This chicken lo mein recipe is easy to make with savory noodles tossed in a flavorful sauce with chicken and vegetables. Bonus: It’s a 30 minute meal and easy to customize!
Be sure to try my Egg Roll in a Bowl recipe next!
Chicken Lo Mein
Chicken Lo Mein is definitely one of my favorite takeout recipes, and I love making it at home with plenty of savory sauce, juicy chicken, and whatever vegetables I have on hand!
It comes together in about 30 minutes and leftovers make great cold (or warm) lunches for work or school. (Leftovers even freeze well!) What’s not to love?
About This Sauce
The flavor profile of the sauce blends together perfectly. A combination of chicken and beef broth ensures a savory depth of flavor that’s offset by a hint of brown sugar. Soy sauce adds umami, cornstarch acts as a thickener, garlic is a must, and it’s all finished off with a hint of hot sauce, sesame oil, ground ginger, and an optional pinch of red pepper flakes.
How to Make It
See recipe card below this post for ingredient quantities and full instructions.
Prep work: Combine sauce ingredients. Dice and season the chicken and drizzle with some of the sauce while you cut the veggies and start boiling water for the lo mein.
Sear the chicken and set aside. Deglaze the pan with white wine (or chicken broth). Sauté the vegetables and boil the lo mein.
Add the sauce. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, add the cooked lo mein.
Add the chicken back and toss to combine. Heat through for 1-2 minutes. Garnish with toppings of choice and serve!
Pro Tips
- White Wine: Chardonnay and Pinot Grigio are great wine options to deglaze the pan with after searing the chicken. An equal amount of chicken broth may be used if you don’t cook with wine.
- Vegetables: I used onions, snow peas, julienned carrots, red bell peppers, and green onions. Additional options include sliced mushrooms, broccoli, green beans, and edamame.
- Lo Mein Noodles: These are the kind that I use, they take just 4 minutes to cook. 10 oz. spaghetti noodles can be used instead if needed.
- While it may seem counterintuitive to use both chicken and beef broth in this recipe, it actually adds a really nice depth of flavor. If preferred, all chicken broth can be used.
- A heaping tablespoon of peanut butter may also be added to the sauce for a hint of peanut flavor. This is totally optional.
- Optional additions to this recipe include: sliced mushrooms, broccoli, celery, green beans, and edamame.
- Topping Options: Green onions, peanuts, cashews, crunchy chow mein noodles.
Storage
- Store in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months.
- Leftovers do freeze well. Be sure to use a timer when you cook the noodles to ensure they aren’t mushy/overcooked when reheated.
Tools For This Recipe
(Amazon affiliate links)- Check out all of my kitchen essentials here.
- 3-Quart Stainless Steel Sauté Pan– The same size as pictured in this recipe.
- 1 quart measuring cup with a spout– This is what I use to combine my sauce ingredients ahead of time.
- Kitchen Tongs– For handling the chicken during searing and tossing the lo mein in the sauce at the end.
- 8-inch Chef’s Knife– This is the one I have, I love it.
- Cutting Boards- I love having assorted sizes. (One for the meat, one for the veggies, etc.)
- Better Than Bouillon– This is what I always use for broth in my recipes. It takes very little space and makes it easy to measure out customized amounts of broth.
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Chicken Lo Mein
Ingredients
Stir Fry
- 2 small boneless skinless chicken breasts, just over 1 lb.
- Salt/Pepper
- 2 tablespoons peanut oil, Plus more as needed. Can sub olive oil.
- ¼ cup dry white wine, see notes
- 2 ½ cups mixed stir fry vegetables, see notes
- 10 oz. lo mein noodles, see notes
Sauce
- 1 cup chicken broth
- ¾ cup beef broth, see notes
- ¼ cup soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar, can sub honey
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon hot sauce
- ¼ teaspoon toasted sesame oil
- ¼ tsp ground ginger
- 1 pinch red pepper flakes, optional
Instructions
Prep Work
- Add the sauce ingredients to a large measuring cup with a spout and stir stir until well combined. Transfer ¼ cup of it to a medium bowl.
