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Home Recipes Noodles & Pasta Shrimp Lo Mein

Shrimp Lo Mein

Bill
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74 Comments
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Shrimp Lo Mein, by thewoksoflife.com

Shrimp Lo Mein is an easy dish to make at home and tastes just as good as any restaurant version. You can even prepare all of the ingredients ahead of time for an easy weeknight meal. I’ve always found that cooking is a great way to unwind from a stressful day of work, have a nice meal, pack a lunch for the next day and save 10 bucks from ordering takeout.

A great thing to do is to take 30 minutes to prep ingredients the night before. Then, the next day when you get home, you can take everything out of the fridge, change into your t-shirt and sweatpants, and grab your wok. Dinner will be ready within 15 minutes!

This Shrimp Lo Mein recipe follows most restaurant versions pretty closely, but you can add anything you like to this dish! That lone stalk of celery or leftover half of an onion are great candidates to add in.

If you don’t have shrimp, you could also try making our vegetable lo mein, or use ramen noodles to make a vegetable ramen instead!

Okay, let’s do this shrimp lo mein!

Take the shrimp and noodles out of the refrigerator, and let them come up to room temperature. One trick for the noodles is to soak the whole bag (unopened) in hot water, which speeds up the warming process without making the noodles soggy. If you can’t find lo mein noodles, you can actually substitute dried linguini. Just cook until al dente, drain, and immediately toss with 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil, working the oil into the pasta so the noodles don't stick together. Always prepare your noodles just before you are ready to make the dish, so they don’t dry out and remain at room temperature or warmer. This makes the stir-frying process much easier. Combine the sugar, soy sauces, oyster sauce, sesame oil, and white pepper in a bowl until the sugar is dissolved and set aside. Heat a large wok over high heat until it just starts to smoke, and add 1 tablespoon of oil around the perimeter of the wok. Quickly spread the shrimp around your wok and let them sear for 10-15 seconds on each side. Immediately transfer the shrimp to a plate and set aside. Return the wok to the highest heat possible and add 2 tablespoons oil, along with the garlic. After a few seconds, add the mushrooms, carrots, bamboo shoots, and water chestnuts and stir-fry for 30 seconds. Next, spread the Shaoxing wine around the perimeter of the wok, and then add the napa cabbage. Stir-fry for another 30 seconds. Spread the noodles evenly over the vegetables and give everything a good stir for 1 minute. Now, you can see why you want everything at room temperature, or everything will be overcooked and mushy by the time it heats up! At this point, the noodles should be softened, so add in the sauce mixture you set aside earlier and mix until everything is well combined. Stir-fry for another 30 seconds using a scooping motion, until the sauce is well distributed. Add in the shrimp, snow peas, bean sprouts, and scallions. Mix well for another 2 minutes and serve!

Shrimp Lo Mein: Recipe Instructions

Take the shrimp and noodles out of the refrigerator, and let them come up to room temperature. One trick for the noodles is to soak the whole bag (unopened) in hot water, which speeds up the warming process without making the noodles soggy. If you can’t find lo mein noodles, you can actually substitute dried linguini. Just cook until al dente, drain, and immediately toss with 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil, working the oil into the pasta so the noodles don't stick together. Always prepare your noodles just before you are ready to make the dish, so they don’t dry out and remain at room temperature or warmer. This makes the stir-frying process much easier. Combine the sugar, soy sauces, oyster sauce, sesame oil, and white pepper in a bowl until the sugar is dissolved and set aside. Heat a large wok over high heat until it just starts to smoke, and add 1 tablespoon of oil around the perimeter of the wok. Quickly spread the shrimp around your wok and let them sear for 10-15 seconds on each side. Immediately transfer the shrimp to a plate and set aside. Return the wok to the highest heat possible and add 2 tablespoons oil, along with the garlic. After a few seconds, add the mushrooms, carrots, bamboo shoots, and water chestnuts and stir-fry for 30 seconds. Next, spread the Shaoxing wine around the perimeter of the wok, and then add the napa cabbage. Stir-fry for another 30 seconds. Spread the noodles evenly over the vegetables and give everything a good stir for 1 minute. Now, you can see why you want everything at room temperature, or everything will be overcooked and mushy by the time it heats up! At this point, the noodles should be softened, so add in the sauce mixture you set aside earlier and mix until everything is well combined. Stir-fry for another 30 seconds using a scooping motion, until the sauce is well distributed. Add in the shrimp, snow peas, bean sprouts, and scallions. Mix well for another 2 minutes and serve!

