Now that we’re all getting cosy at home ahead of chilly, dark nights, it’s truly time to get back to our kitchen wizard eras.
Along with our favourite soups and roast dinners, can I suggest the humble fakeaway for your winter cooking roster?
All of the flavour, texture and satiating goodness of a takeaway but at a fraction of the price – and a little less unhealthy, too.
Let’s start with a long-standing favourite: chicken chow mein.
Now, this is a simple dish. You can throw it together in minutes, but one chef advises a simple trick to perfecting your noodles before you even cook them.
The secret to perfecting chicken chow mein noodles
Kenny McGovern, a chef and author of The Chinese Takeaway Secret, has created thousands of fakeaway recipes – but this one tip takes almost no extra effort.
On his website, McGovern says: “Soften noodles ahead of time.
“Drain, cool and set aside in the fridge in a sealed container ready to stir fry for up to two days. This also gives the noodles time to dry a little and may even give better results when cooking.”
He also explains: “Takeaway flavour is a combination of ingredients, heat and technique, particularly when it comes to noodle dishes. The skill of the chef shines through.”
McGovern goes on to refer to the concept of “Wok-Hei”, which describes the flavour and tastes imparted by a hot wok on food during stir frying.
He adds that while this can be difficult to achieve at home, and some people even believe it’s impossible, he reckons it can be done.
“With a well seasoned carbon steel wok, a high heat and good cooking technique, we can most certainly add delicious flavour to our home cooked noodles nonetheless,” he insists.
You can view the full recipe here.