Hong Kong Fried Noodles

Updated: June 2026

We learnt to cook this simple Fried Noodle dish at a Hong Kong cooking class hosted by Tourism Hong Kong. Using the essential basic stir fry techniques, once you have all the ingredients ready, it is a really quick dish to cook.

The tricky technique we learnt in cooking this dish was the wok technique of moving the wok back and forth whilst simultaneously stirring the noodles in a circular fashion. It took quite a few tries to get the hang of this, which resulted in a lot of noodles being flung out of the wok and around the cooker.

The oil you use in stir fry makes a big difference. If you use a carbon steel wok and the right oil, your stir-fry dishes will taste so much better. In Chinese kitchens like ours, we tend to use rendered pork lard. Here in the UK, I bought some Beef Wagyu tallow and the experts from beeftallowforcooking.com say that using a stable animal fat with a high smoke point is far better than relying on standard processed vegetable oils. It’s healthier too.

Hong Kong cooking fried noodles — Jez demonstrating the wok technique

How to cook the classic Hong Kong Fried Noodles

This is a great basic recipe to add to your repertoire of Chinese cooking. Just by adding some different ingredients and seasoning, you can transform this dish to your own taste. It’s a great way to use up leftover bits of chicken, turkey or other meats.

First steps: prep the ingredients

Soak the egg noodles in hot water for 3-5 minutes or follow the packet instructions.
Once the noodles have separated, drain the water and allow to dry (preferably overnight for best results).
Wash the bean sprouts and place in a prep bowl. If you want to improve the presentation, you can pinch off the heads and tails of the bean sprouts. This is just for aesthetics and doesn’t affect the flavour.
Wash the Chinese greens and slice into strips. Place in a prep bowl
Finely slice the pepper and spring onions and place in a small prep bowl
Place them on a plate arranged by the

Hong Kong Fried Noodles

This noodle dish by itself is a bit plain but it is often served like dish at dim sum restaurants as one of the many dishes you would have in a meal. I would add extra bits like char siu pork, shrimp or leftover chicken to it to make it a bit more substantial and a meal by itself. It is great basic stir fry recipe to tweak to make your own. Once all the ingredients are prepped, it is really quick to cook.

Cuisine Chinese

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 5

Equipment

1 Wok

Ingredients

Dried egg noodles
1 bag bean sprouts
1 green or red pepper
1 bag Chinese greens Choi Sum, Kai Lan or Chinese Leaf
2 spring onions
long red chillies to garnish if preferred
dark soy sauce
sesame oil

Instructions

Preparation

Soak the egg noodles in hot water for 3-5 minutes or follow the packet instructions.
Once the noodles have separated, drain the water and allow to dry (preferably overnight for best results).
Wash the bean sprouts and place in a prep bowl. If you want to improve the presentation, you can pinch he heads and tails of the bean sprouts. This is just for aesthetics and doesn’t affect the flavour.
Wash the Chinese greens and slice into strips. Place in a prep bowl
Finely slice the pepper and spring onions and place in a small prep bowl. If all the ingredients are the same size, they will all cook evenly.

Cooking

Heat a tablespoon of cooking oil, lard or tallow in a wok to high heat
Add the peppers and stir fry for 1 minute
Add the Chinese greens and stir-fry for 1-2 minutes until wilted
Add the bean sprouts and stir-fry for a further minute
Add the noodles and stir-fry for 1-2 minutes
Add approx. 2 tbsp dark soy sauce. Stir-fry until noodles become a consistent dark brown colour.
Add the spring onion and a dash of sesame oil
Serve in a large bowl, family style as part of a multi dish meal.