Take the shrimp and noodles out of the refrigerator, and let them come up to room temperature. One trick for the noodles is to soak the whole bag (unopened) in hot water, which speeds up the warming process without making the noodles soggy.

If you can’t find lo mein noodles, you can actually substitute dried linguini. Just cook until al dente, drain, and immediately toss with 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil, working the oil into the pasta so the noodles don’t stick together. Always prepare your noodles just before you are ready to make the dish, so they don’t dry out and remain at room temperature or warmer. This makes the stir-frying process much easier.

Combine the sugar, soy sauces, oyster sauce, sesame oil, and white pepper in a bowl until the sugar is dissolved and set aside. Heat a large wok over high heat until it just starts to smoke, and add 1 tablespoon of oil around the perimeter of the wok. Quickly spread the shrimp around your wok and let them sear for 10-15 seconds on each side. Immediately transfer the shrimp to a plate and set aside.

Take the shrimp and noodles out of the refrigerator, and let them come up to room temperature. One trick for the noodles is to soak the whole bag (unopened) in hot water, which speeds up the warming process without making the noodles soggy. If you can’t find lo mein noodles, you can actually substitute dried linguini. Just cook until al dente, drain, and immediately toss with 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil, working the oil into the pasta so the noodles don't stick together. Always prepare your noodles just before you are ready to make the dish, so they don’t dry out and remain at room temperature or warmer. This makes the stir-frying process much easier. Combine the sugar, soy sauces, oyster sauce, sesame oil, and white pepper in a bowl until the sugar is dissolved and set aside. Heat a large wok over high heat until it just starts to smoke, and add 1 tablespoon of oil around the perimeter of the wok. Quickly spread the shrimp around your wok and let them sear for 10-15 seconds on each side. Immediately transfer the shrimp to a plate and set aside. Return the wok to the highest heat possible and add 2 tablespoons oil, along with the garlic. After a few seconds, add the mushrooms, carrots, bamboo shoots, and water chestnuts and stir-fry for 30 seconds. Next, spread the Shaoxing wine around the perimeter of the wok, and then add the napa cabbage. Stir-fry for another 30 seconds. Spread the noodles evenly over the vegetables and give everything a good stir for 1 minute. Now, you can see why you want everything at room temperature, or everything will be overcooked and mushy by the time it heats up! At this point, the noodles should be softened, so add in the sauce mixture you set aside earlier and mix until everything is well combined. Stir-fry for another 30 seconds using a scooping motion, until the sauce is well distributed. Add in the shrimp, snow peas, bean sprouts, and scallions. Mix well for another 2 minutes and serve!

Return the wok to the highest heat possible and add 2 tablespoons oil, along with the garlic.

Take the shrimp and noodles out of the refrigerator, and let them come up to room temperature. One trick for the noodles is to soak the whole bag (unopened) in hot water, which speeds up the warming process without making the noodles soggy. If you can’t find lo mein noodles, you can actually substitute dried linguini. Just cook until al dente, drain, and immediately toss with 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil, working the oil into the pasta so the noodles don't stick together. Always prepare your noodles just before you are ready to make the dish, so they don’t dry out and remain at room temperature or warmer. This makes the stir-frying process much easier. Combine the sugar, soy sauces, oyster sauce, sesame oil, and white pepper in a bowl until the sugar is dissolved and set aside. Heat a large wok over high heat until it just starts to smoke, and add 1 tablespoon of oil around the perimeter of the wok. Quickly spread the shrimp around your wok and let them sear for 10-15 seconds on each side. Immediately transfer the shrimp to a plate and set aside. Return the wok to the highest heat possible and add 2 tablespoons oil, along with the garlic. After a few seconds, add the mushrooms, carrots, bamboo shoots, and water chestnuts and stir-fry for 30 seconds. Next, spread the Shaoxing wine around the perimeter of the wok, and then add the napa cabbage. Stir-fry for another 30 seconds. Spread the noodles evenly over the vegetables and give everything a good stir for 1 minute. Now, you can see why you want everything at room temperature, or everything will be overcooked and mushy by the time it heats up! At this point, the noodles should be softened, so add in the sauce mixture you set aside earlier and mix until everything is well combined. Stir-fry for another 30 seconds using a scooping motion, until the sauce is well distributed. Add in the shrimp, snow peas, bean sprouts, and scallions. Mix well for another 2 minutes and serve!

After a few seconds, add the mushrooms, carrots, bamboo shoots, and water chestnuts and stir-fry for 30 seconds.

