Chao Mian Hunan style

Ingredients for 4 servings:

• 500 g chicken breast fillet(s)
• 1 stalk(s) leek
• 100 g celeriac
• 2 large pointed peppers, yellow
• 150 g mushrooms, fresh
• 150 g pepper, extra hot, from the jar
• 160 g bean sprouts, drained weight
• 100 g pineapple from the can, drained weight
• 130 g Chinese egg noodles (Mie noodles)
• 300 ml instant chicken broth
• 100 ml tomato ketchup
• 3 tbsp soy sauce
• 3 tbsp oil, neutral in taste (not olive oil)
• 2 tsp spice mix (Chinese spice)
• 3 pinches of ginger powder
• 3 pinches of ground cumin
• Salt
• some sauce thickener, light

Instructions

Working time approx. 30 minutes; Total time approx. 30 minutes

China – noodles with chicken and vegetables, spicy

Rinse the chicken with cold water, pat dry, and cut into bite-sized cubes. Wash and trim the vegetables; thinly slice the leek, finely dice the celery, quarter the bell pepper lengthwise and cut into thick slices, slice the mushrooms into regular slices and the chili peppers into very fine slices; drain the bean sprouts and pineapple, and roughly dice the pineapple. Prepare the chicken stock according to the package instructions and heat it up. Cook the mie noodles for a little less time than indicated on the package and refresh with plenty of cold water. Heat the oil in a wok as hot as possible and fry the chicken until very hot, stirring constantly. Dust with the Chinese spice. Gradually add all the vegetables over the highest possible heat and fry as hot as possible, stirring constantly. Mix in the tomato ketchup and soy sauce thoroughly. Pour in a little hot chicken stock, stir in the pineapple cubes while stirring constantly, then thoroughly fold in the mie noodles until evenly distributed. Continue stirring and gradually add the remaining hot chicken stock. Season with ginger and cumin and add a little salt to taste. Finally, bring to a boil and stir in enough sauce thickener until the sauce is thickened. The difference between the well-known Chao Mein and Chao Mian is that Chao Mein, which probably originated in America around 1900, is made with crispy fried noodles, whereas the traditional original Chao Mian from China is made with soft boiled noodles. This recipe has been slightly Europeanized. The heat in the wok required for the original recipe cannot be achieved on standard household gas or electric stoves anyway. European palates will also enjoy the same recipe with turkey breast.