other things on the
menu. However, like I said, that changed
when I started making it at home. And as
you can see right away visually with the
ratios of kind of the noodles and
proteins very different in our homemade
versions. And that's why I think it's
just such a good dish to make at home
because, you know, mostly noodles versus
mostly protein and vegetables or kind of
half and half rather. Um, not to mention
the different flavor profiles as well.
So, for this first one, sauce and
noodle-wise, I would say this is fairly
close to the kind of takeout version.
Again, very similar noodles, a little
bit thicker, which I like over the
takeout version. And then the sauce,
it's a little bit sweet, a little umami,
a little salty, but not any way
overpowering. Just like a good classic.
You could mix up this version with any
variety of like vegetables and proteins.
You're going to be in for a good time.
However, now we're going to move to
number two, and this is the spicy beef
lain, which I love spicy stuff. So, this
is not something that you can really
order a lot of places. So, more beefy
sauce, spicy components in here. Let's
get into it.
For me, I think this is like the best
lain that I've ever had because I kind
of made it exactly how I wanted it. Um,
but the spiciness you get from those tai
bird's eye chilis and then the sauce
isn't quite as sweet, but it's it's much
more savory from kind of that um the
beef bullion we put in there. And then
the the tender beef pieces are just
really nice to bite into. And then I
really like that mix of kind of the
mushroom with the bell peppers and you
get a little freshness from those
scallions in there. Um, for me that's
yeah, this is probably the best lain
I've ever had. I think noodle-wise these
are a decent option, although I think I
do like the texture of kind of those
fresh lain noodles. Little bit thicker.
These are a little bit thinner, but
still really, really good. And lastly,
let's kind of go to our healthy chicken
um lain. So, more vegetables, more
protein in this, just less noodles to
kind of lower the calorie count.
It's crazy how the ginger comes through
in this. It makes such a big difference.
Like, you get Thai chilis here. You get
kind of just garlic here. Um, the ginger
just it it makes it feel more healthy.
Um, I just I really like ginger for
being like a lower calorie kind of
healthier version. This one is
surprisingly good.
So, this taste test totally sums up why
I'm such a big fan of making low mane at
home. Each of these kind of brings
something else to the table. Um, and
they're kind of like an upgrade over
over, you know, the takeout version,
which again, it's fine, but again, when
you can mix in more vegetables, which
when you can change your sauces, change
up the aromatics, and really shape the
direction of your dish, it's really,
really fun. So, we're going to have
recipes for each of these linked down
below, as well as in the Cookwell app.
And we're going to have a low man
framework as well where you can actually
edit your ingredients to match whatever
you may have in the fridge, freezer, and
pantry to make some great low man at
home. But anyway, that is going to wrap
it up for me in this one. Let me know
which version of these you want to make
down below, but I will catch you all in
the next one. Peace y'all.