Chop Suey | Classic Chinese-American Recipe Like Mom Made (2024)

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Chop Suey is a delicious stew composed of bean sprouts, water chestnuts, bamboo shoots, onions, celery, and bits of pork, chicken, shrimp, or beef served with noodles. Popular in the 1950s, each mom had her own version of American shop suey that was a cheap, familiar comfort food

Next time try this Italian Thai dish that combines the two cultures in one delicious dinner.

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The True Chop Suey History

Exactly what does chop suey mean? In Chinese, the two characters for chop suey are "shap sui," which means "mixed small bits or odds and ends."

Althoughnobody knows for sure, San Francisco seems to be the city that gave birth to this mixed stew.

It was there that Chinese laborers flooded the city to take advantage of the booming economy brought on by the Gold Rush.

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Chinese restaurants popped up everywhere.

The legend goes that one night a group of drunken miners stumbled into a Chinese restaurant and demanded food. The tired owner trudged back into the kitchen, scraped leftover food off of the precious customers' plates, then put the scraps onto new ones.

He doused the jumble of meat and vegetables in soy sauce and then presented the food to the inebriated clients.

The miners loved the dish! The following night they returned and demanded more chop suey.

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Chop Suey Spreads Across the Country

By the 1920s, the Chinese-American stewwas as popular as hot dogs. The Chinese restaurants opened eateries throughout the country and adapted thestew to the tastes of non-Chinese customers.

The dish was cheap and easy to make. In the 1950s, mothers were making this Chinese stew for their families. A big pot fed an entire family.

Chop suey was now a hallmark of adventurous ethnic eating. Canned chop suey and packaged varieties appeared on the scene.

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With the appearance of influential figures like Julia Child, James Beard, and Craig Claiborne, customers began to search for authenticity in food. They wanted dishes like Gnocchi in Brodo and Pugliese Bread.

So in the 1960s, the so-called Chinese dish lost favor for unique dishes such as Peking duckand potstickers.

Today if you go into a Chinese restaurant you'll see dishes such as Kung Pao shrimp or chicken with broccoli, hot and sour soup. You won't find "shap sui" on the Chinese restaurant menus.

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Chop Suey Revisited

One of the problems of the old Chinese-American stew was that everything was overcooked.

The different vegetables in the dish were mushy and the liquid sometimes gelatinous. But that does not have to be the case.

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I remember the first time I had chop suey.

Helen, my mother-in-law, had to cook dinner early because it was her turn to host Bunko and a group of ladies was descending on the house.

Everyone had to eat early and leave the ladies to their game. This was her favorite dish to make in a pinch.

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Variations

This chop suey recipe is very tasty. Today, instead of using leftovers, like they did years ago, we use fresh ingredients and use the meat we have on hand.

Along with our usual ingredient list we like to mix and match with:

  • snow peas
  • red bell pepper
  • snap peas
  • green bell peppers
  • green beans
  • Chinese cabbage
  • baby corn
  • chicken breast
  • beef steak
  • shrimp
  • sesame oil
  • oyster sauce
  • white rice

Make sure you have a large wok or saucepan to work with. The easiest way to make Chinese recipes is to have all your ingredients ready to go.

Add the type of veggies you love. You can't go wrong. Give it a try, we're sure you won't be disappointed!

And next time if you'd like to try a seafood version, be sure to check out our Traditional Chinese Shrimp Chop Suey. It's delicious and the veggies are crunchy tender and covered in just the right amount of chop suey sauce.

Tutti a tavola è pronto!

Un caro saluto e alla prossima.

📖 Recipe

Chop Suey | Classic Chinese-American Recipe Like Mom Made (8)

Chop Suey | Traditional Chinese-American Recipe Like Mom Made

Delicious Chinese-American cuisine that utilizes pork, beef or chicken along with bean sprouts, bamboo shoots, water chestnuts, onions, and celery. This delicious chop suey is better than take out. Be creative and add more fresh veggies to this stir-fried vegetable dish if you wish.

4.91 from 160 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: budget-saving, easy, hearty dish, lunch, Stew

Cuisine: Asian flavor, Chinese-American

Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes minutes

Total Time: 45 minutes minutes

Servings: 6 people

Calories: 284kcal

Author: Marisa Franca @ All Our Way

As An Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Ingredients

  • 19 oz. cubed pork tenderloin
  • 3 Tablespoons olive oil or vegetable oil divided
  • 1 large onion chopped
  • 1 cup celery sliced in ¼-inch diagonal
  • 1 can 16 oz. bean sprouts, drained
  • 1 can 8 oz. sliced water chestnuts, drained
  • 1 can 8 oz. bamboo shoots, drained
  • 8 oz. fresh baby Bella mushrooms sliced or use shiitake mushrooms
  • ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes use more or less according to your taste
  • ½ cup chicken broth or chicken stock
  • ½ cup soy sauce
  • 2 Tablespoons cornstarch
  • 4 Tablespoons water
  • 4 oz. Canton noodles cooked according to directions. Set aside.
  • sesame seeds Optional for sprinkling on top

Instructions

  • Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in large skillet over medium heat and add the pork cubes. Cook, stirring, until the pork begins to brown, 10 minutes. Remove the meat from the skillet and set aside.

  • Heat the remaining oil in the skillet or large wok and add the onion, celery, and red pepper flakes. Sauté for about 2 to 3 minutes. Add the mushrooms and continue to sauté until the mushrooms release some of their liquid about another 3 minutes.

  • Stir in the bean sprouts, bamboo shoots, water chestnuts, and chicken broth. Let it come to a simmer. Add the meat back in with the soy sauce and cover the skillet. Let it simmer for about 5 minutes.

