This is a classic tale of how Chinese chefs are able to take ingredients that are not native to China and make a delicious dish of it regardless. Yes beef is found in China, but Lobsters come from the North Atlantic a long ways from China. In some recipes you can substitute shrimp for lobsters and scallops for either shrimp or lobsters. In some recipes you can mix all three in a sort of Chinese Tutti del Mar. There are shrimps to be found off the coast of China, and the Chinese have eaten them for thousands of years. Surf and Turf is as American as apple pie which is really English but we don’t want to split hairs. The Chinese did themselves with well this one.

Meat

You start with a pound of fillet mignon and combine this with either a pound of lobster, shrimp or scallops, or you can use all three in one-half pound sized increments. The fillet mignon is cut into pieces about one inch square by one-half of an inch square. You can use one pound of flank steak if desired. The shrimp or scallops are left whole and the lobster is cut into pieces about one inch square by a half inch thick. Although you can eat this recipe with a knife and fork to get the authentic Chinese atmosphere you should eat it with chopsticks. That is why the pieces of steak and lobster are cut into bite sized pieces. Combine this with a quarter teaspoon of sugar, and a quarter teaspoon of sesame oil and a tablespoon of soy sauce. This is used to marinate the steak before stir frying. The pieces of steak are stir fried searing the steak first over a high heat; then turn the heat down and continue stir frying until the center of the meat turns a light pink color. The other ingredients are just heated up when you are finishing the dish.

Noodles

The noodles are bought uncooked from a Chinese grocery store. You will need half a pound of noodles. The noodles are first cooked in two quarts of simmering unsalted water for ten minutes. They are then removed from the simmering water made into cakes that are placed off to one side and allowed to cool while you are preparing the other ingredients. Later when you have finished the other ingredients you fry the noodles in two table spoons full of the prepared oil n a hot stir fry wok. The noodles are fried until they are golden brown on both sides then removed from the pan and placed onto a paper towel to soak up the excess oil.

Cooking Oil

Use one cup of canola or sesame oil to which you add one teaspoon of crushed garlic with a teaspoon of minced ginger root, and a quarter teaspoon of white pepper. Fry them together so that they meld the flavors together.

The Sauce

This is made from one tablespoon of soy sauce, two tablespoons of rice wine or dry sherry, two tablespoons of oyster sauce, two tablespoons of cornstarch, one half cup of chicken broth. You can use low salt chicken broth if desired. Mix the ingredients together and set aside for use after you have cooked the vegetables. Then you form a well in the center of the cooked vegetables pouring the sauce into the well. Allow it to thicken a bit then stir fry it in with the other ingredients.

Vegetables

Two scallions cut into two and a half inch pieces, two and a half cups of shiitake mushrooms; discard the stems and cut the caps into quarters, two and a half cups of bok choy or broccoli. Cut the bok choy on the diagonal into pieces about one-half of an inch wide, or cut the broccoli into two inch pieces. One large stalk of celery cut on the diagonal like the bok choy. All the ingredients are stir fried in this order, and then set aside until the other vegetables are stir fried. First stir fry the scallions until the parts are translucent, remove from the wok. The next thing to be stir fried is the bok choy or broccoli along with the celery until it is hot and firm to the bite. The last of the vegetables to be fried are the shiitake mushrooms; once again fry them until they are hot but firm to the bite.

Serving

Combine all the ingredients in the wok. Form a well in the center of the ingredients to hold the sauce while it thickens for a few minutes, at the same time the other ingredients are being reheated. After the sauce has thickened sufficiently stir everything together allowing it to become thoroughly heated. Place the fried noodles on plates one to the plate and serve the Surf and Turf Chowmein over the noodles. Enjoy!