Take the shrimp and noodles out of the refrigerator, and let them come up to room temperature. One trick for the noodles is to soak the whole bag (unopened) in hot water, which speeds up the warming process without making the noodles soggy. If you can’t find lo mein noodles, you can actually substitute dried linguini. Just cook until al dente, drain, and immediately toss with 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil, working the oil into the pasta so the noodles don't stick together. Always prepare your noodles just before you are ready to make the dish, so they don’t dry out and remain at room temperature or warmer. This makes the stir-frying process much easier. Combine the sugar, soy sauces, oyster sauce, sesame oil, and white pepper in a bowl until the sugar is dissolved and set aside. Heat a large wok over high heat until it just starts to smoke, and add 1 tablespoon of oil around the perimeter of the wok. Quickly spread the shrimp around your wok and let them sear for 10-15 seconds on each side. Immediately transfer the shrimp to a plate and set aside. Return the wok to the highest heat possible and add 2 tablespoons oil, along with the garlic. After a few seconds, add the mushrooms, carrots, bamboo shoots, and water chestnuts and stir-fry for 30 seconds. Next, spread the Shaoxing wine around the perimeter of the wok, and then add the napa cabbage. Stir-fry for another 30 seconds. Spread the noodles evenly over the vegetables and give everything a good stir for 1 minute. Now, you can see why you want everything at room temperature, or everything will be overcooked and mushy by the time it heats up! At this point, the noodles should be softened, so add in the sauce mixture you set aside earlier and mix until everything is well combined. Stir-fry for another 30 seconds using a scooping motion, until the sauce is well distributed. Add in the shrimp, snow peas, bean sprouts, and scallions. Mix well for another 2 minutes and serve!

Take the shrimp and noodles out of the refrigerator, and let them come up to room temperature. One trick for the noodles is to soak the whole bag (unopened) in hot water, which speeds up the warming process without making the noodles soggy. If you can’t find lo mein noodles, you can actually substitute dried linguini. Just cook until al dente, drain, and immediately toss with 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil, working the oil into the pasta so the noodles don't stick together. Always prepare your noodles just before you are ready to make the dish, so they don’t dry out and remain at room temperature or warmer. This makes the stir-frying process much easier. Combine the sugar, soy sauces, oyster sauce, sesame oil, and white pepper in a bowl until the sugar is dissolved and set aside. Heat a large wok over high heat until it just starts to smoke, and add 1 tablespoon of oil around the perimeter of the wok. Quickly spread the shrimp around your wok and let them sear for 10-15 seconds on each side. Immediately transfer the shrimp to a plate and set aside. Return the wok to the highest heat possible and add 2 tablespoons oil, along with the garlic. After a few seconds, add the mushrooms, carrots, bamboo shoots, and water chestnuts and stir-fry for 30 seconds. Next, spread the Shaoxing wine around the perimeter of the wok, and then add the napa cabbage. Stir-fry for another 30 seconds. Spread the noodles evenly over the vegetables and give everything a good stir for 1 minute. Now, you can see why you want everything at room temperature, or everything will be overcooked and mushy by the time it heats up! At this point, the noodles should be softened, so add in the sauce mixture you set aside earlier and mix until everything is well combined. Stir-fry for another 30 seconds using a scooping motion, until the sauce is well distributed. Add in the shrimp, snow peas, bean sprouts, and scallions. Mix well for another 2 minutes and serve!

Next, spread the Shaoxing wine around the perimeter of the wok, and then add the napa cabbage.

Take the shrimp and noodles out of the refrigerator, and let them come up to room temperature. One trick for the noodles is to soak the whole bag (unopened) in hot water, which speeds up the warming process without making the noodles soggy. If you can’t find lo mein noodles, you can actually substitute dried linguini. Just cook until al dente, drain, and immediately toss with 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil, working the oil into the pasta so the noodles don't stick together. Always prepare your noodles just before you are ready to make the dish, so they don’t dry out and remain at room temperature or warmer. This makes the stir-frying process much easier. Combine the sugar, soy sauces, oyster sauce, sesame oil, and white pepper in a bowl until the sugar is dissolved and set aside. Heat a large wok over high heat until it just starts to smoke, and add 1 tablespoon of oil around the perimeter of the wok. Quickly spread the shrimp around your wok and let them sear for 10-15 seconds on each side. Immediately transfer the shrimp to a plate and set aside. Return the wok to the highest heat possible and add 2 tablespoons oil, along with the garlic. After a few seconds, add the mushrooms, carrots, bamboo shoots, and water chestnuts and stir-fry for 30 seconds. Next, spread the Shaoxing wine around the perimeter of the wok, and then add the napa cabbage. Stir-fry for another 30 seconds. Spread the noodles evenly over the vegetables and give everything a good stir for 1 minute. Now, you can see why you want everything at room temperature, or everything will be overcooked and mushy by the time it heats up! At this point, the noodles should be softened, so add in the sauce mixture you set aside earlier and mix until everything is well combined. Stir-fry for another 30 seconds using a scooping motion, until the sauce is well distributed. Add in the shrimp, snow peas, bean sprouts, and scallions. Mix well for another 2 minutes and serve!