- Optional: Cover the chicken with saran wrap and tenderize each side with a meat mallet.
- Pat the chicken dry and season with salt and pepper. Cut into bite-sized pieces.
- Add the chicken to the bowl with the ¼ cup of sauce and use kitchen tongs to toss and coat. Let it sit while you cut the vegetables and begin boiling salted water for the lo mein.
Make the Stir Fry
- Once all ingredients are measured and ready, heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and let it sear, undisturbed, for about 3 minutes. Toss and allow the other sides to cook through and turn golden, about 2-3 more minutes. Remove and set aside.
- Add the wine to the same skillet that you used to cook the chicken over medium heat. Use a silicone spatula to “clean” the bottom and sides of the skillet, this will add flavor to the sauce. Let it bubble and reduce by half, about 2 minutes.
- Add the lo mein noodles to the boiling water. Boil them for 1 minute less than al dente according to package instructions. (Set a timer to ensure you don’t overcook it.) Drain once cooked.
- While the noodles cook, add the vegetables to the skillet (and a little more oil if needed) and cook for about 3 minutes to soften slightly. Add the sauce and bring it to a boil, then reduce heat to low.
- Use kitchen tongs to add the cooked lo mein a bit at a time, until desired noodle-to-sauce- ratio is obtained. (I use about 8 oz. instead of 10 oz.) Important: The noodles will continue to absorb the sauce and the flavors will continue to meld as it stands.
- Add the chicken back to the skillet and toss to coat. Heat through for 1-2 minutes.
- Garnish with your favorite toppings (see notes for suggestions) and serve!
Notes
- White Wine: Chardonnay and Pinot Grigio are great wine options to deglaze the pan with after searing the chicken. An equal amount of chicken broth may be used if you don’t cook with wine.
- Vegetables: I used onions, snow peas, julienned carrots, red bell peppers, and green onions. Additional options include sliced mushrooms, broccoli, green beans, and edamame.
- Lo Mein Noodles: These are the kind that I use, they take just 4 minutes to cook. 10 oz. spaghetti noodles can be used instead if needed.
- While it may seem counterintuitive to use both chicken and beef broth in this recipe, it actually adds a really nice depth of flavor. If preferred, all chicken broth can be used.
- A heaping tablespoon of peanut butter may also be added to the sauce for a hint of peanut flavor. This is totally optional.
- Optional additions to this recipe include: sliced mushrooms, broccoli, celery, green beans, and edamame.
- Topping Options: Green onions, peanuts, cashews, crunchy chow mein noodles.
Storage:
- Store in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months.
- Leftovers do freeze well. Be sure to use a timer when you cook the noodles to ensure they aren't mushy/overcooked when reheated.
Nutritional Information is an estimate and is per serving. There are a hearty 4 servings in this recipe, although it could likely feed 5.
My boyfriend and i loved this recipe! I especially love it that i have a peanut allergy and was able to eat it without worry! The sauce tastes just like you would find in a restaurant. Keeping this as a fav on our list!
I’m soooo happy that you love it Katie!!!! WAHOO!!! Thank you so much for taking the time to leave a review, I really appreciate it! 🙂 -Stephanie
This was AMAZING. If I made it again, I would marinate the chicken for longer. I also added hoisin sauce which made the flavor more complex. Thanks for sharing!
Hi Genny! I’m soooo happy that you loved it! YES- you can definitely marinate the chicken longer, even up to overnight! Thank you so much for taking the time to leave a review, I really appreciate it!! 🙂 -Stephanie
Yummy Lo Mein. We had this last night. Made just as written..with a few subs:. I did not have soy sauce so subbed with Teriyki marinade. Soy would have been a bit better and did not have sesame oil so used olive. Veggies used: onion, red pepper, broccoli, carrots and mushrooms. My husband and I did it together…Fun on a Saturday night. 🙂
Fun Saturday night Connie! Thanks so much for the great review, I’m so happy you and your husband enjoyed it!💖