chop suey recipe

3/1/14 11:19 PMChop Suey Recipe | American Chinese Recipes

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Home Cuisine Chinese Recipes Chop Suey

Chop SueyJULY 20, 2009 53 COMMENTS

Chop Suey is a stir-fried dish which can include a variety of meat

and vegetables in a cornstarch thickened sauce. While allegedly

from the Guangdong Province, chop suey is widely believed to have

originated in the US during construction of the Transcontinental

Railway. Whatever Chop Sueys origin, its become synonymous with

American Chinese food.

One of the factors that influences the evolution of food as it

migrates to a new land is the availability of traditional ingredients.

Welcome!I'm Marc,and I want to teach yousome basic techniquesand give you theconfidence andinspiration so that youcan cook without recipestoo!

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When chop suey arrived with early Chinese immigrants in the late

19th century, bokchoy, straw mushrooms and water chestnuts

werent available here. So the immigrants did what any great chef

would do and improvised, using readily available ingredients such

as cabbage, button mushrooms and celery. In this version Ive tried

to stay true to the inauthenticity of American Chop Suey by using

ingredients that would have been available around that time in the

US.

Ive chosen Choy Suey as my submission for this months Dinner

and a Movie. Susan of Sticky Gooey Creamy Chewy is hosting this

month and she selected Breakfast at Tiffanys as the theme. While

Im sure others will post on the many merits of the film, I decided to

tackle its biggest controversy. What does this have to do with Chop

Suey you ask?

Produced in 1961 and loosely based off Truman Capotes novella of

the same name, Breakfast at Tiffanys was filmed at the infancy of

the Civil Rights Movement. Before the March on Washington where

Martin Luther King gave his famous I Have a Dream speech, and

before Asian American actors like Pat Morita and George Takei

were cast to play their own kind in leading (though arguably

stereotyped) rolls.

Its no surprise then, that in the grand old tradition of Blackface in

theater, Mickey Rooney was cast to portray Holly Golightlys

yellowfaced neighbor Mr. Yunioshi. Is it offensive by todays

standards? Certainly. It reflects the mentality of a period in our

history when it was perfectly acceptable to use minorities as the

butt of all jokes.

But as someone who wasnt born yet in 1961, I see Mr. Yunioshi as

an enduring record of where perceptions have been, a benchmark

to judge how far weve come in one generation and thats

something to be grateful for. Its not to say that stereotypes dont

exist anymore, but its much harder for these anachronistic notions

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to thrive unchecked (just ask Alec Baldwin).

I chose to make this dish because there was a time, not so long ago

when all Asians were Orientals* and all Orientals ate Chop Suey.

As the quintessential yellowface of the culinary world, Chop Suey

seemed like the perfect dish to represent Mickey Rooneys roll in

the film.

* In case you were wondering the term orient originally referred

to the region now known as the Middle East.

Chop Suey1/2 lbs pork cut into thin strips

1 Tbs dry sherry (or shao hsing if you have it)

2 tsp oyster sauce

1 tsp corn starch

white pepper

3/4 C chicken stock

1 tsp cornstarch

2 cloves garlic minced

1/2 stalk celery diced

1/2 onion diced

1/2 carrot shredded

3 button mushrooms cut into wedges

2 cabbage leaves cut into medium squares

10 sugar peas trimmed

1 package chow mein noodles

1 Tbs sesame oil

Marinate the pork in the shao hsing, oyster sauce, corn starch and

white pepper for at least 1 hour. Add the chicken stock and 1 tsp of



cornstarch to a bowl and stir to combine.

Heat a large pot of salted water and cook the chow mein noodles

according to the package directions. When the noodles are done,

drain and rinse then toss them in sesame oil to prevent them from

sticking together.

Heat a wok or non-stick skillet over high heat until hot then add a

splash of oil. Add the garlic and swirl around in the oil. Add the

pork and fry until cooked. Transfer to a plate and set aside.

Add some more oil if needed and fry the celery, onion, carrot,

mushrooms and cabbage until they are all vibrant in color and

mostly cooked. Add the sugar peas and cooked pork, then pour

over the chicken stock mixture. Bring to a boil and allow the sauce

to thicken.

Serve Chop Suey over the noodles, or rice if you prefer.

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chineserecipes.baobaotown.com 6 months ago

looks Yummy, and have great nutrtion!! great recipes greatshare~~

TexanForever 6 months ago

I'm now in my 80's and I grew up on this stuff. Someversion of it was usually on the menu of department storelunch counters (remember them?) or the local ChinaClipper Cafe of the '50's. The main ingredients were beansprouts, a little celery, perhaps some cabbage,mushrooms, a few slivers of carrots (for color), some thinslices of pork and/or chicken, maybe some parsley and/ora few sweet peas, some onions and/or garlic, perhapsseveral snow peas and/or mushrooms, white pepper, andstarch for thickening. ...

That said, the main "secret" ingredient that most peopledon't remember is a pinch of GINGER. (Not too much, justa hint.) Regardless of the combination of veggies you use,ginger is the critical seasoning that makes it taste "right."Celery is also critical. I spent several years trying toreverse-engineer into the correct combination beforestumbling onto a reference to ginger, then it all fell intoplace.

The new generation of real Chinese immigrants that have

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come to America with the authentic modern Chinesedishes have no idea what you're talking about when youask for "American style chop suey or chow mein.

