Hokkien Noodles vs. Lo Mein vs. Chow Mein: What's the Difference?
Hokkien noodles are a noodle. Lo mein and chow mein are dishes. Hokkien is a specific product you can point at: thick, round, yellow fresh wheat noodles with a springy chew.
Chow mein (炒麵) means stir-fried noodles and lo mein (撈麵) means tossed noodles, both Cantonese cooking methods rather than noodle varieties, and both usually made with a thinner egg noodle than a hokkien.
So you are not choosing between three products in the fridge. You are choosing a noodle thickness, then deciding whether it goes into the wok or into a bowl with sauce.
Our Cooked Hokkien Noodles 1kg is made for the first of those, and a finer egg noodle suits the second.
Importantly, "chow mein" also means something quite different in Australian home cooking than it does on a Cantonese menu.
Hokkien Noodles, Lo Mein & Chow Mein Compared
Feature | Hokkien Noodles | Lo Mein | Chow Mein |
|---|---|---|---|
What It Is | A noodle variety | A cooking method and the dish it produces | A cooking method and the dish it produces |
Where the Name Comes From | Hokkien-speaking Fujian, southern China | Cantonese 撈麵, to scoop or toss | Cantonese 炒麵, to stir-fry |
Typical Noodle Used | Thick round fresh wheat noodle, made with an alkaline solution | Fresh egg noodle, thinner than hokkien | Fresh or dried egg noodle, thinner again |
How It Is Cooked | Boiled briefly, then added to a wok or broth | Boiled, drained, then tossed with sauce off the heat | Stir-fried in the wok with the other ingredients |
Finished Texture | Chewy and substantial, holds its shape | Soft and silky, evenly coated in sauce | Firmer, with wok char, sometimes crisp at the edges |
Dishes It Belongs To | Hokkien mee, laksa, fish ball noodle soup, hearty stir-fries | Tossed noodle dishes with a glossy sauce | Stir-fried noodle dishes with vegetables and protein |
Yunion Product to Buy |
What Are Hokkien Noodles?
Hokkien noodles are thick, round, yellow wheat noodles made with an alkaline solution. The alkali is what gives them their springy chew and their yellow tone, and it is the reason a hokkien noodle keeps its bite in a hot wok while a softer noodle would break down.
They sit in the family SBS Food calls egg and alkalised noodles, which is why they look like an egg noodle without necessarily being one. Our recipe also lists added colours on the pack.
They take their name from the Hokkien-speaking region of Fujian in southern China, and they became a staple of Malaysian, Singaporean and Indonesian cooking as Hokkien communities settled across Southeast Asia.
Hokkien mee simply means Hokkien noodles, since mee is noodles, written elsewhere as mein or mian. There is no single authentic version of the dish, and the three best-known forms are quite different from each other.
Version | What It Is | How It Is Served |
|---|---|---|
Singapore hokkien mee | Stir-fried yellow noodles and rice vermicelli tossed through a prawn stock | Dry, with sambal and lime alongside |
Kuala Lumpur hokkien mee | Thick yellow noodles wok-fried in a dark soy sauce | Dry, sweet-savoury |
Penang hokkien mee | Yellow noodles and rice vermicelli in a spicy prawn broth | A soup, also known locally as prawn mee |
Our cooked hokkien noodles are made fresh daily in Osborne Park and sold refrigerated in a 1kg pack. They contain wheat, gluten, and carry "no added MSG" on the label.
What Is Lo Mein?
Lo mein is boiled noodles tossed with sauce. The noodles are cooked in water, drained, and then folded through the sauce and toppings, usually off the heat or with only a brief moment in the pan. Nothing is stir-fried into the noodle itself.
That method is what produces the texture people recognise as lo mein: soft, silky, every strand evenly coated rather than caught and browned. A finer noodle works better here, because a thick hokkien noodle will hold the sauce on its surface instead of taking it on.
What Is Chow Mein?
Chow mein is stir-fried noodles. The noodles go into the wok with the oil, vegetables and protein, and they pick up wok hei, the faint smoky char that comes from high heat and a hot surface. Depending on the style, they finish anywhere from soft with a light char through to properly crisp.
Because the noodle is worked in the pan, chow mein generally uses a thinner, drier egg noodle that crisps readily.
