Chowmein

As tradition built it

Chowmein

Credited to Guyanese of Chinese descent as their central, lasting culinary contribution to the national table, alongside fried rice

Ingredients

• 2 to 3lb, chicken breast chicken, or another protein
• 2 tbsp sesame oil
• 2 tbsp green seasoning
• 1 tbsp, or cassareep browning
• 3 tsp soy sauce
• 3 to 5 quarts water, for the noodles
• 1 tbsp peanut oil
• 12oz, dried noodles
• ½ tsp Guyanese five-spice
• 10 to 12 bora (yard-long beans)
• a spoon cassareep, in some households
• 1 to 2 stalks, or 1 cup bok choy, or cabbage
• 1 cup carrots
• ½ red bell pepper

Method

1. Marinate the chicken (or another protein) in sesame oil, green seasoning, browning and soy sauce.
2. Boil the noodles in 3 to 5 quarts water plus a tablespoon of peanut oil, 8 to 10 minutes to al dente.
3. Combine the noodles in a hot wok with the stir-fried, marinated protein and vegetables, carrying Guyanese five-spice and bora (yard-long beans), and, in some households, a spoon of cassareep, none typical of the dish outside Guyana.

What a modern chef changes

Reduced cassareep glaze, dehydrated bora, Big Green Egg smoke

Method

1. Reduce a proper cassareep-and-soy glaze separately, in a small pan, to a syrup consistency, then toss the finished noodles through it off the heat rather than adding raw cassareep to the wok, where its sugars can catch and burn before the dish is even plated.
2. Dehydrate the bora beans briefly before they go into the wok, for a firmer bite that holds up against the high heat rather than turning soft.
3. Finish with a short, hard blast of Big Green Egg smoke held under the closed lid for a minute once the noodles are plated, a wok-hei adjacent effect achieved by different means, honest about being a substitute rather than the genuine high-heat char a professional wok burner gives.