Samoan-Chinese chow mein: vermicelli or chow mein noodles stir-fried with chicken, soy sauce, ginger, garlic, scallions, cabbage, and bean sprouts. Brought by 19th-century Chinese laborers, integrated into Samoan everyday meals; sold at every Samoan plate-lunch counter alongside palusami and oka i'a.
Sapasui (Samoan pronunciation of 'chop suey') was adopted by Chinese laborers to Samoa in the late 19th century and slowly integrated into everyday Samoan cooking. The dish reflects Samoa's small but historically-important Chinese community and the integration of Asian techniques into Polynesian food. Sold at every plate-lunch counter; made at home weekly.
Spoon up sapasui — translucent slippery noodles, tender chicken strips, crunch of cabbage and bean sprouts, the soy-sesame sauce coating everything golden-brown. Each bite combines Chinese stir-fry technique with Pacific everyday ingredients. Cold leftover sapasui is eaten the next day at lunch — it actually tastes better cold, the flavors having integrated overnight.
Cellophane noodles (mung bean starch) absorb sauce without becoming gummy — the right noodle for stir-fry that's eaten cold-or-hot. Wok stir-frying at high heat sears vegetables quickly, preserving their crunch. Chinese marinade (cornstarch + wine + soy) tenderizes the chicken via velveting.
Variations
Beef sapasui uses thinly-sliced beef. Pork sapasui uses pork belly strips. Vegetarian uses tofu and extra vegetables. Family-style large-batch sapasui feeds 12+.
On the Palate
Where Sapasui sits in the Samoan flavor cloud
Ingredients
Serves 4
How it's made
10 steps · 25 min active · 10 min waiting
- 112 min
Soak 300 g cellophane noodles (mung bean vermicelli) in warm water 10 min. Drain.
- 217 min
Slice 500 g chicken breast or thigh into thin strips. Marinate with 1 tbsp soy sauce + 1 tbsp Shaoxing wine + 1 tsp cornstarch + ½ tsp pepper for 15 min.
- 36 min
Prep: 1 sliced onion, 6 minced garlic cloves, 2 tbsp grated ginger, 4 sliced scallions, 1 small head cabbage shredded, 200 g bean sprouts, 1 sliced carrot.
- 44 min
Heat 3 tbsp oil in a wok over high heat. Add chicken; stir-fry 3 min until just cooked. Remove.
- 51 min
Same wok, add 1 tbsp oil. Stir-fry garlic, ginger 30 sec.
- 66 min
Add carrots (1 min), cabbage (2 min), bean sprouts (1 min), onions (1 min). Toss between.
- 71 min
Return chicken. Add drained noodles + 4 tbsp soy sauce + 2 tbsp oyster sauce + 1 tsp sesame oil + 1 tsp sugar.
- 83 min
Toss everything 2 min until well-combined and heated through.
- 91 min
Add scallions; toss 30 sec.
- 101 min
Serve hot, alongside palusami, oka i'a, or as a stand-alone meal.
