Stir-fried glass noodles (mung bean vermicelli) are a tasty dinner option with chewy noodles, plenty of vegetables, and a quick-cooking protein. From prep to cooking, it all comes together in just 20 minutes!
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🍜 What Are Glass Noodles?
Glass noodles (also called mung bean noodles or bean thread noodles) are a type of transparent noodle made from starch, typically mung beans, sweet potato, tapioca, or a combination of all three.
Mung Bean Noodles vs. Rice Vermicelli
Mung bean noodles are made with mung bean starch, while rice vermicelli is made with rice. They're both gluten-free.
When uncooked, they look pretty similar, but after cooking, rice vermicelli turns opaque white, while mung bean noodles become translucent.
How To Prepare Mung Bean Vermicelli?
Soaking it in hot water is the best way to prepare it. No cooking is required.
To do so, put the noodles in a big bowl, cover them with hot water, and let them soak for 10 to 15 minutes. The longer they soak, the more they'll expand.
🧂 Ingredients
- Mung Bean Vermicelli: Available at Asian grocery stores. Make sure you get mung bean noodles, not rice noodles. Check the ingredient list: Mung bean noodles will have mung bean starch, while rice noodles are made from rice.
- Chicken (or your preferred protein): Beef, pork, and shrimp work well.
- Eggs: Adds extra protein
- Garlic: Freshly minced for the best flavor.
- Scallion: Sliced, with white and green parts separated.
- Green Cabbage: Taiwanese cabbage is my preferred variety, but any kind will do.
- Shiitake Mushrooms: Fresh or dried, thinly sliced (see notes).
- Carrot: Adds a nice crunchy texture.
- The Sauce: Soy sauce, Shaoxing wine, oyster sauce, sugar, and white pepper.
🔪 Instructions
STEP 1: Soak mung bean vermicelli for 10 minutes until soft. Use scissors to cut the noodles in half. Let them continue to soak in the water until the last step.
STEP 2: Combine the sauce ingredients in a small bowl and set aside: oyster sauce, soy sauce, sugar, Shaoxing wine, and white pepper.
STEP 3: Heat the wok on high until it smokes slightly. Add 1 tablespoon oil to the wok. Add the beaten eggs and quickly until slightly underdone; they can still be runny. Remove the eggs to a bowl.
STEP 4: Add 1 tablespoon oil and swirl it around the wok. Add the chicken and stir-fry for 2-3 minutes until no longer pink. Remove and set aside.
STEP 5: Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil in the wok over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and scallion whites, and cook for 30 seconds until fragrant.
STEP 6: Increase the heat to high, then add the cabbage, shiitake mushrooms, and carrots. Stir-fry for 2 minutes.
STEP 7: Add the vermicelli directly from the soaking water bowl to the wok. Add the cooked egg, chicken, and sauce ingredients and stir-fry for two minutes until the noodles are tender. Garnish with scallion greens, and enjoy!
🥡 Storage & Leftovers
Storing: Keep the leftovers in a sealed container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Reheating: Warm up leftovers by stir-frying in a nonstick pan over medium heat with a couple of tablespoons of water to loosen the sauce.
🍽 Looking for more recipes?
📋 Recipe
Stir Fry Glass Noodles (Mung Bean Vermicelli)
Ingredients
- 3 bundles mung bean vermicelli (about 35-40g each)
- 4 tablespoons neutral oil (like canola, vegetable, corn, avocado, etc.)
- 200 g chicken (or your preferred protein)
- 2 eggs (beaten)
- 2 cloves garlic (minced)
- 1 scallion (sliced, white and green parts seperated)
- 200 grams cabbage (shredded thinly, about ¼ of a small cabbage)
- 6 shiitake mushrooms (fresh or dried, thinly sliced, see notes)
- ½ medium carrot (julienned)
Stir fry sauce
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon shaoxing wine
- 1 teaspoon oyster sauce
- ½ teaspoon sugar
- ⅛ teaspoon white pepper
Instructions
- Soak mung bean vermicelli for 10 minutes until soft. Use scissors to cut the noodles in half. Let them continue to soak in the water until the last step.
- Combine the sauce ingredients in a small bowl and set aside: oyster sauce, soy sauce, sugar, Shaoxing wine, and white pepper.
- Heat the wok on high until it smokes slightly. Add 1 tablespoon oil to the wok. Add the beaten eggs and quickly until slightly underdone; they can still be runny. Remove the eggs to a bowl.
- Add 1 tablespoon oil and swirl it around the wok. Add the chicken and stir-fry for 1-2 minutes until no longer pink. Remove and set aside.
- Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil in the wok over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and scallion whites, and cook for 30 seconds until fragrant.
- Increase the heat to high, then add the cabbage, shiitake mushrooms, and carrots. Stir-fry for 2 minutes.
- Add the vermicelli directly from the soaking water bowl to the wok. Add the cooked egg, chicken, and sauce ingredients and stir-fry for two minutes until the noodles are tender.
- Garnish with scallion greens, and enjoy!
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