Name: Cabbage Mince Chow Mein
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 40 min
Ingredients: 500 grams beef mince; 1 small onion ((chopped)); 2 carrots ((grated)); 1/2 beef stock cube; 2 teaspoons Keen's curry powder; 1 packet chicken noodle simmer soup ((45 gram dry mix)); 2 teaspoons soy sauce; 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce; 1 tablespoon olive or vegetable oil; 1/2 cup uncooked rice ((no need to rinse)); 3 cups water; 1/2 medium-large Savoy cabbage ((shredded or finely sliced)); salt and pepper ((to taste))

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Various versions of this quick dinner have been hitting Aussie dinner tables for decades. I'm a fan – and here I'm sharing my recipe for Cabbage Mince Chow Mein plus plenty of ideas on how people like to change it up.

Cabbage Mince Chow Mein cooking in frypan.

If, like me, you're a fan of this retro classic, you can probably taste the above photo right now. And that's a good feeling!

If you haven't tried it before, you may not be feeling so positive. I admit that this dish is not so easy on the eye. But it is pretty easy on the wallet! It's also nutritious, absolutely delicious and you don't need to have much cooking experience to put it together. Ready to wow your family?

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Ingredient notes
How to make Chow Mein with beef mince and cabbage
Substitutions and variations
Enjoying your meal
Top tip
More easy dinner recipes we've loved forever
Cabbage Mince Chow Mein

Ingredient notes

To make up this dish that'll feed about 4 to 6 people, you'll need:

beef mince
onion
carrots
beef stock cube
Keen's curry powder
chicken noodle simmer soup
soy sauce
Worcestershire sauce
olive or vegetable oil
uncooked rice
water
cabbage
salt and pepper.

See the recipe card at the bottom of this post for quantities.

How to make Chow Mein with beef mince and cabbage

Grab a wok or large frypan, chop the onion and then cook it in the oil over medium heat for a few minutes or until translucent.

Grate the carrot, add it to the mix and cook for another minute or two.

Increase the heat to high and add the beef mince. Cook until the meat is browned all over. Use a wooden turner or spoon to chop the mince as it cooks.

Reduce the heat to medium and add the beef stock powder, curry powder, soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, chicken noodle soup, rice and salt and pepper. Cook for a couple of minutes.

Add the water. Mix well and bring to the boil. Simmer, covered, on low heat for about 15 minutes. Stir occasionally and add a little more water if the mixture starts to dry out or stick to the bottom of the pan.

While it's cooking, shred the cabbage or chop it finely.

Add the shredded cabbage and continue to simmer, uncovered for about 10 minutes or until cabbage is cooked to your liking.

Again, stir occasionally and add a little more water of the mixture starts to dry out and stick to the bottom of the pan.

That's it! Dinner is served.

Substitutions and variations

There are so many variations of this popular little recipe. This one is simply the way I like to make it. You can follow it or use it as a base and then:

Add more veges - use half the amount of cabbage and add grated zucchini, diced celery or chopped beans instead (add while adding the grated carrot).
Add more rice - double the amount of rice in the recipe (and you'll also need to add about a cup more water).

Here are some more recipes I came across in community cookbooks to give you more variation inspo:

And, as you can see, it's not just the ingredients that change from recipe to recipe. Cabbage and Mince Chow Mein is also known as Ki Si Min, Mince Curry Cabbage, Aussie Chow Mien, Savoury Chow Mien, Cantonese Cabbage, Cabbage Mince, Chop Suey – and there are probably a tonne more. Tell me in the comments below if you call it something else.

Enjoying your meal

I enjoy this meal on its own, however you can serve it with more rice or extra veges.

Home cooks who follow my Facebook page also had these great ideas for using leftovers:

use it as a filling for a toasted sandwich
slop it on a slice of toast
roll it up in spring roll wrappers and cook.

Finally, it should last a few days in the fridge and can be frozen in an airtight container for up to 6 weeks.

(And if you want something sweet and simple afterwards, I recommend Creamed Rice or Apple Sponge.)

Top tip

Keep an eye on this dish as it cooks and remember to add more water if it is drying out and sticking to the bottom of the pan!

More easy dinner recipes we've loved forever

Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:

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