Easy and Satisfying Classic Scallion Noodles from Shanghai | A Basic Chinese Dish

This is the fifth episode of our brand new series “A Basic Chinese Dish,'' where we teach you how to cook classic, simple dishes from China. Because it’s as easy as learning your ABCDs.

Shanghainese scallion oil noodles are a slightly sweet and salty dish with crunchy bits of fried shallots and scallions tossed into it. It’s an iconic dish most families in Shanghai make when they need a quick fix. 

You can eat it with some sides too, like a sunny-side egg. 

And the sauce lasts up to one week in the fridge, so this recipe is definitely a keeper. 

If you’d like to try cooking it at home, we have the recipe here:

Recipe

• 100ml Cooking oil (We use canola oil)
• 10 shallots 
• 10 scallions
• 450g/1lb wheat noodles 
• 3 tablespoons light soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons dark soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon sugar

1. Chop the scallions into white and green slices. They should be around 2-inch long. 
2. Slice shallots thinly. 
3. Heat up a generous amount of oil. Toss shallots and white scallion slices, and fry over medium heat until golden brown.
4. Scoop out the scallion and white scallion slices. 
5. Fry the green scallion slices until they turn light brown. Then take them out. 
6. Add 3 tablespoons of light soy sauce and 2 tablespoons of dark soy sauce to the oil. Then, add 1 teaspoon of sugar.
7. The sauce is ready when it boils.
8. Cook the noodles. 
9. Add the sauce in and mix. The amount depends on how salty you want your noodles to be. We recommend around 2 teaspoons.
10. You can add the fried scallion and shallots as garnish. You can also fry an egg and serve the noodles with it.