Keto Chicken Lo Mein with Vegetables
Get your chopsticks ready! This homemade Chicken Lo Mein made with shirataki noodles is loaded with tender and crisp vegetables. With 10 net carbs only, you’ll love the sweet savory Paleo lo mein sauce and how you can use any vegetables you want to make these easy stir-fried noodles easily! Totally slurp-worthy!
Chicken lo mein is one of my favorite childhood dishes whenever my family eats out. As a matter of fact, whenever I think of lo mein stir-fry, I associate the dish with imagery of night markets, college friends, weddings, birthdays, New Year’s…all happy occasions!
Lo mein with chicken and vegetables is still one of my favorite Chinese dishes but I stopped ordering it after I moved out of Taiwan. I find it quite difficult these days to have good lo mein that’s not too oily or lack of flavor. Hence I decided to make my own version of paleo and low carb chicken lo mein!
Difference between Lo Mein and Chow Mein
Lo mein (撈麵) is a Chinese noodle dish with egg noodles. It often contains vegetables and protein, usually pork, chicken, shrimp, beef, and/or fried tofu.
Cantonese style lo mein often uses thin and round shape egg noodles that are yellow. They are boiled first then tossed with a thin sauce, often oyster sauce or vegetarian oyster sauce, and topped with wontons, roasted pork, or beef stew with blanched Chinese broccoli and a simple soup on the side. The word “Lo” (撈) means to scoop out and “Mein” (麵) means noodles. It means scoop out the boiled noodles with a strainer to describe the type of cooking. Often, the noodles aren’t stir-fried. They are simply boiled and mixed in or tossed with sauce before serving.
My Cantonese chow mein and House special chow mein use Cantonese style chow mein noodles.
The American style lo mein is actually closer to chow mein (炒麵), which means stir-fried noodles. Click here to see what chow mein looks like from google search in Mandarin websites. Hint: They look very similar to what we think lo mein is on the east coast.
According to wikipedia, there’s a regional difference in the U.S. about what chow mein means between the east and west coast. On the east coast, people associate chow mein with crispy deep fried style noodles whereas chow mein on the west coast is usually the steamed style, using soft noodles, and the crispy style is simply called Hong Kong style chow mein.
To keep the matter simple, we are sticking to American east coast style lo mein today with soft noodles and lo mein sauce. I also modified the dish by using low carb noodles. I have to tell you that the flavor is truly excellent and you will not miss a bit of the takeout version. 🙂
My homemade chicken lo mein is made with shirataki noodles. It’s healthy, low carb, and loaded with vegetables. I call it the plant-focused chicken lo mein. Plant focused is different from plant based. Plant focus means adding more veggies to your plate. You can still enjoy meat but just in smaller quantities as the majority of your plate should be filled with vegetables. Personally I really love this idea so in my recipe below you’ll find I intentionally added more vegetable varieties to the dish. I also use ground chicken as opposed to chicken thighs or breasts to speed up the preparation time.
Where to buy lo mein noodles
Traditional lo mein uses egg noodles. You can also use chuka soba (chow mein) noodles. You can find them in local Chinese grocery stores or on Amazon. Please note that they are not wheat-free.
To make low carb paleo lo mein, I use shirataki konjac pasta in fettucine style found on Amazon. You can also any low carb noodles you like. Chickpea spaghetti noodles are also a great choice. They are gluten-free but now low carb.
How to customize your Paleo chicken lo mein
Making homemade chicken lo mein is really easy and versatile. You can virtually throw-in any vegetables you like to your noodle stir-fry. Here are some ideas I have to help you customize your lo mein:
- Sauce choices: I use coconut aminos (paleo soy sauce) in the recipe. You can also try adding my homemade shiitake oyster sauce. It’s vegan, low carb, and with no added sugar. Use the oyster sauce in combination with coconut aminos to deepen the flavor.
- Protein choices: Swap chicken for beef, pork, shrimp, or tempeh. Or simply add more veggies to make veggie lo mein. You can also add the noodles to this Ground chicken stir fry with green beans recipe.
- Vegetable choices: Swap bok choy and carrots for broccolini, broccoli florets, bell peppers, celery, bean sprouts, snow peas, zucchini…etc. Basically vegetables that have a crunchy texture and are not mushy.
- Noodle choices: I use shirataki konjac pasta in fettucine shape to make low carb paleo lo mein. You can also use chickpea spaghetti noodles (gluten-free) or any low carb noodles you like.
- Make it spicy: add crushed red pepper or your favorite hot sauce.
How to make homemade chicken lo mein
Making homemade lo mein is really easy. You can virtually use any vegetables you want to throw into the pan but preparations are the key as the actual cook time is quite short.
