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Photo: Christine Han
Active Time:30 minsTotal Time:30 minsServings:4Jump to Nutrition Facts
Active Time:30 minsTotal Time:30 minsServings:4
Active Time:30 mins
Active Time:
30 mins
Total Time:30 mins
Total Time:
Servings:4
Servings:
4
Jump to Nutrition Facts
Jump to recipe
Lunar New Year, also called Chinese New Year, is traditionally celebrated with myriad dishes deemed not just delicious, but auspicious, prepared with ingredients symbolizing luck, longevity, prosperity and more. It is a spring festival, observed on the traditional Chinese calendar, during which ancestors and deities are honored with rituals that include cleaning house, top to bottom, so as to literally to sweep away the old year in a spirit of renewal. Each year is named for an animal on the Chinese zodiac, 2021 being the Year of the Ox—a beast known for strength, intelligence and dependability.
Due to the pandemic, as we continue to quarantine and practice social distancing, this year’s celebrations must be considerably downscaled from how people traditionally celebrate. I grew up in San Francisco, and though I have lived in New York for the past 40 years I never missed going home, as a “dutiful daughter,” for Chinese New Year. For the holiday, my parents would cook eight special dishes for a sumptuous family feast. On New Year’s Eve, the table was set with our Canton rose-patterned porcelain dinnerware reserved for use only during the New Year! Abowl of gleaming citrus,their golden hues symbolizing good luck and the hope for prosperity, was the traditional centerpiece. The main dish had to be a whole poached fish with ginger and scallions. Why? The Chinese word for fish rhymes with “wish,” so eating fish guaranteed that your wishes for health, wealth and longevity would come true. For prosperity, my parents stir-fried clams with black bean sauce; for growing fortunes, they made stir-fried lettuce; for a proper beginning and end to the year, there was poached chicken with scallion and ginger sauce; for good fortune, we ate oyster-vegetable lettuce wraps; for bounty, there was roast pork; for abundance, we had stir-fried bok choy; and finally, there was Buddha’s Delight, also for prosperity.
With such succulent foods and joyous times in mind, I’ve developed a quick and easy recipe geared to home cooks: Longevity Noodles with Spicy Pork and Vegetables. It calls for ingredients that honor Chinese tradition with their symbolic meanings: lo mein noodles for longevity; pork for bounty and family unity; cilantro for compassion; scallions for intelligence; bok choy for abundance and prosperity; and mushrooms for quick-growing prosperity. If you can’t find fresh lo mein noodles feel free to substitute spaghetti or linguine, and if shiitakes are unavailable use button mushrooms instead.
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Ingredients
12ouncesfresh lo mein noodles (see Tips)
1teaspoonsesame oil
12ouncespork loin, butt or shoulder, cut into scant 1/4-inch-thick slices
1 ½teaspoonscornstarch
1teaspoonShao Hsing rice wine or dry sherry, plus 1 tablespoon, divided
1teaspoonreduced-sodium soy sauce, plus 1 tablespoon, divided (see Tips)
½teaspoonsalt, divided
2teaspoonschile-garlic sauce (see Tips)
2tablespoonspeanut oil or canola oil
1tablespoonminced ginger
4ouncesfresh shiitake mushrooms, caps removed and cut into scant 1/4-inch slices (about 2 cups)
½cupthinly sliced scallions
¼cupfresh cilantro sprigs
DirectionsBring about 2 quarts water to a boil in a large pot over high heat. Add noodles, return to a rolling boil and cook according to package directions until al dente. Carefully pour the noodles into a colander and rinse with several changes of cold water. Shake well to remove excess water. Return the noodles to the unwashed pot, add sesame oil and toss until well combined. Set aside.Place pork in a shallow bowl. Add cornstarch, 1 teaspoon rice wine (or sherry), 1 teaspoon soy sauce and 1/4 teaspoon salt; toss well to coat. Combine chile-garlic sauce and the remaining 1 tablespoon each rice wine (or sherry) and soy sauce in a small bowl.Heat a 14-inch flat-bottomed wok over high heat until a bead of water vaporizes within 1 to 2 seconds of contact. Swirl in 1 tablespoon peanut (or vegetable) oil and add ginger; using a metal spatula, stir-fry until the ginger is fragrant, about 10 seconds. Push the ginger to the sides of the wok, carefully add the pork and spread evenly in one layer. Cook undisturbed for 1 minute. Stir-fry until the pork begins to brown, about 1 minute. Add bok choy and mushrooms; stir-fry until the bok choy is just wilted but the pork is not cooked through, about 1 minute. Swirl the remaining 1 tablespoon peanut (or vegetable) oil into the wok. Add the noodles and stir-fry until just combined, about 15 seconds. Stir the soy sauce mixture and swirl it into wok. Add scallions, cilantro and the remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt; stir-fry until the pork is cooked through and the noodles are heated through, about 2 minutes.Equipment14-inch flat-bottomed wokTipsFind fresh lo mein noodles in the refrigerator section of most Asian markets. You can substitute fresh linguine.We recommend Yamasa Less Salt Soy Sauce for its superior flavor compared to other brands.If you can’t find chile-garlic sauce, you can substitute Sriracha and add 1 teaspoon minced garlic when you add ginger to the wok.EatingWell.com, February 2021
Directions
