China is famous for street food. On Chinese streets you can always find a food truck selling stir-fried noodles, stir-fried vermicelli, fried rice, etc. You will find all kinds of stir-fried staple foods, with some eggs, vegetables, stir-fried in a wok over high heat for your lunch or dinner. Chinese street food it is very cheap, too: the basic version of most dishes is usually 8-12 yuan ($1.10 to $1.64 US) per serving. This stir-fried vermicelli noodles recipe is a home version of classic Chinese street food.
Image Credit: Chen Jing for My Chinese Home Kitchen, 2025.
The name of this recipe in Chinese is chǎo fěnsī (炒粉丝). Chǎo refers to stir-frying as a particular cooking method, and fěnsī is glass noodles. Glass noodles, also called cellophane noodles or bean threads, are made from mung bean starch and pea starch. I use sweet potato vermicelli noodles in this recipe, but you can use the bean threads (mung bean noodles) or mi fan (thin rice noodles) if you prefer.
You can cook stir-fried vermicelli in your home kitchen quite easily. Please soak the dried noodles in advance. If you are in a hurry to cook, you can use boiling water to blanch the noodles for one minute and then strain them from the water. When making stir-fried noodle recipes, you always need to put in a little more oil so that the hot oil covers the inside of the wok. This is more conducive to stir-frying, ensuring that the vermicelli will not stick to the pot.
How to stir-fry noodles
When stir-frying noodles, it’s best to use a pair of chopsticks to toss the noodles and combine them with the other ingredients. Watch our short video demonstrating this technique:
Stir-fried Vermicelli Noodles
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Prepare the ingredients.
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Soak the vermicelli in warm water until it is puffed and softened.
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Add 3ml dark soy sauce and stir well.
3 ml dark soy sauce
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Slice the chili pepper and garlic cloves. Cut the green onion into sections.
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Crack the eggs into a bowl, add 1ml white pepper powder and 1ml salt, and whisk well.
2 eggs, 1 ml ground white pepper, 3 ml salt
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Add 10ml (2 tsps) of oil to the pot, heat it slightly and pour in the egg liquid. After the egg liquid solidifies, break it up and pour it out for later use.
30 ml cooking oil
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Heat your wok until it is slightly smoking. Pour 20ml (4 tsps) of oil into the wok and swirl it so that the oil covers the pan. Add the garlic slices and chili peppers, stir-fry until fragrant, then add the bean sprouts.
100 g mung bean sprouts, 3 fresh xiaomila chili peppers, 3 cloves garlic, 30 ml cooking oil
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After the bean sprouts are fried until soft, season with 10ml (2 tsps) soy sauce, 5ml (1 tsp) oyster sauce, test the flavor, and 2ml (½ tsp) salt if needed. Stir fry evenly.
10 ml light soy sauce , 5 ml oyster sauce, 3 ml salt
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Add green onion, vermicelli, and eggs. Stir-fry quickly for 1 minute to break up the vermicelli.
2 eggs, 30 g green onions (chopped), 150 g sweet potato vermicelli
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Transfer to a plate and serve.
- If the vermicelli sticks to the pan during cooking, please reduce the heat or add appropriate amount of oil.
- Soy sauce and oyster sauce have a salty taste. Test the flavor of the noodles before adding salt.
Calories: 386kcalCarbohydrates: 78gProtein: 9gFat: 5gSaturated Fat: 1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0.01gCholesterol: 164mgSodium: 1160mgPotassium: 424mgFiber: 4gSugar: 7gVitamin A: 1041IUVitamin C: 108mgCalcium: 78mgIron: 2mg
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