Stir-Fried Rice Noodles with Egg and Mung Bean Sprouts Recipe
These stir-fried rice noodles with egg and mung bean sprouts are a quick wok dish that in China is often bought as a street snack. It’s light yet filling, full of crunchy sprouts and delicate egg. It’s a great way to use up leftover vegetables from the fridge and make a colorful lunch or dinner in under half an hour.
This dish combines the lightness of rice noodles with the crunch of fresh sprouts and the creaminess of scrambled egg, giving you a street-food-style stir-fry that’s easy to recreate at home. It’s highly adaptable to whatever vegetables you have on hand and comes together in minutes.
Why this version works
- Soaking in hot but not boiling water gives the noodles a bouncy texture instead of overcooking them.
- Egg cooked separately stays tender and doesn’t dry out during the final stir‑fry.
- Sprouts added at the end keep their crunch and freshness, giving a nice contrast in textures.
- Pouring the sauce around the edges of the pan lets it lightly caramelize and boosts that “street food” aroma.
Chef's tips
Don’t over-soak the rice noodles—slightly undercooked noodles will finish cooking in the pan and keep a pleasant bite. Stir-fry over high heat and keep the ingredients moving so they stay crisp and don’t steam. If the noodles start to stick, add a splash of water instead of more oil.
How to serve
Serve the noodles in deep bowls with extra chili paste, soy sauce, and lime wedges on the side. They pair well with a simple cucumber salad or lightly pickled vegetables for contrast.
Watch out for
- Don’t soak the noodles longer than necessary – if they’re already soft in the bowl, they’ll quickly fall apart in the pan.
- Cook over high heat and don’t overcrowd the pan, otherwise the ingredients will steam instead of fry.
- If the noodles are clumped together, loosen them before adding to the pan, or the sauce won’t coat the strands evenly.
Substitutions
- You can replace mung bean sprouts with soybean sprouts or a mixed stir‑fry sprout blend.
- Oyster sauce can be swapped for vegan mushroom “oyster” sauce or extra soy sauce with a pinch of sugar.
- Wide rice noodles can be replaced with thin rice noodles; just shorten the soaking time.
Ingredients
- rice noodles medium width - 200 g
- eggs - 3 pieces
- mung bean sprouts they can be canned or fresh - 150 g
- carrot cut into thin matchsticks - 1 piece
- bell pepper cut into thin strips - 0.5 pieces
- spring onion white and green parts, sliced - 3 pieces
- soy sauce - 3 tablespoons
- oyster sauce you can replace it with 1 teaspoon soy sauce and 1 teaspoon hoisin sauce or a pinch of sugar - 1 tablespoon
- oil e.g. rapeseed - 3 tablespoons
- garlic finely chopped - 2 cloves
- fresh ginger grated - 1 teaspoon
- pepper white or black - 0.25 teaspoons
- salt to taste, carefully, because the sauces are salty
Preparation
- Pour hot, but not boiling, water over the rice noodles and set aside for 8–10 minutes (or according to the package instructions), until they soften but are still springy. Drain and rinse with cold water so they don’t stick together.
- Beat the eggs in a small bowl with a pinch of salt. Cut the carrot and bell pepper into thin matchsticks, and slice the spring onion on the diagonal. Finely chop the garlic and grate the ginger.
- Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a large frying pan or wok over medium heat. Pour in the eggs and fry, gently stirring, until they set into a soft, fluffy scramble. Transfer the egg to a plate.
- In the same pan, heat the remaining oil over high heat. Add the garlic, ginger, and white parts of the spring onion. Stir-fry for 30–40 seconds, until fragrant but not browned.
- Add the carrot and bell pepper. Stir-fry over high heat for 2–3 minutes, stirring often, until the vegetables soften slightly but remain crunchy.
- Add the mung bean sprouts and stir-fry for another 1–2 minutes, until they soften slightly.
- Add the drained rice noodles to the pan. Toss gently with tongs or two forks so you don’t tear the noodles.
- Pour in the soy sauce and oyster sauce. Stir-fry over high heat for 2–3 minutes, until the noodles are evenly coated in the sauce and heated through.
- Add the cooked egg, the green parts of the spring onion, season with pepper and, if needed, a little salt. Gently mix so the egg is distributed throughout the dish.
- Serve immediately, preferably on warmed plates so the noodles don’t cool down too quickly.
Storage
No storage information available for this dish.
I love making this when I have a mix of leftover vegetables in the fridge—almost anything crunchy works here. It’s one of those dishes that tastes like takeout but is faster than waiting for delivery.
