Chicken and vegetable mee goreng

People with university-age children or grandchildren will be familiar with mee goreng – after all, it’s a late-night studying staple. But you’ve never tried it quite like this. Fresh, tasty and much healthier than those packaged two-minute noodles, you’ll be adding this dish to your regular rotation.

Serves: 4-5

Ingredients:

• 2 eggs 
• 550g skinless, boneless chicken breasts 
• 1 brown onion, thinly sliced 
• 3-4 cups finely shredded green cabbage 
• 2 carrots, peeled then cut into thin matchsticks or grated 
• 2-3 spring onions, thinly sliced
• 350g fresh or dried egg noodles (or your favourite Asian noodles)
• 2 tablespoons mee goreng paste (store-bought)
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce 
• 2 tablespoons sweet chilli sauce

To serve 

• ½ iceberg lettuce, finely shredded 
• 1-2 tablespoons sweet chilli sauce (optional) 
• 1 lemon, cut into wedges

Method:

1. Bring a full kettle to the boil.
2. Heat a drizzle of oil in a large wok or fry-pan on medium-high heat. Lightly whisk eggs in a small bowl and season with salt. Add eggs to wok/pan, mix with a wooden spoon to break them up a bit then let eggs set as an omelette, about 1 minute. Set aside on a plate.
3. Wipe out pan with paper towels and return to medium heat with a drizzle of oil. Pat chicken dry with paper towels, cut into 1cm-thick strips and season with salt. Cook chicken for 3-4 minutes, until browned all over and just cooked through. Set aside in a large bowl. Keep pan on heat.
4. Heat another drizzle of oil in wok/pan, add onion and cabbage and stir-fry for about 2 minutes, or until cabbage begins to wilt. Add carrots and spring onion and stir-fry a further 1-2 minutes. Set veggies aside with chicken. Keep pan on heat.
5. In a medium, heat-proof bowl, pour boiling water over noodles and use a fork to separate strand then drain immediately (or cook according to packet instructions). Add drained noodles to wok/ pan, along with mee goreng paste, soy sauce and sweet chilli sauce. Stir-fry for 1 minute to combine. Return chicken and vegetables to wok/pan and toss for about 1 minute, until heated through.
6. Roughly slice omelette and scatter over mee goreng.
7. To serve, divide chicken and vegetable mee goreng between bowls, top with a handful of shredded lettuce, a drizzle of sweet chilli sauce (if using) and serve with lemon wedges for squeezing. 

We know what to eat to stay healthy. So why is it so hard to make the right choices?

Written by Nadia Lim. First appeared on Stuff.co.nz. Image credit: Myfoodbag.co.nz.

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