- Slice and dice all the vegetables you want to add to the stir-fry.
- Combine the sauce in a measuring cup.
- If adding meat, dice it to bite size chunks or use ground meat to speed up the process.
- If your noodles need to be boiled first, follow the package instructions.
- Sear the meat first and season with salt, pepper, onion and garlic powder.
- Quickly saute the vegetables until they slightly turn softer but not flimsy.
- Add the noodles, the lo mein sauce, and the protein back to the pan, toss and serve!
Lo Mein Sauce
Traditional lo mein sauce is a combination of oyster sauce, soy sauce, chicken stock, and cornstarch. To keep it low carb and simple, I use coconut aminos, chicken stock, toasted sesame oil, grated ginger, Frank’s hot pepper sauce, and arrowroot or xanthan gum to thicken the sauce. Try adding my shiitake made vegan oyster sauce for extra umami flavor.
More Noodle Recipes –
- Crispy Beef Chow Mein Noodles (baked, whole30!)
- Shirataki noodles with paleo peanut sauce
- Vietnamese shirataki noodle salad
- Chicken Yakisoba Recipe
- Paleo Japchae
- Whole30 Cup Noodles
- Thai Peanut Sauce Cucumber Noodles
- Lemongrass chicken shirataki noodle bowl
- Chinese Dan Dan Noodles (paleo, low carb!)
- Cold Ramen Noodles (great for summer!)
- Whole30 Ramen (great for winter!)
- Pasta Shrimp with zucchini noodles
- Cantonese Chow Mein with beef
Complete the homemade feast with –
- Chinese Low Carb Potstickers
- Asian chopped salad with gluten-free chow mein noodles
- Thai shirataki rice fried rice
- Easy Wonton Soup
- keto Egg Rolls
- Paleo Scallion Pancakes
- Whole30 Shumai
- Temaki Sushi
- More low carb keto recipes
- More healthy takeout dishes
This veggie focused keto chicken lo mein is seriously my new favorite! I love that it’s low carb, gluten-free, paleo, and I can practically throw-in any veggies I have from the crisp drawer. There’s no food waste and it makes a wonderful one-pot meal. The salty and naturally sweet flavor lo mein sauce with a tangle of noodles that are totally slurp-worthy! This veggie packed homemade lo mein will quickly become a favorite!
Chicken Lo Mein with vegetables (Paleo, Keto, Low Carb)
Ingredients
- 2 packs Well Lean shirataki konjac pasta, in fettucine style
- 0.5 oz. cloves garlic, minced, about 3 cloves
- 3 bulbs scallions, sliced diagonally and separate pale green and green parts
- 1.5 cups julienned carrots, about 1 large carrot
- 2.5 oz. sugar snap peas, sliced lengthwise
- 3.5 oz. fresh shiitake, sliced
- 5 cups baby bok choy, about 2 large bundles
- 3 tbsp Avocado oil
- Toasted white sesame seeds, optional
Lo mein sauce:
- ¼ cup coconut aminos
- 1 tsp toasted sesame oil
- 1 tsp grated ginger
- 1-1.5 tsp Frank’s original hot pepper sauce, optional
- 0.5 tsp xanthan gum, or 2 tsp arrowroot or tapioca starch
- ½ cup chicken or vegetable stock
If adding chicken:
- ½ lb ground chicken breast
- ½ tsp coarse sea salt
- ¼ tsp each onion and garlic granules
- ⅛ tsp white pepper
Instructions
- Rinse and drain the shirataki konjac noodles. Prepare garlic and scallions and separate pale green and green parts.
- Prepare carrots, shiitake, and snow peas. Set them aside in one large plate.
- Dice bok choy stems to about ½ inch sections and leaves to about 2-inch in sections. Set them aside in one large bowl.
- Combine the lo mein sauce in a bowl. Mix and stir-well.
- In a well-heated wok or large skillet, add 1 tbsp of oil. Brown the chicken over medium-high heat and season with salt, onion, garlic, and white pepper. Use a wooden spoon to break up the meat. Cook until the meat is cooked through, about 3-4 minutes. There should be little to no liquid in the skillet. Set it aside.
- Use the same wok, add 2 tbsp of oil. Saute garlic and pale green scallion parts with a pinch of salt for about 5-8 seconds. Add carrots and shiitake. Season with 2 pinches of salt. Saute over medium-high heat for about 1 minute.
- Add bok choy stems and leaves. Season with 2 pinches of salt. Saute for about 30 seconds.
- Push the veggies to the side of the wok, add noodles and chicken. Give the sauce another stir then add it to the wok. Saute over medium-high to high-heat for about 1 minute.
