Crockpot Lo Mein
This Crockpot Lo Mein is easy to make in the slow cooker with silky noodles, tender chicken, fresh vegetables, and a savory Asian-inspired sauce just like your favorite Chinese take-out style restaurant. Make mealtime exciting with this convenient and satisfying set-and-forget dish.
Ingredients
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken thighs or chicken breasts
- salt and black pepper to taste
- 2 cups fresh lo mein noodles , you can also sub with cooked gluten-free (or regular) spaghetti noodles of your choice if you can't find lo mein noodles.
- 2 cups baby bok choy , washed and sliced. Or sub with another vegetable of your choice. Chinese broccoli (Gai Lan) or spinach will work too.
- 1 red bell pepper seeded , thinly sliced
- ½ cup matchstick carrots
- 2 tablespoons arrowroot starch + 3 tablespoons cold water , you can also use tapioca starch, potato starch or corn starch for the slurry.
Sauce:
- 2/3 cup low sodium chicken broth
- 3 tablespoons oyster sauce , you can use Naked and Saucy Vegan Oyster Sauce as an alternative if you have dietary restrictions
- 2 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce , you can also substitute with coconut aminos or gluten-free tamari
- 3 teaspoons hoisin sauce , you can use Lee Kum Kee Vegetarian Hoisin Sauce or Kikoman Gluten-free Hoisin Sauce if you have dietary restrictions.
- 2 teaspoons honey , you can also sub with maple syrup, date syrup, or sticky liquid sweetener of your choice such as Lakanto sugar-free maple syrup, sukrin gold, allulose, yacon syrup for a lower sugar option.
- 2 garlic cloves , minced
- ½ tablespoon fresh ginger , minced
- 1/2 teaspoon red chili pepper flakes , optional
- sesame seeds for garnish , optional
Instructions
-
Lightly grease 4-5 quart slow cooker with non-stick cooking spray. Add chicken and season with salt and black pepper. In a medium bowl, whisk together all the ingredients for the sauce and pour over chicken. Cover and cook for 1 1/2 - 2 hours on high or 3-4 hours on low, stirring once to distribute sauce evenly.
-
Meanwhile, prepare noodles according to package directions and set aside.
-
Once chicken is cooked, transfer to cutting board and cut into cubes or shred with two forks.Toss back in to slow cooker along with bok choy, bell peppers and carrots. To thicken sauce, whisk together corn starch and water in a small bowl and stir into slow cooker. Cook on HIGH for an additional 20-30 minutes or until sauce has thickened up. Give everything a good stir to combine and coat with sauce.
-
Serve hot and garnish with sesame seeds, if desired.
Recipe Notes
Due to the lower heating element in older slow cookers, the sauce may not thicken in the slow cooker. If that is the case, spoon out all the sauce from the slow cooker into a small saucepan and bring to a boil on high heat until it thickens up. Combine with rest of ingredients and serve.
* Feel free to add in any other vegetables of your choice. Broccoli, snow peas and bell peppers would work well in this dish.
*Adding the fresh pre-cooked or cooked dry noodles JUST 20 minutes PRIOR to serving will ensure that the noodles will NOT get too soft and mushy.
**Use pork instead of chicken or extra firm or deep-fried tofu for a meatless meal. I also have a vegetarian version on my site.