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Original poster

.. to want to share my Chinese 'fakeaway' tip with y'all

162 replies

Sabire9 · 08/07/2025 17:13

DS bought me a very badly produced recipe book published by a TikTok chef. The guy's family own a Chinese takeaway and the book details how to reproduce your typical takeaway dishes.

I'm always doing stir fries at home, and they're never quite right. However, I've now found out how to recreate noodles with the elusive Chinese takeaway taste at home. Basically you have to USE MSG, and specifically you have to BROWN OFF THE MSG in the hot oil before adding your noodles. Makes all the difference and I'm going to save bucks.

You're welcome.

OP posts:
MrsTerryPratchett · 09/07/2025 15:56

Swiftie1878 · 09/07/2025 15:52

Careful with MSG. It can affect people in different ways, sometimes physically (bloating, nausea, discomfort) sometimes mentally (irritability, hallucinations, mood swings).

Double blind meta-studies please?

TreeDudette · 09/07/2025 16:00

Bananalanacake · 08/07/2025 18:13

Great, thanks, now tell us where to buy it.

If you have any oriental supermarkets or oriental takeaways with a small side shop they will sell it. I live in rural north wales and could buy MSG in my local (20 min drive in nearby small town) thai takeaway's mini shop or in the oriental "supermarket" in a nearby larger town.

Swiftie1878 · 09/07/2025 16:02

MrsTerryPratchett · 09/07/2025 15:56

Double blind meta-studies please?

Show quote history

😂 none, but enough anecdotal evidence to fill a book. You wouldn’t even believe the worst story I’ve heard from a sufferer that was directly linked to ingestion of MSG.

MrsTerryPratchett · 09/07/2025 16:08

Swiftie1878 · 09/07/2025 16:02

😂 none, but enough anecdotal evidence to fill a book. You wouldn’t even believe the worst story I’ve heard from a sufferer that was directly linked to ingestion of MSG.

Show quote history

Well I have one for the nocebo effect, which is what most of this is. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37843534/

The nocebo effect across health outcomes: A systematic review and meta-analysis - PubMed

The present review suggests nocebo effects can be reliably induced across somatic health outcomes, and interventions that target the effect of instructions will be of critical importance to reducing the occurrence of nocebo effects. (PsycInfo Database...

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37843534/

SummerSneezing · 09/07/2025 16:26

If anyone has a failsafe recipe for chicken chow mein, I will love you forever…

Audiprettier · 09/07/2025 18:16

ComtesseDeSpair · 08/07/2025 19:21

Different chemical compositions in the sodium family. Salt is sodium chloride. MSG is monosodiumglutamate - it’s the glutamate aspect of the composition which brings the umami. Disodium ribonucleotides are a close cousin of MSG, and commonly added to things like crisps, bouillon, stock, and seasoning mixes - and why things like stock cubes and chicken / beef flavour crisps and pot noodles etc can be vegetarian whilst tasting “meaty.”

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idontknowwhattodo1990 ...
Well you DID ask! 😂😂😂

FlipFlopVibe · 09/07/2025 18:29

I feel so hungover after chinese, bloated, queasy, massively dehydrated like I’ve been out on the town all night. So not worth it as much as I do enjoy it at the time. I think MSG is the culprit as no other takeaway bothers me at all

ilovemyskunks · 09/07/2025 18:37

Sabire9 · 08/07/2025 17:13

DS bought me a very badly produced recipe book published by a TikTok chef. The guy's family own a Chinese takeaway and the book details how to reproduce your typical takeaway dishes.

I'm always doing stir fries at home, and they're never quite right. However, I've now found out how to recreate noodles with the elusive Chinese takeaway taste at home. Basically you have to USE MSG, and specifically you have to BROWN OFF THE MSG in the hot oil before adding your noodles. Makes all the difference and I'm going to save bucks.

You're welcome.

but what is the book?

WiddlinDiddlin · 09/07/2025 18:47

FlipFlopVibe · 09/07/2025 18:29

I feel so hungover after chinese, bloated, queasy, massively dehydrated like I’ve been out on the town all night. So not worth it as much as I do enjoy it at the time. I think MSG is the culprit as no other takeaway bothers me at all

Vs the salt from actual salt, soy sauce - and the sugars - and the oil - and the almost standard carb overload... you don't think that might be related?

