This cabbage stir-fry with glass noodles and scrambled eggs is an easy, economical, and satisfying recipe. It also happens to be vegetarian! It’s filling enough to be a main meal for one or two people, and makes a great side dish as part of a larger meal.
Note: This recipe was originally published in August of 2013 (it’s one of our earliest recipes!). It has been updated in 2022, with new photos, clearer instructions, metric measurements, and more. The recipe has stayed mostly the same, with very minor adjustments. Enjoy!
One of My Go-To Easy Meals
Deciding what to eat during a busy day can be tough. You might just want to chase away your hunger with some cereal, a piece of fruit, or a can of soup.
At our house, a quick meal for Sarah might be a plate of pan-fried noodles. For me, it’s just a bowl of wonton soup, which we usually stock in our freezer. For Kaitlin, it would be microwaving whatever leftovers she can find, and Bill would probably just skip a meal.
No matter how much we love to cook, we’ve all had the experience of wandering into the kitchen, poking around, and talking ourselves out of cooking.
But stir-fries are a great way to throw together something tasty and healthy without too much effort. This cabbage and glass noodle stir-fry is one such dish.
You need mung bean vermicelli noodles, which come in big packs of individually wrapped packets, half a cabbage (one of the most long-lasting vegetables in the fridge), garlic, scallion, and some seasonings.
In the course of minutes, you have something piping hot, healthy, and delicious to enjoy—and you don’t even need anything to go with it if you’re cooking for 1 or 2 people!
A Flexible Stir-fry
There are no limits as to what you can do with stir-fries, so use our recipes as guides and be as creative as you want.
You can substitute your “likes” for your “don’t likes,” your “haves” for “don’t haves,” and your “can eats” for “can’t eats.”
You can also adjust seasoning. I love fish sauce, so I like to add a teaspoon of it with my vegetables. It makes the dish tastier, more complex (in a good way) and definitely more interesting. Some people love spicy food, so add some doubanjiang, or serve it with chili oil if that’s what you like.
Another trick to achieve a good stir-fry is to know the cooking time required for each ingredient. For example, carrots require a longer cooking time than celery, so just let the carrots cook for a few minutes first before adding the celery. Once you’ve got that principle down, you can’t go wrong!
Tip!
If you live in an area with a local Chinese grocery store, try to find Taiwanese flat cabbage, which has looser, crunchier leaves. If not, a regular green cabbage will work in this recipe.
Recipe Instructions
Soak the mung bean vermicelli noodles for about 10 minutes until soft. Cut the bundle in half to shorten the noodle lengths, and set them aside (still in the soaking water). Prep the cabbage by slicing it into 1/2-inch thick strips.
Beat the eggs along with the salt, sesame oil and 1 teaspoon Shaoxing wine. Heat a wok over high heat until lightly smoking. Add 1 tablespoon oil, and the eggs quickly after.
Scramble them for 20-30 seconds, until they’re just almost done (they can still be a bit runny). Take the eggs out of the wok and set aside.
Heat the 2 remaining tablespoons of oil in the wok over medium-high heat. Add the chili, garlic, and scallion. Cook for 30 seconds, until fragrant.
Before the peppers and garlic start to turn brown, add the cabbage, and increase the heat to high. Stir-fry for 2 minutes, until the cabbage is wilted.
Pull the noodles out of the soaking water, and add them to the cabbage. Then add the cooked egg and the 1 remaining tablespoon of shaoxing wine. Stir-fry, then add the oyster sauce, soy sauce, sugar, and white pepper.
Stir everything together and continue to stir-fry for another 2 minutes or so, until the noodles are tender (add a splash of water if the noodles look dry). Plate and serve!
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Recipe
Cabbage and Glass Noodles
Ingredients
- 1 package mung bean vermicelli (50g/1.75oz)
- 1 pound green cabbage (preferably Taiwanese cabbage; about 1/2 of a small to medium cabbage)
- 2 eggs
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon shaoxing wine (plus 1 teaspoon)
- 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 3-5 dried red chilis (break them open if you want more heat)
- 2 cloves garlic (chopped)
- 1 scallion (chopped)
- 1 teaspoon oyster sauce (or vegetarian oyster sauce)
- 1/2 teaspoon sugar
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1/8 teaspoon white pepper
Instructions
- Soak the mung bean vermicelli noodles for about 10 minutes until soft. Cut the bundle in half to shorten the noodle lengths, and set them aside (still in the soaking water). Prep the cabbage by slicing it into 1/2-inch thick strips.
- Beat the eggs along with the salt, sesame oil and 1 teaspoon Shaoxing wine. Heat a wok over high heat until lightly smoking. Add 1 tablespoon oil, and the eggs quickly after. Scramble them for 20-30 seconds, until they’re just almost done (they can still be a bit runny). Take the eggs out of the wok and set aside.
- Heat the 2 remaining tablespoons of oil in the wok over medium-high heat. Add the chili, garlic, and scallion. Cook for 30 seconds, until fragrant. Before the peppers and garlic start to turn brown, add the cabbage, and increase the heat to high. Stir-fry for 2 minutes, until the cabbage is wilted.
- Pull the noodles out of the soaking water, and add them to the cabbage. Then add the cooked egg and the 1 remaining tablespoon of shaoxing wine. Stir-fry, then add the oyster sauce, soy sauce, sugar, and white pepper. Stir everything together and continue to stir-fry for another 2 minutes or so, until the noodles are tender (add a splash of water if the noodles look dry). Plate and serve!
