There is nothing better than reheated Chinese food the day after you’ve dined out at your favorite local Chinese restaurant, or ordered takeout or delivery with a few extra dishes to spare. While all leftovers can be enjoyed cold or reheated, you are sure to enjoy your leftover lo mein dish when heated up for a second round of enjoyment. Below are my tips on how to reheat lo mein.
It’s important to consider the best ways to reheat your leftover Chinese food to make sure you retain the flavors and textures of your meal.
Don’t let your lo mein get rubbery or mushy after a go in the microwave: instead, consider these tips and tricks to make the most out of your leftover lo mein.
First, remove your lo mein from the takeout container. Often, your Chinese delivery will be stored in styrofoam containers, Chinese folded takeout boxes, or perhaps just a Tupperware container that you use for fridge storage.
None of these is ideal for use in your microwave, so make sure you take your lo mein and other Chinese dishes out of these storage containers to reheat in a microwave-safe bowl or plate.
If you don’t have or don’t want to use a microwave, there are plenty of other warming options as well. Use a stir fry or non stick pan on the stove with about a teaspoon of oil on medium heat.
As you gently reheat your food in the pan, slowly add back a few tablespoons of water (up to half a cup depending on the texture of your food). Incorporating water will help to slowly build steam in the pan, which helps bring your food back to an ideal texture.
Reheating on the stove also allows you to dress up your boring lo mein leftovers. Incorporate ginger or garlic to enhance the flavor of the dish.
Add soy sauce, sesame oil and sriracha to thicken the sauce, adding saltiness, richness and heat. Try sesame seeds, thinly sliced scallions, or chopped cilantro for a garnish to add color, texture and flavor. Your gussied-up noodles will be perfect for a round two as leftovers.
If your lo mein noodles don’t already incorporate meat, you can always add a protein yourself. Saute some chicken, pork or shrimp to make your noodles into a full meal. Try a fried or sunny side up egg on top, or even heat up some frozen edamame to flesh out your noodles and turn a lo mein side dish into a superb dinner.
With these suggestions on how to reheat lo mein, you should definitely order an extra dish or two the next time you eat at your local Chinese restaurant or get a delivery order.
There’s no risk to having extra when you can turn your leftovers into something special the next day. The options are endless for how to make lo mein into the perfect leftover meal.