Bring about 2 quarts water to a boil in a large pot over high heat. Add noodles, return to a rolling boil and cook according to package directions until al dente. Carefully pour the noodles into a colander and rinse with several changes of cold water. Shake well to remove excess water. Return the noodles to the unwashed pot, add sesame oil and toss until well combined. Set aside.Place pork in a shallow bowl. Add cornstarch, 1 teaspoon rice wine (or sherry), 1 teaspoon soy sauce and 1/4 teaspoon salt; toss well to coat. Combine chile-garlic sauce and the remaining 1 tablespoon each rice wine (or sherry) and soy sauce in a small bowl.Heat a 14-inch flat-bottomed wok over high heat until a bead of water vaporizes within 1 to 2 seconds of contact. Swirl in 1 tablespoon peanut (or vegetable) oil and add ginger; using a metal spatula, stir-fry until the ginger is fragrant, about 10 seconds. Push the ginger to the sides of the wok, carefully add the pork and spread evenly in one layer. Cook undisturbed for 1 minute. Stir-fry until the pork begins to brown, about 1 minute. Add bok choy and mushrooms; stir-fry until the bok choy is just wilted but the pork is not cooked through, about 1 minute. Swirl the remaining 1 tablespoon peanut (or vegetable) oil into the wok. Add the noodles and stir-fry until just combined, about 15 seconds. Stir the soy sauce mixture and swirl it into wok. Add scallions, cilantro and the remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt; stir-fry until the pork is cooked through and the noodles are heated through, about 2 minutes.Equipment14-inch flat-bottomed wokTipsFind fresh lo mein noodles in the refrigerator section of most Asian markets. You can substitute fresh linguine.We recommend Yamasa Less Salt Soy Sauce for its superior flavor compared to other brands.If you can’t find chile-garlic sauce, you can substitute Sriracha and add 1 teaspoon minced garlic when you add ginger to the wok.
Bring about 2 quarts water to a boil in a large pot over high heat. Add noodles, return to a rolling boil and cook according to package directions until al dente. Carefully pour the noodles into a colander and rinse with several changes of cold water. Shake well to remove excess water. Return the noodles to the unwashed pot, add sesame oil and toss until well combined. Set aside.
Place pork in a shallow bowl. Add cornstarch, 1 teaspoon rice wine (or sherry), 1 teaspoon soy sauce and 1/4 teaspoon salt; toss well to coat. Combine chile-garlic sauce and the remaining 1 tablespoon each rice wine (or sherry) and soy sauce in a small bowl.
Heat a 14-inch flat-bottomed wok over high heat until a bead of water vaporizes within 1 to 2 seconds of contact. Swirl in 1 tablespoon peanut (or vegetable) oil and add ginger; using a metal spatula, stir-fry until the ginger is fragrant, about 10 seconds. Push the ginger to the sides of the wok, carefully add the pork and spread evenly in one layer. Cook undisturbed for 1 minute. Stir-fry until the pork begins to brown, about 1 minute. Add bok choy and mushrooms; stir-fry until the bok choy is just wilted but the pork is not cooked through, about 1 minute. Swirl the remaining 1 tablespoon peanut (or vegetable) oil into the wok. Add the noodles and stir-fry until just combined, about 15 seconds. Stir the soy sauce mixture and swirl it into wok. Add scallions, cilantro and the remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt; stir-fry until the pork is cooked through and the noodles are heated through, about 2 minutes.
Equipment14-inch flat-bottomed wok
Equipment
14-inch flat-bottomed wok
TipsFind fresh lo mein noodles in the refrigerator section of most Asian markets. You can substitute fresh linguine.We recommend Yamasa Less Salt Soy Sauce for its superior flavor compared to other brands.If you can’t find chile-garlic sauce, you can substitute Sriracha and add 1 teaspoon minced garlic when you add ginger to the wok.
Tips
Find fresh lo mein noodles in the refrigerator section of most Asian markets. You can substitute fresh linguine.We recommend Yamasa Less Salt Soy Sauce for its superior flavor compared to other brands.If you can’t find chile-garlic sauce, you can substitute Sriracha and add 1 teaspoon minced garlic when you add ginger to the wok.
Find fresh lo mein noodles in the refrigerator section of most Asian markets. You can substitute fresh linguine.
We recommend Yamasa Less Salt Soy Sauce for its superior flavor compared to other brands.
If you can’t find chile-garlic sauce, you can substitute Sriracha and add 1 teaspoon minced garlic when you add ginger to the wok.
EatingWell.com, February 2021
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Nutrition Facts(per serving)441Calories28gFat54gCarbs28gProtein
Nutrition Facts(per serving)
- Daily Values (DVs) are the recommended amounts of nutrients to consume each day. Percent Daily Value (%DV) found on nutrition labels tells you how much a serving of a particular food or recipe contributes to each of those total recommended amounts. Per the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the daily value is based on a standard 2,000 calorie diet. Depending on your calorie needs or if you have a health condition, you may need more or less of particular nutrients. (For example, it’s recommended that people following a heart-healthy diet eat less sodium on a daily basis compared to those following a standard diet.)
(-) Information is not currently available for this nutrient. If you are following a special diet for medical reasons, be sure to consult with your primary care provider or a registered dietitian to better understand your personal nutrition needs.