Easy enough to test - put a sprinkle of MSG onto one of your normal meals made at home, if you get the same results (after an extra tasty dinner) then yes it is the msg. But get someone else to sprinkle it, and ask them not to tell you which meal that day contained the msg. Just to be sure.

MrsTerryPratchett · 09/07/2025 18:52

WiddlinDiddlin · 09/07/2025 18:47

Vs the salt from actual salt, soy sauce - and the sugars - and the oil - and the almost standard carb overload... you don't think that might be related?

Easy enough to test - put a sprinkle of MSG onto one of your normal meals made at home, if you get the same results (after an extra tasty dinner) then yes it is the msg. But get someone else to sprinkle it, and ask them not to tell you which meal that day contained the msg. Just to be sure.

Show quote history

You’d need double blind. Get one of the kids to label salt A and MSG B and hand them to DH, who remembers which food has which. Only after the PP has symptoms is the way round revealed. Must be repeated several times.

JoBrandsCleaner · 09/07/2025 18:54

A bit of wok oil in stuff is good as well

StMarie4me · 09/07/2025 18:58

Are you American?

OurMavis · 09/07/2025 18:59

Redheadedstepchild · 08/07/2025 17:29

Also, "velvet" your meat. Mix together baking soda and water into a slurry and marinate the chicken/beef/whatever strips in it for a bit. (No longer than half an hour) Then rinse it off.

For that really tender texture.

So that's why meat in Chinese takeaway food tastes so odd. I hate the texture and always put it down to them using really poor quality meat.

ForeverDelayedEpiphany · 09/07/2025 19:02

MrsTerryPratchett · 09/07/2025 15:50

‘Some people’ are sensitive to all manner of things, from egg to seafood. Good restaurants don’t stop using any ingredient anyone is sensitive to. They’d be serving plain water. It’s not widespread. Just like MSG. MOST people who say they are sensitive and report symptoms don’t have them if it’s double blind. It’s a nocebo effect and a racist one at that.

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I can tell you that my symptoms were most definitely not in any way made up, and unfortunately I'm pretty sensitive to a lot of things like certain medication, can't metabolise alcohol as I'm half Chinese etc.

I have to avoid MSG as I reacted pretty badly to it after a meal at a restaurant. Even if I had a nocebo effect, I know for certain it is a genuine reaction, and not one I have made up or "in my head".

MrsTerryPratchett · 09/07/2025 19:24

Placebo and nocebo are measurable, real phenomena. Not ‘made up’ at all. Around 50% of painkilling is placebo. Actual painkilling, not ‘made up’ painkilling. Our brains are very powerful. You can burn calories thinking about running if you do it seriously. You can have real symptoms, the cause is just not as a result of the ingredients you put in your body. And it might be. I’m allergic to a couple of very weird things. But most of the people who say they are sensitive to it, aren’t in double blind conditions.

FlipFlopVibe · 09/07/2025 19:45

WiddlinDiddlin · 09/07/2025 18:47

Vs the salt from actual salt, soy sauce - and the sugars - and the oil - and the almost standard carb overload... you don't think that might be related?

Easy enough to test - put a sprinkle of MSG onto one of your normal meals made at home, if you get the same results (after an extra tasty dinner) then yes it is the msg. But get someone else to sprinkle it, and ask them not to tell you which meal that day contained the msg. Just to be sure.

Show quote history

Why when we make chinese fakeaways does it not happen? DH is very handy with the soy sauce when it’s just us eating, we have spring rolls with extra soy for dipping, rice, noodles, prawn toast and it’s not a bother but from the Chinese takeaway it cripples me

IberianBlackout · 09/07/2025 20:15

Doing the lord’s work 🙏🏻

I’ve never tried a Chinese fakeaway because I can’t keep all the products at home (DD has allergies) but there’s a family on YT that own a takeaway and their videos are quite detailed. I want to try making my own chow mein so badly.

Rainbow321 · 09/07/2025 20:42

AffIt · 08/07/2025 17:38

It's not bad for you - MSG (monosodium glutamate) is basically a synthetic compound that replicates the umami taste in foods such as mushrooms, tomatoes, soy sauce etc.

