Beef Chow Fun (or Beef Ho Fun) is a simple Chinese noodle dish made from stir-frying tender beef with fresh rice noodles (Ho Fun)! The beef gets a great sear from the wok that contrasts with the chewy texture of the fresh rice noodles, and the entire dish covered in a delicious sauce and topped with crunchy bean sprouts. The best part is that it's simple enough to make at home and comes together in 20 minutes!
Slice beef into ¼ inch strips and marinate for 10 minutes in baking soda, light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, white pepper, cornstarch, and neutral oil.
To make the stir fry sauce, mix together light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, oyster sauce, sugar, Shaoxing wine, MSG (optional) and set aside. Prepare all vegetables and separate the fresh rice noodles. Set them all aside on a tray.
In a large nonstick pan or wok over high heat, add 2 tablespoons of neutral oil and sear the marinated beef for 2-3 minutes and remove to a plate along with the excess oil.
Add 1 tablespoon of oil to the pan over high heat. Add the separated rice noodles and toss for 30 seconds. Add a tablespoon of light soy sauce and 2 teaspoons of dark soy sauce around the edge of the pan. Toss and cook until the noodles are slightly charred and have absorbed the soy sauce, about 1 minute. Remove to a separate plate.
Add 1 tablespoon of oil over medium high heat and saute onions and garlic for 30 seconds. Next, add scallions and bean sprouts. Cook for another 30 seconds until scallions have a nice charred color.
To the vegetables, add back your beef, separated rice noodles, and sauce. Cook over high heat for 2-3 minutes until the sauce has absorbed completely into the noodles, beef and vegetables. Drizzle with sesame oil, toss and enjoy!
Notes
Preparing fresh rice noodles (hor fun): If using precut noodles fresh noodles, gently unravel the noodles and separate them into a bowl. If you are using dried noodles, rehydrate them until they are soft and pliable and set them aside until ready for use.Prepare all ingredients before starting the cooking process (and have clean bowls handy): Ensure all the ingredients are prepared and available within an arms distance because this dish is cooked very quickly. Make sure you have clean bowls to transfer your beef and noodles to once they are done, so that you can add them back easily to the final dish.