Step 1: Prep veggies

Cut the green onions (2 ounce) into about 1.5-inch-long batons. Separate the whites and the greens, as we’ll be cooking the whites first.

Cut celery (2 ounce) into diagonal slices. Cut against the fibers but at an angle so the celery will soften nicely in the heat, but the pieces are longer than if you cut them perfectly perpendicular.

Cut the white onion (2 ounce) into slices.

Step 2: Prep sauce

Prepare the sauce by combining oyster sauce (1 teaspoon), light soy sauce (1.5 tablespoon), dark soy sauce (2 teaspoon), chicken bouillon (1 teaspoon), sugar (1 teaspoon), and water (2 tablespoon).

Step 3: Boil noodles

Add the instant noodles (5 packs) to a pot of boiling water on high heat. Cook till the noodles just soften and separate, or about 45 seconds. Drain the noodles and transfer them to a bowl.

Use chopsticks or tongs to lift and separate the noodles. Be careful, as steam will billow out from between the hot noodles. Airing out the noodles like this will help dry them for stir-frying later.

Step 4: Stir fry veggies

Swap out the pot for a wok or a pan. Turn the heat to high. When the wok is hot, add 1 tbsp oil. Give the wok a quick swirl to coat it in oil.

When the oil is hot (rippling or shimmering), throw in the yellow onion and white parts of green onions, stir and cook until aromatic, or about 20 seconds.

For the bean sprouts (10 ounce), add most (not all) of them (8 ounce) and stir-fry together until they soften slightly, or 30-40 seconds. Keep a few uncooked bean sprouts set aside until the end. Transfer the cooked vegetables to a plate.

Step 5: Stir fry noodles

Bring the wok back up to temperature on high heat. Add 2 tbsp oil, and again, swirl to coat.

Once the oil is shimmering, add the cooked instant noodles. Spread out the noodles so they can pan-fry to a nice, aromatic golden-brown.

Add 1 tbsp of oil along the perimeter of the noodles to help them get crispy. Decrease the heat to medium-low.

Cook the noodles for approximately 5 minutes. Stir and flip them every 30-45 seconds to allow the side in contact with the wok to develop a nice crisp and get that wok hei flavor. If necessary, add a bit more oil along the perimeter of the noodles for extra crisp.

Step 6: Combine

Turn the heat down to the lowest setting. Stir the bowl of sauce to make sure it’s well-combined, pour it into the wok, mix everything around for 30 seconds until the sauce is evenly distributed.

Make room for the vegetables by pushing the noodles to one side. Add the stir-fried vegetables and green parts of green onion to the wok.

Turn the heat to high and stir-fry everything for 1 minute. Drizzle sesame oil (1 tablespoon) over the chow mein and mix it in. Add the remaining raw bean sprouts (2 ounce) into the wok and stir-fry for 30 seconds.

These will be the maximally juicy and crunchy sprouts. Turn off the heat and serve. Enjoy!