Roast Pork Lo Mein with Zucchini Noodles at 'Hey Hey Canteen' in Brooklyn

BROOKLYN (WABC) -- Neighborhood Eats heads to Brooklyn for some casual dining and dishes with some Asian influences.

"Hey Hey Canteen" is located at 400 4th Avenue in Brooklyn.

The restaurant opened this summer on the Gowanus side of 4th Avenue, and it's quickly become part of the neighborhood

"It's easy, it's casual, it's delicious," a customer said.

"Good for my daughter, good for early dinners," another customer said.

In fact the owner Kay Ch'ien is a former attorney who spent time researching exactly what people wanted and melded that with her Hong Kong upbringing and her mother's Singaporean background.

"It's a menu of Asian flavors that is really built around serving the neighborhood," Ch'ien said.

Like a Hong Kong style fried chicken sandwich, there's Laksa, wonton soup, sesame noodles, lemongrass chicken wings, red rice salad and a chrysanthemum salad.

"It's fantastic, and you feel really healthy eating it," a customer said.

Unless of course you opt for coconut whoopie pie, and while you'll find versions of traditional Chinese food like a Lo Mein, you'll also find one with a twist.

The noodles are made of zucchini spiralized and roasted.

Chef Carlos Barrera sautes carrots and bok choy before he adds the already roasted pork.

Then those zucchini noodles go in along with tamari.

It's topped with garlic chips and cilantro, and you likely won't miss those regular Lo Mein noodles.

The zucchini option can be substituted for any noodle dish, and as for the name of this spot, consider it lucky.

"Hey means happiness, so it's a play on double happiness," Ch'ien said.

Roast Pork Lo Mein with Zucchini Noodles

1 serving

Ingredients

2Tbs vegetable oil

1Tbs garlic, sliced

cup bok choy, julienned

cup carrots, slivered

cup Roast Pork Char Siu, cubed (see recipe)

1Tbs tamari or soy sauce

zucchini noodles (see recipe)

Instructions

Preheat a wok on a high flame. Add the oil and garlic. Sauté the garlic until golden, about 20 seconds. Remove the garlic chips from the wok, reserve. Sear the bok choy and carrots in the wok, about 20 seconds. Add the roast pork char siu, noodles, tamari and salt and pepper to taste. Stir fry until all ingredients are incorporated, about 1 minute. Sprinkle with reserved garlic chips before serving.

Roast Pork Char Siu

If you're feeling adventurous, you can make your own Roast Pork Char Siu at home. It's also easy to pick some up in your nearest Chinatown.

Ingredients

3 lb pork shoulder

Marinade

2 oz light soy sauce

1Tbs minced ginger

1Tbs minced garlic

5 oz white sugar

1.5 oz sesame paste

1Tbs minced shallots

1 oz chu hau sauce

1 oz salt

1Tbs rose wine

1.5 oz minced fresh galangal

tsp five spice powder

1Tbs vegetable oil

Instructions

Process the marinade ingredients in a food processor into a paste. Cut the pork into 1 inch thick portions.

Marinate the pork in the fridge overnight the prepared marinade. Place pork on a lined cookie sheet and roast the pork at 500 degrees for 30 mins. Place the pork on a cooling rack and glaze (recipe below). Return the pork to the oven and roast at 500 degrees for another 3-5 mins.

Malt Glaze

20 oz maltose

3 oz rock sugar

2 tsp salt

4 oz Water

2 tsp ginger juice

Glaze Instructions

Steam rock sugar, salt, water, and maltose until melted and add ginger juice. Set aside.

Zucchini Noodles

Ingredients

One medium sized zucchini

1Tbs olive oil

Salt, to taste

Pepper , to taste

1 tsp minced garlic

Instructions

Spiralize the zucchini in a vegetable spiralizer. Mix the spiralized zucchini in a bowl with the oil, salt, pepper, and garlic. Roast the noodles at 350F for 4-5 minutes, until lightly browned, on a lined cookie sheet.