Hawaiian Style Chow Fun

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Hawaiian style chow fun takes a classic Chinese dish and adds a little island twist. Rice noodles tossed with an umami packed meat and vegetable stir fry. One of the favorites here in the islands and one you’ll definitely have to try.

I remember as a kid growing up going to Pukalani Superette and getting a bento of chow fun to go. I mean what’s more comforting than a noodle dish. It made for a perfect lunch or dinner at home, at the beach, or on the go.

Now as an adult I make my own version at home and it’s a favorite in our house.

What is chow fun?

Traditional chow fun is a Chinese dish with rice noodles, beef, bean sprouts, soy sauce and onions. Of course we like to make things Hawaiian style, so we swap out a few ingredients here in Hawai’i.

Chow fun ingredients

• Cooking oil of choice
• 1 teaspoon garlic, finely diced
• 1 teaspoon ginger, finely diced
• 1/2 can of spam sliced into thin strips
• 1/2 pound ground pork
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 small onion, sliced
• 3 tablespoon shoyu
• 2 tablespoon oyster sauce
• 1/2 cup carrots, grated or julienne
• 2 packages chow fun noodles, 7 ounces each, cooked to package directions
• 1/2 cup bean sprouts
• green onions to garnish

Some key ingredients to make this Hawaiian style

• SPAM. Spam a popular canned meat in Hawai’i. It got its fame during World War II and has left a mark here on the islands. Aside from using it in chow fun I also love it in spam musubis
• Ground pork. Many Hawaiian style chow fun recipes swap out the classic beef for ground pork. You can sub this out for any meat you want really. This recipe is very forgiving.
• Shoyu. Shoyu is a Japanese style soy sauce made with soybeans and wheat. If you want a gluten free option you can use Tamari.
• Oyster sauce. This is a common cooking condiment in Hawai’i. It’s made from oyster extracts, sugar, salt, water, and cornstarch.

What are chow fun noodles?

These are wide rice noodles. Pure rice noodles are gluten free.

How to cook chow fun noodles?

You can find these noodles precooked like those made by Sun Noodle. These are just tossed in the pan with some oil for a minute or two and ready to eat. The other option is the dried variety like that of pasta. These need to be boiled in water prior to eating.

How to store chow fun?

Once cooled, these noodles are best kept in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. 

How to reheat chow fun?

If you do not mind using a microwave, this is the quickest option. Toss noodles in a heat proof bowl topped with a wet napkin and microwave for just a minute or two. If you prefer not to use a microwave you can reheat it on the stove top as well.

What goes well with this dish?

You can eat chow fun on its own as a main dish as I often do, or add it as a side with any other plate lunch options like hamburger watercress, mochiko chicken, furikake salmon, honey garlic chicken wings, or shoyu pork.

How to make Hawaiian style chow fun?

https://youtu.be/rhmk4NF5OaY

Heat cooking oil of choice in a large pan over medium-high heat.

Add garlic and ginger and cook until fragrant.

Then add Spam, pork, salt and pepper. Cook until just starting to brown,

Next add in onions, shoyu, and oyster sauce. Stir to combine.

Add carrots and continue to stir fry until desired softness of vegetables.

Remove the meat and vegetable mix from the pan and set aside.

Return the pan to the fire and add noodles. Continue to cook until desired browning and crispiness, about a minute or two.

Then return the meat and vegetable mixture to the noodles. Toss in the bean sprouts and green onions and heat through.

ENJOY!

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