Kids like it. But not all kids. It’s made with hamburger. Unless it isn’t. It usually contains soy sauce and bean sprouts. Not always, though. It might be called African chow mein. But it might not.
What “it” is, actually, is a dandy dish, an old, time-honored casserole with almost as many names as the 32 similar, yet different, versions — 27 (to date) — Forum cooks have sent along for Jeanette Huntsman of Camano Island.
“Brings back happy memories,” Mary Hammericksen tells us. “Even my picky eater liked Chinese noodle casserole.”
She adds “and I LOVE, love, love it!”
“My recipe is so old (1965), I actually filed it under ethnic recipes. It was cheap, easy, tasty, cheap and cheap!”
Next, we hear from Marysville cook and longtime Forum helper-outer Audrey Shalan.
“I read your SOS from Jeanette Huntsman of Camano Island for African chow mein — my three kids were raised on it! I got the recipe from Joanie Fischer, my sister-in-law, years ago. The recipe really was good, but the best part was I could adjust the oven temperature to meet our schedule when my sons were in sports and our daughter had a job!”
And last but not least today, Kate Brand of Lynnwood shares a recipe for Tina Gilles of Lynnwood.
Kate mentions the how-to is taken from a “Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook,” and says the dressing is excellent.
MARY’S CHINESE NOODLE CASSEROLE
11/2pounds hamburger
1small yellow onion, chopped
1cup chopped celery
1can cream of chicken soup
1can cream of mushroom soup (my kids would not eat mushrooms, so I substituted cream of celery)
1soup can water
1package frozen peas
1/4cup quick-cooking rice
1/4cup soy sauce
1can crispy Chinese noodles
In a frying pan, brown the hamburger, onion and celery until meat is cooked and the vegetables are soft; mix in the soups and water, mixing well.
Pour into a baking dish and layer on top the frozen peas, then the rice and soy sauce. Top with the noodles and bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.
AUDREY’S AFRICAN CHOW MEIN
4ribs celery, chopped small
1/3small onion, chopped small
Oil
3/4pound hamburger (can use more)
1cup raw rice
1can cream of celery soup
1can cream of chicken or cream of mushroom soup
3soup cans water
1small can mushrooms, drained
1can sliced water chestnuts, drained
Chow mein noodles
In a frying pan, saute the celery and onion in a small dab of oil. Remove from pan and set aside. Add hamburger to the pan and fry out until well done (no pink meat). Drain any fat from the burger and add the celery and onion, rice, soups, water, mushrooms and water chestnuts, mixing well.
Spoon into a 9-by-13-inch baking pan or casserole dish and bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour and 25 minutes, or at 300 degrees for 1 hour and 40 minutes, or until dish is hot throughout.
Can sprinkle with chow mein noodles when done, if you want.
Makes one 9-by-13-inch pan.
COLE SLAW DRESSING
1/3cup mayonnaise
1tablespoon vinegar
2teaspoons sugar
1/2teaspoon celery seed
1/2teaspoon salt
Combine in a small bowl. Stir until sugar dissolves. Use immediately or refrigerate until needed.
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