DIY Chinese Noodles

Every once in a while, I get an idea about trying to DIY a grocery store junk food or convenience food.  One of my first forays, about ten years ago, was in trying to duplicate Oreos at home.
It wasn't what we dreamed it would be.  It wasn't even close.

A couple of months ago I got to thinking about Chinese noodles, the crunchy ones that some of us could happily snack on.  So I went looking for a recipe online and happily found one.  Just one.  I'm glad I saved the link for it because as I Google it now, it doesn't even come up in the results.

I adapted this recipe from the one provided at Ramshackle Pantry so that the measurements were in US standard, not metric, and to use white flour plus gluten flour, instead of straight bread flour, which a lot of preppers don't store.

Fried Chow Mein Noodles

1 cup plus 1 tablespoon flour
1 tablespoon gluten flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 egg
water

Combine the flours and salt in a medium bowl.  Crack the egg into a measuring cup and add water to make 1/3 cup total.  Pour the egg and water into a medium bowl and beat.  Add egg mixture to flour and knead for five minutes.  Resist the temptation to add additional water.  Loosely cover with lid or plastic wrap and let sit for 30 minutes. Knead for one more minute.

Roll dough out onto flour-covered surface and into a very thin sheet. If you lack upper body strength, like I do, you may find it easier to roll out 1/4 of the dough at a time.   Cut noodles into thin strips 2-3" long.  Cook in boiling water for 2-3 minutes.  Drain.  Deep fry in peanut oil at 350 degrees for 2-3 minutes or until golden brown.  Drain.


(For a TEOTWAWKI method of determining the oil temperature, drop a couple of popcorn kernels into the oil.  When the temperature hits 350 degrees, the popcorn will pop.)

So how do they rate at this house?  First off, they definitely have to have salt sprinkled on when they come out.  That helps a lot.  Second, the crispiness and texture are pretty spot on.  But only if they are cut super thin.  I was getting tired of cutting so many noodles and thought I'd try a few cut a bit wider.  No, that does not work at all.  The thinner they are cut, the better.  And they take kind of a long time--not much return on investment.  Finally, the flavor isn't quite there. So, for my family, I will have to vacuum seal a few quarts of the store-bought kind.  However, they weren't bad, and I'm sure that two or three years into the collapse of society, everyone will be pretty happy to have some homemade noodles to sprinkle on Asian salads or include with their Hawaiian haystacks.

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