Lo Mein Noodles substitute

Substitutes for Lo Mein Noodles with ratios

1. 2Plain instant ramen noodle bricks

   Close match

   Use 1 brick (about 85g) for every person

   Instant noodle cakes are alkaline wheat noodles that have been steamed and dried, which makes them a genuine, cheap lo mein noodle.

   What changes

   Best for

   lo mein, quick weeknight noodle stir-fries, yakisoba-style dishes

   Better than most people expect, and the yellow color and springy chew are right. They are thinner than lo mein noodles and overcook in seconds, so boil for two minutes, drain, rinse cold and drain again. Discard the seasoning powder; if you leave it in you double the salt in the finished dish, because your sauce already brings soy. Fried instant cakes carry a little oil, which shows up as extra richness in the wok.

2. 3Spaghetti or linguine boiled with baking soda

   Different taste

   Use the same amount by dry weight, plus 1 teaspoon baking soda per 2 liters of water

   Alkaline water changes the pasta itself rather than just its color, doing roughly what the alkaline salts in lo mein dough do.

   What changes

   Best for

   lo mein, chow mein, any supermarket-only situation

   The pasta comes out yellow-tinged, slippery on the surface and distinctly springier, and the water will smell faintly of pretzels. Use a big pot because it foams, skip the salt, cook two minutes shy of the box, then rinse. It still tastes of durum wheat, so it is rounder and sweeter than real lo mein, but tossed in a proper soy, oyster and sesame sauce very few people would flag it.

3. 4Yakisoba or fresh chukamen noodles

   Close match

   Use the same amount by weight

   Refrigerated pre-steamed Japanese alkaline noodles, sold in sealed pouches.

   What changes

   Best for

   lo mein, stir-fried noodles, quick lunches

   Same dough family, already cooked, so they only need loosening under hot water for 30 seconds before they go in the wok. Slightly thinner and a bit softer than lo mein noodles, and they absorb sauce faster, which means you should hold back a little sauce and add it at the end rather than drowning them.

4. 5Udon noodles

   Taste and texture differ

   Use the same amount or 200g frozen or vacuum-packed udon per person

   Thick, white, very chewy wheat noodles with no alkali and no egg.

   What changes

   Best for

   hearty noodle stir-fries, saucy noodle bowls

   Structurally excellent, since udon is far too sturdy to break under tossing, but the eating experience shifts a lot. A thick smooth strand holds much less sauce per bite, so the dish tastes underseasoned unless you thicken the sauce with a cornstarch slurry so it clings, or use about a third more of it. Udon is also filling, so serve less than you would of lo mein.

5. 6Dried Western egg noodles or fettuccine

   Different texture

   Use the same amount by dry weight

   The curly nests or flat ribbons sold as egg noodles in most supermarkets, made without any alkaline salts.

   What changes

   Best for

   saucy noodle dishes, one-pan noodle dinners

   The egg richness is right and the color is right, but the texture is the opposite of lo mein: soft, floury and absorbent instead of springy and slippery. They drink up the sauce, so the dish looks dry within a minute of plating and the noodles break under vigorous tossing. Undercook them, rinse well, toss with a teaspoon of oil, and fold the sauce through off the heat rather than stir-frying hard.