Stir-fry for another 30 seconds. Spread the noodles evenly over the vegetables and give everything a good stir for 1 minute. Now, you can see why you want everything at room temperature, or everything will be overcooked and mushy by the time it heats up!

Take the shrimp and noodles out of the refrigerator, and let them come up to room temperature. One trick for the noodles is to soak the whole bag (unopened) in hot water, which speeds up the warming process without making the noodles soggy. If you can’t find lo mein noodles, you can actually substitute dried linguini. Just cook until al dente, drain, and immediately toss with 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil, working the oil into the pasta so the noodles don't stick together. Always prepare your noodles just before you are ready to make the dish, so they don’t dry out and remain at room temperature or warmer. This makes the stir-frying process much easier. Combine the sugar, soy sauces, oyster sauce, sesame oil, and white pepper in a bowl until the sugar is dissolved and set aside. Heat a large wok over high heat until it just starts to smoke, and add 1 tablespoon of oil around the perimeter of the wok. Quickly spread the shrimp around your wok and let them sear for 10-15 seconds on each side. Immediately transfer the shrimp to a plate and set aside. Return the wok to the highest heat possible and add 2 tablespoons oil, along with the garlic. After a few seconds, add the mushrooms, carrots, bamboo shoots, and water chestnuts and stir-fry for 30 seconds. Next, spread the Shaoxing wine around the perimeter of the wok, and then add the napa cabbage. Stir-fry for another 30 seconds. Spread the noodles evenly over the vegetables and give everything a good stir for 1 minute. Now, you can see why you want everything at room temperature, or everything will be overcooked and mushy by the time it heats up! At this point, the noodles should be softened, so add in the sauce mixture you set aside earlier and mix until everything is well combined. Stir-fry for another 30 seconds using a scooping motion, until the sauce is well distributed. Add in the shrimp, snow peas, bean sprouts, and scallions. Mix well for another 2 minutes and serve!

At this point, the noodles should be softened, so add in the sauce mixture you set aside earlier and mix until everything is well combined. Stir-fry for another 30 seconds using a scooping motion, until the sauce is well distributed. Add in the shrimp, snow peas, bean sprouts, and scallions.

Shrimp Lo Mein, by thewoksoflife.com

Mix well for another 2 minutes and serve! You will never order Chinese takeout shrimp lo mein again!

Shrimp Lo Mein, by thewoksoflife.com

Some Homemade Chili Oil would go great with your your Shrimp Lo Mein!

Shrimp Lo Mein, by thewoksoflife.com

Shrimp Lo Mein, by thewoksoflife.com

Shrimp Lo Mein, by thewoksoflife.com

4.85 from 13 votes

Shrimp Lo Mein

Shrimp Lo Mein is an easy dish to make at home and tastes just as good as any restaurant version. Prepare the ingredients ahead of time for an easy lo mein.
by: Bill
Course:Noodles and Pasta
Cuisine:Chinese
Keyword:shrimp lo mein
Shrimp lo mein in takeout container
serves: 6 servings
Prep: 30 minutes
Cook: 15 minutes
Total: 45 minutes

Ingredients

Instructions

  • Take the shrimp and noodles out of the refrigerator, and let them come up to room temperature. One trick for the noodles is to soak the whole bag (unopened) in hot water, which speeds up the warming process without making the noodles soggy.
  • If you can’t find lo mein noodles, you can actually substitute dried linguini. Just cook until al dente, drain, and immediately toss with 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil, working the oil into the pasta so the noodles don't stick together. Always prepare your noodles just before you are ready to make the dish, so they don’t dry out and remain at room temperature or warmer. This makes the stir-frying process much easier.
  • Combine the sugar, soy sauces, oyster sauce, sesame oil, and white pepper in a bowl until the sugar is dissolved and set aside. Heat a large wok over high heat until it just starts to smoke, and add 1 tablespoon of oil around the perimeter of the wok. Quickly spread the shrimp around your wok and let them sear for 10-15 seconds on each side. Immediately transfer the shrimp to a plate and set aside.
  • Return the wok to the highest heat possible and add 2 tablespoons oil, along with the garlic. After a few seconds, add the mushrooms, carrots, bamboo shoots, and water chestnuts and stir-fry for 30 seconds.
  • Next, spread the Shaoxing wine around the perimeter of the wok, and then add the napa cabbage. Stir-fry for another 30 seconds. Spread the noodles evenly over the vegetables and give everything a good stir for 1 minute. Now, you can see why you want everything at room temperature, or everything will be overcooked and mushy by the time it heats up!
  • At this point, the noodles should be softened, so add in the sauce mixture you set aside earlier and mix until everything is well combined. Stir-fry for another 30 seconds using a scooping motion, until the sauce is well distributed. Add in the shrimp, snow peas, bean sprouts, and scallions. Mix well for another 2 minutes and serve!