A vanishingly few people are genuinely sensitive to this (and presumably don't eat tomatoes or mushrooms either), but 'Chinese Restaurant Syndrome' has essentially been debunked as the bad and somewhat racist science it is.

The Rotten Science Behind the MSG Scare | Science History Institute

https://share.google/j7qCIma9zNOD1t97S

*Edited for bad linky

Edited
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I can eat mushrooms ( several times a week ) and tomatoes but haven't eaten a restaurant / takeaway chinese meal in years as they make my heart race and feel spaced out . I've always assumed it was down to MSG . How does race come into it ?

ForeverDelayedEpiphany · 09/07/2025 20:45

MrsTerryPratchett · 09/07/2025 19:24

Placebo and nocebo are measurable, real phenomena. Not ‘made up’ at all. Around 50% of painkilling is placebo. Actual painkilling, not ‘made up’ painkilling. Our brains are very powerful. You can burn calories thinking about running if you do it seriously. You can have real symptoms, the cause is just not as a result of the ingredients you put in your body. And it might be. I’m allergic to a couple of very weird things. But most of the people who say they are sensitive to it, aren’t in double blind conditions.

Well, i am going to say that I had symptoms pretty much within a few minutes of eating said food. And then I endured these symptoms for about half an hour after. Anc had a similar episode of symptoms on a different occasion.

Please don't suggest that my brain was so powerful that it suddenly started to have these symptoms randomly. I highly doubt this was actually the case.

BunnyLake · 09/07/2025 21:21

Redheadedstepchild · 08/07/2025 17:29

Also, "velvet" your meat. Mix together baking soda and water into a slurry and marinate the chicken/beef/whatever strips in it for a bit. (No longer than half an hour) Then rinse it off.

For that really tender texture.

I do that. I also use MSG but only a tiny bit as I think too much can taste too artificially meaty. I didn’t know about the browning though as I usually just sprinkle it on the rice or noodles as I’m frying it.

BunnyLake · 09/07/2025 21:29

FlipFlopVibe · 09/07/2025 18:29

I feel so hungover after chinese, bloated, queasy, massively dehydrated like I’ve been out on the town all night. So not worth it as much as I do enjoy it at the time. I think MSG is the culprit as no other takeaway bothers me at all

I do find Asian condiments to be very salty especially when several are used. I have to use them quite sparingly. Most of the food we cook is Asian inspired. I made crispy beef with jasmine rice tonight, very nice.

Original poster
Sabire9 · 09/07/2025 23:03

FlipFlopVibe · 09/07/2025 18:29

I feel so hungover after chinese, bloated, queasy, massively dehydrated like I’ve been out on the town all night. So not worth it as much as I do enjoy it at the time. I think MSG is the culprit as no other takeaway bothers me at all

Chinese takeaway food is often very high in sodium, fat and sugar. Because it's so damn tasty you eat loads. You end up dehydrated and feeling horrid. People will order three or four deep fried dishes - crispy chilli beef, chicken balls, prawn toast, spring rolls.... all of them are deep fried, and all contain large amounts of salt.

OP posts:
CuriousQuestioningGal · 10/07/2025 02:24

So yes. I’m kinda surprised you didn’t know about msg - for years There was drama about it. I lived in China for 10 years. Msg isn’t why the food is better or tastes different - but it might help some - but mostly that Chinese people I met actually tried to cook try or cared about what they ate. Most Chinese food is fresh. Cooked on the spot. Cantonese food in the UK is not my fav but is very gloppy here - unlike there.

Food from the north (my fav) isn’t like that. Maybe learn how to cook some staples (aubergine and green beans/ broccoli and garlic) those are my absolute favs then you won’t need msg. Have a good one! X

CuriousQuestioningGal · 10/07/2025 02:28

You understand that is not what food in China (or any Asian country) tends to be like? I live in Edinburgh and despite the high (thankfully!!) numbers of Chinese students I still haven’t found food that s the same as China.

i suggest you go see the world.

Kurokurosuke · 10/07/2025 03:22

ObliviousCoalmine · 08/07/2025 19:57

This is also absolute nonsense 😂😂

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Water and oxygen, that is what I live on as these do not contain chemicals!