- Off heat, taste and see if you want to add more coconut aminos or salt. Garnish with green scallion parts and sesame seeds, if using. Serve warm or in room temperature.
Notes
- Try adding my vegetarian oyster sauce (made with shiitake) to the lo mein sauce for extra umami flavor!
- Swap chicken for pork, beef, shrimp, or tempeh for variety.
- Skip the meat and add more vegetables to make veggie lo mein.
- Swap bok choy and carrots for broccolini, broccoli florets, bell peppers, celery, bean sprouts, snow peas, or zucchini.
- You can also use chickpea spaghetti noodles (gluten-free) or any low carb noodles you like.
- Try adding crushed red pepper or your favorite hot sauce to make spicy lo mein.
- Use zucchini noodles to make this dish Whole30 compliant.
- Storage: store them in the fridge and finish within 3-4 days.
This was delicious! I made it almost exactly as written … used chicken sliced in 1-inch pieces instead of ground. Was delicious and will definitely make again. Satisfied my constant desire for delicious Asian flavors and also gave me another great vehicle for konjac noodles.
That’s awesome! So happy to hear! Please feel free to browse more shirataki made recipes on my blog! 😀
This chicken lo mein is SO GOOD! I used the vegetables I have on hand – shredded green cabbage, carrots, and bean sprouts – and everything comes together quickly! Also love the low carb noodle touch as I love lo mein and now I can enjoy it whenever I want! Thanks for another great recipe!
Thank you so much! Yay!
I made this tonight and it was amazing!! Only modification was that I used Jovial grain-free spaghetti. I just got shiitakes in my farm share this week and the were so good in this dish. The seasoning on the ground chicken was really good – that was a nice touch. Everyone in the family loved this one. Your recipes always hit the spot!
Thank you!
Easy and flavorful with bountiful of veggies. Will be making again. Thank you.
This looks amazing! If I’m going to use the traditional lo mein egg noodles that you linked, would I still use 2 packages for one recipe? Or would you only need one?
Thanks!!
Hey Renee, I would think just one packet as the traditional lo mein packet I’ve seen in stores is pretty large in one packet. 🙂
Made this last night for dinner. Used the Hearts of Palm noodles from Trader Joes and used chicken breast cut into bite size pieces (because I had it thawed and needed to use it). Delicious!
That sounds super yummy!
In the spirit of experimentation and the options / alternatives listed at the end of the recipe we gave this a whirl based on what I had in the fridge. We used zucchini, green beans, daikon in place of carrots and peas. And no nightshades (hot sauce). And I also only had angel hair shirataki noodles. BUT, despite that all, it was still lip-smacking good. Not a ton of dirty dishes, came together quickly, I’m going to add this to our rotation because it’s so flexible!
That sounds so yummy! Thanks for sharing, Liz!
Loved this one also…I tried the Konjac noodles and definitely not a fan so I just switched them out next time.
Thank you, Jodi!
This was sooooo good! Really hit that classic carry out lo mein spot. I used gluten jovial pasta bc that’s what I had on hand. Perfect!
So happy to hear! Healthy homemade takeout! 😀
This was my first exposure to Konjac pasta. I love lo mein and so when I saw this recipe I had to try it. Prepared this dish as written. Thanks ChihYu – you did it again! I am a believer of Well Lean Konjac pasta now and excited to try your fried recipe too. 🙂
Thank you, Ivy! So appreciate it!
It was an amazing, easy dinner! Thank you for all the inspo and detailed directions — I made a few veggie subs, but still it was top notch!
This looks delish! Do you have a good home chow mein recipe? I’d love to be able to make them both at home.
I haven’t had a big bowl of noodles like this in so long. Thanks for the recipe!
Wow, this is so flavorful. Way better than takeout!
What a wonderful and delicious family meal!
This is a keeper! I love chicken Lo Mein and this would be good even without the noodles.
I have ceramic “take out” containers and this is definitely the next thing going in them!
This was fabulous! I did forget the noodles from the store so just did it over rice but every single person in our house loved it. Thank you Chihyu!
So happy to hear. Thank you, Katie!
This dish is AMAZING! I used palmini linguine and it tastes just like the takeout lo mein but so much healthier! It’s easy to make, too! My boyfriend loves it, too. I’ll be making this dish over and over again!
Thank you, Martha. That’s great!
This Lo Mein recipe is AMAZING! I use ground pork and gluten free spaghetti noodles because that’s what I have handy. The kids LOVE the dish and it’s easy to make. Thanks for the inspiration!
Thanks for sharing, Jessica!