Now that we’ve gotten back to reliably cool weather, let’s get back to that famous hearty casserole originally called African chow mein, now known by as many different names as there are different versions of the dish.
As is our custom with this particular oldtimer, we’ll use our oldtime recipe format:
Our first version today, shared by Arlington cook Jo Ann Andersen, will not only feed your family, her accompanying note is guaranteed to make you grin.
“Don’t know if this is the recipe Jeanette Huntsman is looking for,” she writes. “We called it hamburger oriental (my young-at-the-time sons dubbed it hamburger accidental … not one of their favorites).”
HAMBURGER ORIENTAL
Brown 1 pound hamburger and 1 cup raw rice together. Brown 1 cup chopped celery and 1 cup chopped onion in 3 tablespoons butter. Deglaze meat pan with 11/4 cups water and 1/4 cup soy sauce.
Turn hamburger mixture, celery mixture, water-soy deglazing mixture, 1 can each cream of mushroom and cream of chicken soup and, if desired, fresh mushrooms and water chestnuts to taste, into casserole dish and mix well. Fold in 1 cup bean sprouts, cover and bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour.
Serve with crispy chow mein noodles, under or over the meat mixture.
And another Arlington cook, Janette Potts, tells us, “In response to the SOS from Jeanette Huntsman of Camano Island for an African chow mein recipe, this is one I’ve had for 30 years. I do not know where I acquired it, but it may be what she is looking for. I call it chow mein casserole.”
CHOW MEIN CASSEROLE
Brown 1 pound hamburger in a deep skillet. Add 11/2 cups diced celery and 1 to 2 diced onions and saute. Season with salt and pepper to taste and add 11/2 cups water, 3 tablespoons soy sauce, 1/2 cup raw rice, 11/2 to 2 cups fresh bean sprouts and 1 can each cream of chicken and cream of mushroom soup, mixing well.
Cover skillet and simmer over low heat for about 30 minutes. Or, you can bake it, uncovered, at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.
When M. Joyce Lewis of Everett makes this dish, she uses a recipe taken from a 1968-1969 copy of “Garfield Goodies Galore.” Her version is called:
CHINESE HAMBURGER
Brown 1 pound hamburger until crumbly, then drain. Turn into a casserole and add 1 cup chopped celery, 2 chopped medium onions, 1 can each cream of chicken and cream of mushroom soup, 11/2 cups water and 2 tablespoons or up to 1/4 cup soy sauce, 1/2 cup raw rice and, if desired, mushrooms to taste.
Mix well, cover and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes, then uncover and bake 15 minutes. Spread crispy chow mein noodles to taste over the top and bake another 15 minutes.
Marlene Walls of Everett relies on a recipe she’s been making since the 1970s and tells us, “It’s very good.”
You’ll notice it includes a small green bell pepper, and it’s known at her house as:
UPSIDE-DOWN CHOW MEIN
Brown 1 pound lean ground beef and drain off fat. Turn into a large (21/2-3 quart) casserole and add 1 small diced onion, 1 can each cream of mushroom and cream of chicken soup, 11/4 cups hot water, 1/2 cup uncooked rice, 1/4 cup soy sauce, 1 small chopped green pepper and 1 can bean sprouts, drained.
Mix thoroughly and bake, covered, for 30 minutes at 350 degrees. Uncover and sprinkle top of casserole with crispy chow mein noodles to taste. Bake, uncovered, for an additional 30 minutes or until hot and bubbly.
Makes 4 to 6 hefty servings.
Pea pods are a surprise ingredient in this dish sent along by Monroe cook Sherry Martin. She says the recipe originally came from her mother-in-law and goes by the name:
CHINESE-STYLE BEEF CASSEROLE
Cook 11/2 pounds ground beef until brown and crumbly; turn into a 2-quart casserole. Arrange 1 package frozen pea pods, thawed, over the meat. Cover with 2 cups diced celery. Combine 1 can cream of mushroom soup, 1/2 soup can milk, 3/4 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper and 1 small onion, chopped. Mix well and pour over celery.
Sprinkle top of casserole with crispy chow mein noodles to taste and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.
The next Forum will appear in Wednesday’s Good Life section.
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