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William Nash 10 months ago

Chop suey, (literally "assortment of pieces"), is as differentin contents and style as it appears on different AmericanChinese restaurant menus. I grew up in the IntermountainWest where the Intercontinental Railroad finally hooked theeast with the west coasts. The version found on mostmenus in that part of the country once were exclusively stirfried tiny slices of meat or seafood with vegetables, thensnow peas and handfuls of fresh bean sprouts werethrown in last until heated throughly. It was very crisp andquite healthy main dish. Using noodles instead of beansprouts was simply Chow Mein. Since most of the oldChinese restaurants have gone out of business it's rare tofind this variety of "Chop Suey." Now it's all fusion asianand no one remembers how to cook with bean sprouts.The recipe found here works very well at replicating what Igrew up eating in those old western Chinese restaurantsas long as I just omit any rice or noodles and replace withlots of fresh bean sprouts. It's light, flavorful, and notoverwhelmed with heavy sugar-loaded sauces. For me,using rice or lo mein makes the dish too heavy. After all,there are carbohydrates and then "good" carbohydrates.

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UncleBucky a year ago

If it tastes good, eat it! Chop suey, Gen. Tso, KFC stylechicken... whatever. Be happy, that's the point!

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Jie 2 years ago

Tried the chopsuey recipe....my family loved it!!!Thank you and more power.

Melinda 2 years ago

Looks good.But the Philippine version of chop suey is the

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Looks good.But the Philippine version of chop suey is thebest because it consist of different kinds ofvegetables.....like cabbage,green beans,sayotes,celery,carrots. cauliflowers, snow peas,green andred peppers and then saute in shrimp,chickenmeat,liver,gizzard or with pork. eat it with rice or noodles.

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Stacey 5 years ago

We have this at every big family gathering with beef piecesor turkey tails and vermicelli yum yum yum soy sauce,oyster sauce....

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Katie 5 years ago

Given what you wrote about the history of chop suey andyour general interest in the history of food, I think you'dreally enjoy Jennifer 8. Lee's talk about hunting for GeneralTsao on Ted.com (if you haven't already seen it). Check itout here: http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/...

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Susan at Sticky,Gooey,Creamy,C 5 years ago

Very insightful post, Marc. While there still is a long way togo, it is good to see how far society has come regardingracial and ethnic stereotypes.

Your Chop Suey looks terrific! It's fresh and light with lotsof vibrant colors and textures. A far cry from myneighborhood take-out joint!

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Rasa Malaysia 5 years ago

Marc - this is the recipe that I don't even know how toattempt. 1) I have never had one in my life, and not in theUS, lucky?! 2) I can never figure out what choy sueymeans in Chinese, meaning can't think of the Chinesewords of chop suey. Here is what I think about Chinesefood in America, at least we are trying to teach people the"better" and "proper" way to make them. :)

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alice 4 years ago Rasa Malaysia

it means mixed food. chop (zchap) "mixed/varied"and suey (shong) "food/dishes"

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Eralda 5 years ago

Great entry! And I like it that the ingredients you used areones that were available back then. It's amazing whathappens when food crosses borders.

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diva 5 years ago

very interesting post! it got me thinking about AmericanChinese food and British Chinese food and how it allchanges from country to country.

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Kristen 5 years ago

This is such an improvement over the version my momused to make! I think I will give it a go, looks fresh & what?None of that canned rubbish we used to eat as kids?Thank God!

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Cheffresco 5 years ago

Looks delicious! What's shao?

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Marc Matsumoto 5 years ago

Mod Cheffresco

Shao Hsing is a type of Chinese cooking wine. It'spretty similar to sherry so if you don't have it youcan substitute sherry instead.

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The Duo Dishes 5 years ago

Chop suey with noodles is the preference. So tasty thatway!

Carolyn Jung 5 years ago

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I remember cringing in the theater when I first saw"Breakfast of Tiffany's'' at an Audrey Hepburn revival acouple decades ago. But you're right -- it is a greatbarometer to show just how times have changed. Yourrecipe is, too. Chop suey always makes me think of gloppybean-sprout laden dishes crowned with those crispy LaChoy fried chow mein noodles. Yours, happily, is a far cryfrom that, and epitomizes the fresh and healthy way weeat now.

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Chef E 5 years ago

I too have read that it started due to the railways, and itwas a way to feed the locals who wanted to eat a versionof their cuisine, so they threw it all together, and I know somany people who love this dish...nice on your end too!

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Jeff 5 years ago

You had me doubting you for awhile about the wholeBreakfast at Tiffany to chop suey but you managed to pullit together. Also, in the process taught me something new.To me it is so amazing that even in the last 50 years (whichis really no time) how much has changed. I can see thatwhen we get together as a family and grandpa, dad, andbrother are talking. They all have different viewpoints anddifferent perceptions based upon the time they wereraised.

Oh yeah I guess the dish looks good to ;-) Awesome jobas always!

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The Little Teochew 5 years ago

LOL. You will not be able to find "Chop Suey" on anymenu in Asia ;)

Richa a year ago The Little Teochew

But that's not true! I am from Nepal and we have itin every menu here. The only difference is that it

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has been adapted to a Nepali style :-)

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Peter G 5 years ago

Interesting to note how you made this dish and related it to"Breakfast at Tiffanys!"...I think it's a great statementMarc. And your chop suey looks authentic too!

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Manggy 5 years ago

Tusk tusk, Marc. This has a glaring omission: the cannedcrispy noodles! ;) Thank you for your commentary on thefilm. I never thought of chop suey as the yellowfaceanalogy of food, but thanks for putting it that way :)

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Colloquial Cook 5 years ago

[pling pling] Ooo dream maker, you heart breaker,whatever you're chopping, I'm coming your waaaay [plingpling]

Zabeena 5 years ago

Hi Marc!I'm glad you commented on this aspect of the film. I sawan interview with the director on youtube, and he said howmuch he regretted the decision to have Rooney play Mr.Yunioshi.Quite rightly so. One squirms during his scenes; itnearly spoils the film.

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