  • In a small bowl or measuring cup combine the cold water with the cornstarch. Stir the slurry into the skillet to thicken the flavorful sauce. Cook for about 5 minutes or until the sauce ingredients thicken.

  • Add the canton noodles to the shop suey and stir until thoroughly combined.

  • Serve the chop suey with chopped cilantro, green onions, or sesame seeds

Notes

Variations of Chop Suey:

This is virtually a basic recipe you can add as many vegetables as you want. The meat is up to you. Pork chop suey, beef chop suey, chicken chop suey, or shrimp chop suey are all delicious.

Add some baby bok choy with your veggies to give it more of an Chinese touch.

You may also use duck for your Chinese chop suey.

Make it vegetarian by using firm tofu. The tofu will absorb the flavors of the sauce.

For additional crunch, sprinkle chow mein noodles on top of each serving.

Check out the origin of Chop Suey in the post with this Chinese-American dish

Nutrition

Calories: 284kcal | Carbohydrates: 23g | Protein: 22g | Fat: 10g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 58mg | Sodium: 1252mg | Potassium: 649mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 125IU | Vitamin C: 3.2mg | Calcium: 30mg | Iron: 1.8mg

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Chop Suey | Classic Chinese-American Recipe Like Mom Made (2024)

FAQs

What is the difference between American chop suey and Chinese chop suey? ›

The American Chopsuey is sweet and sour with a bright orangish-red colour. It is like a one-pot macaroni pasta meal cooked with beef and vegetables in a sweet tomato sauce. Whereas the Chinese Chop Suey is savoury and spicy, served with rice or noodles.

What is chop suey in America? ›

Chop suey (usually pronounced /ˈtʃɒpˈsuːi/) is a dish from American Chinese cuisine and other forms of overseas Chinese cuisine, generally consisting of meat (usually chicken, pork, beef, shrimp or fish) and eggs, cooked quickly with vegetables such as bean sprouts, cabbage, and celery, and bound in a starch-thickened ...

What is chop suey sauce made of? ›

Chop suey sauce is made of soy sauce, oyster sauce, Shaoxing wine, sesame oil, cornstarch, white pepper, and water.

What does Chinese chop suey have in it? ›

Chop Suey will usually contain some kind of meat, whether this is beef, pork, chicken or seafood, an assortment of veggies, sometimes an egg and a thick sauce. This is then served with either noodles or rice, although rice is a more common and popular pairing.

What do you eat with American chop suey? ›

More shredded cheese melts onto the piping-hot pasta while a crisp green side salad with radishes is the perfect foil to this fast, crowd-pleasing dinner that defies borders.

What is real chop suey? ›

Chop suey is a dish you'll see on almost any Chinese takeout menu—but that doesn't mean it comes from China. According to culinary legend, the dish of stir-fried meat, egg, and vegetables was invented on August 29, 1896, in New York City.

What is another name for American chop suey? ›

Beefaroni, goulash, slumgullion, Johnny Marzetti, American Chop Suey—the list goes on.

What does chop suey mean in China? ›

The name in several Chinese dialects can be translated to “odds and ends,” an ancestor of the back-of-the-fridge dish that could be adjusted inexpensively and to fit your preferred flavors. According to other stories, chop suey was, like crab Rangoon and fortune cookies, truly the product of American immigration.

Is bolognese the same as American chop suey? ›

I will say that bolognese is traditionally served with spaghetti, whereas goulash or American chop suey is often served with macaroni or other smaller pasta types. But bolognese is meat, veggies, and red sauce over pasta... And goulash/American chop suey are the exact same thing.

What was chop suey originally called? ›

The song was originally titled either "Suicide" (according to the bassist, Shavo Odadjian) or "Self-Righteous Suicide" (according to Rubin), but the name was changed in response to real or anticipated pushback from Columbia Records.

How long does American chop suey last in the fridge? ›

This recipe will keep for three to five days in the fridge and reheats well both on the stovetop and in the microwave. If reheating on the stovetop, add some oil or butter to the pan before adding in the leftover chop suey or add a little bit of water to thin it out and keep it from sticking to the pan.

Does Chinese chop suey have noodles? ›

The difference between Chinese Chop Suey and American Chop Suey is that the Chinese one is an Asian-style cooking dish made of meat, eggs, and vegetables combined with a thick sauce and served with noodles or rice.

Why is Chinese chicken so tender? ›

In Chinese cooking, proteins like beef, pork or chicken are velveted first before stir-frying them. There are several ways to velvet, but at its most basic level, it involves marinating meat with at least one ingredient that will make it alkaline. This is what tenderizes the meat, especially cheaper, tougher cuts.

What is American chop suey in Freak the Mighty? ›

In the cafeteria that same day, Freak eats what he calls “gruel,” which is actually American chop suey.

How healthy is chop suey? ›

Chop suey is another stir-fry dish made from meat, eggs, and thinly sliced vegetables in a light sauce. It's often made with pork, although some varieties may contain chicken, beef, or tofu. Like other stir-fries, it's a healthier choice because it's made from a protein source and vegetables.

What is American goulash made of? ›

This hardy American Goulash Recipe is one of my kids' favorites. It is a classic dish from our childhoods similar to Hamburger Helper, with ground beef and elbow macaroni cooked in a savory tomato sauce and topped with cheese. It's so easy to make this comforting one-pot meal.

What's the difference between chop suey and stir-fry? ›

At its core, Chop Suey is a quick stir-fry, including a little meat and a lot of crisp-tender vegetables, that's finished off in a savory sauce that's thick enough to coat everything with flavor.

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