Read more: How to Make Stir-Fried Noodles
How Chow Mein in Australia Differs From Cantonese Chow Mein
In Australia, chow mein often means a different dish entirely. The 1970s and 1980s Australian chow mein is beef or lamb mince cooked with cabbage, curry powder and a packet of chicken noodle soup, served over rice or crunchy fried noodles.
It is a genuine piece of Australian food history rather than a mistake, but it shares almost nothing with a Cantonese stir-fried noodle beyond the name. If a family recipe calls for chow mein and lists curry powder and mince, that is the dish it means, and it does not need a fresh wheat noodle at all.
Which Fresh Noodle to Buy for Each Dish
Choose Hokkien Noodles for Chew & Body
Reach for the Cooked Hokkien Noodles 1kg when the noodle needs to stand up to a strong sauce or a rich broth, including:
Hokkien mee
Laksa
Fish ball noodle soup
Heavier stir-fries
The thickness is forgiving if you are still getting a feel for wok timing.
Choose Shanghai Fine Egg Noodles for Lo Mein & Chow Mein
Our Shanghai fine egg noodles are thinner than hokkien with a subtle egg flavour, which is closer to what a lo mein or chow mein recipe expects. They contain wheat, gluten and egg. Watch them carefully, because a fine noodle goes from cooked to soft quickly.
How to Cook Fresh Hokkien Noodles
Our fresh noodles carry a light vegetable oil coating that keeps the strands separate in the pack. To remove it, place the noodles in a pot of boiling water, stir for a few seconds and drain immediately. Going longer is the most common way a good noodle ends up soft.
From there, add the noodles to the wok or the broth in the last minute or two, so the final cooking happens in the sauce. Keep the pack refrigerated at all times, stored at or below 4°C, and follow the date on the label.
The packaging is always the authority on storage, allergens and directions for use, so read the label on the pack you have bought.
Read more: How to Store, Freeze and Cook Fresh Noodles
Where to Buy Fresh Hokkien Noodles in Perth
At Yunion, we have been making fresh noodles in Osborne Park since 1989. Everything in the fresh range is made on site and delivered refrigerated rather than freighted across the country or imported frozen, which is most of the reason the texture holds up in a wok.
Our General Manager Jamie Lu made the same point to Buy West Eat Best, the Western Australian local-produce program we are a member of, when they visited the factory in 2026.
The fresh range is stocked by around 100 grocers, independent supermarkets and IGAs across Perth Metro, the northern and southern suburbs and regional WA, and a few WA retailers also carry the 1kg hokkien noodles in their own online stores.
You can find your nearest Yunion stockist before your next shop, or get in touch if you cannot see one nearby and we will point you to the closest.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use hokkien noodles to make chow mein or lo mein?
Yes, and plenty of people do. A hokkien noodle is thicker than the egg noodle either dish traditionally uses, so expect a chewier result rather than a silky or crisp one. For chow mein, spread the noodles out in the wok so they make contact with the hot surface.
Is a pack labelled "chow mein noodles" the same as hokkien noodles?
No. Several Australian brands do sell packs labelled chow mein noodles, usually a thinner steamed or fried egg noodle intended for stir-frying, and some are sold already crisp for scattering over a dish. A hokkien noodle is a different, thicker product. If a pack says chow mein, check the thickness and whether it is soft or pre-fried before you decide it suits your recipe.
Can I substitute dried egg noodles for fresh in a chow mein?
You can, and chow mein is the one of the three that takes it best, because the noodles are going into a hot wok either way. Boil the dried noodles first, drain them well and let them dry off a little; otherwise, the extra water will steam the stir-fry rather than fry it. Lo mein is less forgiving, since the sauce has nowhere to hide a soft noodle.
How much hokkien noodle do I need per person?
Our cooked hokkien noodles come in a 1kg pack listed as four serves, with a serving size of 250g. Fresh wheat noodles are heavier than dried, so 250g per person goes further than the same weight of dried pasta would suggest.
Do I need a wok to cook hokkien noodles at home?
No, a wide frying pan will do the job. What matters more than the shape of the pan is heat and space: get the pan properly hot before the noodles go in, and cook in two batches rather than crowding everything at once, or the noodles will steam instead of frying.
Why are fresh hokkien noodles coated in oil?
The vegetable oil coating stops the strands sticking together in the pack, which is what lets you use part of a pack without the rest clumping. Place the noodles in boiling water, stir for a few seconds and drain immediately to remove it before cooking.
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