Pad See Ew is one of Thailand's most popular noodle dishes, featuring wide rice noodles stir-fried with tender beef, egg and Chinese greens in a rich sweet and savoury sauce. The key to great Pad See Ew is cooking over high heat to develop the signature smoky char known as wok hei.
Easy Crispy Chilli Beef is a British Chinese takeaway classic, famous for its ultra crisp beef strips coated in a glossy sweet, sour and savoury sauce. This Easy Crispy Chilli Beef recipe follows a proper double fry method to guarantee maximum crunch, finished with fragrant ginger, garlic and fresh chilli for a homemade upgrade on the takeaway favourite.
The key is a light cornflour coating rather than a thick batter, plus a high heat second fry to lock in that crisp texture before tossing briefly in a black vinegar based sauce.
This Beef Japchae is a quick Korean stir-fry featuring tender strips of steak, chewy glass noodles and crisp vegetables tossed in a rich savoury soy and sesame sauce. Finished by reducing the sauce until it's fully absorbed into the noodles, it's a simple yet flavour-packed dish that's perfect for any day of the week.
Rou Jia Mo is a famous street food from Shaanxi, often called the “Chinese hamburger.” It features tender, slow-braised pork belly packed into a crisp yet chewy flatbread. The pork is infused with aromatic spices and rich soy-based braising liquid, then chopped and stuffed into the bread with fresh herbs, creating a deeply savoury and satisfying sandwich.
Soto Ayam is a comforting Indonesian chicken soup featuring a fragrant spice paste, homemade chicken broth and tender shredded chicken served with egg noodles, rice vermicelli, fresh vegetables and crispy fried mung bean noodles. Rich with turmeric, lemongrass, galangal and warming spices, it's a deeply aromatic soup that's perfect for chilly evenings.
These Chinese-style scrambled egg lettuce wraps transform humble eggs into something completely unexpected. Instead of soft, creamy curds, the eggs are deliberately cooked until they become finely crumbled with a texture resembling minced meat. Blanched sugar snap peas and shiitake mushrooms add sweetness and crunch, while crisp lettuce leaves and a drizzle of hoisin sauce turn the dish into light, flavourful wraps. Named Guì Huā Chǎo Dàn ("Osmanthus Flower Scrambled Eggs"), the tiny golden egg pieces resemble delicate osmanthus blossoms.
Crispy Vegetarian Spring Rolls
Chinese Vegetable Spring Rolls are a classic takeaway favourite, packed with finely sliced vegetables and wrapped in thin spring roll pastry before being deep fried until golden and crisp. This Chinese Vegetable Spring Rolls recipe follows the traditional method of flash frying the filling first to remove excess moisture, then rolling tightly and frying at 180°C for that signature crunch.
The key to perfect spring rolls is balance. The vegetables must be finely matchsticked, the filling cooked quickly on high heat and cooled before wrapping. A small amount of cornflour helps absorb moisture so the pastry stays crisp during frying.
These Vietnamese Fried Fish Cakes (Chả Cá Chiên) are crisp on the outside, tender and springy inside, with the characteristic bouncy texture that defines Southeast Asian fish cakes. Made with a blend of mackerel, white fish and squid, they're flavoured with spring onions, garlic, fish sauce and sesame oil before being pan-fried until golden and served with a bright, tangy nước chấm dipping sauce.