nutrition facts

Calories: 328kcal (16%) Carbohydrates: 38g (13%) Protein: 20g (40%) Fat: 11g (17%) Saturated Fat: 6g (30%) Cholesterol: 176mg (59%) Sodium: 908mg (38%) Potassium: 386mg (11%) Fiber: 4g (16%) Sugar: 4g (4%) Vitamin A: 2060IU (41%) Vitamin C: 27.1mg (33%) Calcium: 142mg (14%) Iron: 3.1mg (17%)

TheWoksofLife.com is written and produced for informational purposes only. While we do our best to provide nutritional information as a general guideline to our readers, we are not certified nutritionists, and the values provided should be considered estimates. Factors such as brands purchased, natural variations in fresh ingredients, etc. will change the nutritional information in any recipe. Various online calculators also provide different results, depending on their sources. To obtain accurate nutritional information for a recipe, use your preferred nutrition calculator to determine nutritional information with the actual ingredients and quantities used.

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Bill

About Bill

Bill is the dad of The Woks of Life family. He grew up in upstate New York, working through high school and college in restaurants with his father, a chef. Rose from modest beginnings as a Burger King sandwich assembler to Holiday Inn busboy and line cook, to cooking at the family's Chinese restaurant, while also learning the finer points of Cantonese cooking from his immigrant parents. Specializes in all things traditional Cantonese and American Chinese takeout.

Reader Interactions

74 Comments

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  2. AvatarJeff Markel says

    4 stars
    TBH this turned out very bland, though rescue-able.

    I followed the recipe quite closely – at least for the noodles, the shrimp, and the sauce (although I DID add about a 1/2 tsp of MSG to the sauce up front). I didn’t have all the veg at hand so I used julienned red bell pepper, julienned carrot, blanched broccoli florets, snow peas, diced onion, sliced celery, garlic, ginger, mushrooms, snow peas, and scallions.

    Yet even with the extra MSG it was bland, or under-seasoned. We added some soy sauce and homemade chili crisp as condiments, and that did the trick – once those were in place it was very delicious, but it really would have been disappointing without them.

    Reply

    • BillBill says

      Hi Jeff, sounds like you need to crank the heat up on the wok to get some searing and wok hei creation going. I know it’s a challenge but a big part of the flavor for these lo mein noodles comes from the wok hei.

      Reply

      • AvatarJeff Markel says

        Thanks for the reply, Bill. The wok was plenty hot – I have a commercial open-burner stove and it was cranked up to the max. Wok hei was pretty good. I just think it could have used a little more spice – maybe next time I’ll add a bit more white pepper and soy sauce.

        Where are you guys these days, anyway? JC? West Orange? (I’m in Maplewood NJ so close to both those places – nice to see “neighbors” hit the big time :) )

        Reply

        • BillBill says

          Hi Jeff, your wok hei sounds good then – could be that you do need some extra white pepper and soy sauce and sugar, which is a key flavor enhancer. Oyster sauce will also kick it up. We’re in Morris county these days and sometimes in Jersey city – maybe we’ll see you in one of the Chinese markets one day ;-)

          Reply

  4. AvatarHelen de Terry says

    Hi Bill! Sorry for the perhaps-dumb question – but if I were to substitute the pre-cooked lo mein noodles with dry ones, do I use the same weight indicated in your ingredient list? Or should it be, say, half only? Thanks in advance! Itching to try this out :)

    Reply

  5. AvatarIrene Torres says

    I made this tonight! I tried to follow your recipe as best as I could but I couldn’t find the rice wine. I also used regular cabbage, carrots, sugar snap peas, green onions, water chestnuts and baby corn…and of course the shrimp! Over all it came out very good!!! I’m definitely saving this recipe and making it AGAIN! Hopefully I’ll be able to get some rice wine for next time!!! We’re in this horrible Covid-19 lockdown and we love Asian food and are missing it so much! My family loved it…from my husband all the way down to my 4 year old grandson!

    Reply