Pad Thai

Pad Thai....

I probably started helping out in the kitchen as 2nd or 3rd grader.  I'm sure my parents know when I started cooking on my own...because the kitchen was always a mess after I was through. I remember making oatmeal cookies one time and there was flour and cookie dough everywhere!  I think the recipe made about 4 dozen cookies...of which only a few were eaten...what Thai family eats oatmeal cookies?! Apparently, I was the only family member that did. 

Anyways, I digress.  The point is you would think I grew up making Pad Thai...the most basic Thai dish that is a staple of any Thai restaurant in America.  Quite frankly, I think the only time my mom made Pad Thai was for Heritage Day at school.  Growing up, the only time I really ate Pad Thai was at restaurants. 

 

However, recently, Pad Thai has been fully (re)introduced to my pallete thanks to my brother.  The past 3 summers I've enjoyed my brother's Pad Thai that he makes at his farmer's market booth. The complex flavors of tamarind (tangy), fish sauce (salty), lime, and sugar of the pad Thai sauce are soaked up by the rice noodles.

Even though my brother inspired my Pad Thai cravings, the recipe I follow isn't his recipe.  Mostly because I enjoy tasting the subtle differences in our styles of Pad Thai.  

The 3 main components to Pad Thai is the Sauce, the Proteins, the StirFry.

Many of these ingredients can be found at the local asian market (I go to Southeast Market here in SLC)

The very 1st step is to soak the Rice Stick Noodles (5 mm wide noodles) in a large bowl of water.

The Sauce:

1/4 c of Tamarind Sauce

1/4 c of warm water

2-3 tbsp of white sugar (or palm sugar if you want to be really authentic)

2 tbsp of fresh lime juice (about 3/4 of a lime)

2 tbsp of fish sauce

pinch of salt

1) Combine all the ingredients above and stir until sugar is completely dissolved.

2) Adjust to taste (I like it sweeter and add about a tsp more of sugar)

The Proteins:

1 Chicken Breast, thinly sliced

"Savory" Baked Tofu (its firm tofu soaked in five-spice), 1/8" thick slices

2 eggs

Shrimp (optional)

1) Prep your proteins and set aside for the Stir Fry.

Stir Fry!

2 tbsp of vegetable oil

4 cloves of garlic, minced

chicken

tofu

eggs

noodles

bean sprouts

green onion

1) Heat up 2 tbsp of oil in a wok-like pan.

2) Add minced garlic and cook until light yellow.

3) Add chicken breast and cook about 2 minutes on each side.

4) Add sliced tofu and continue cooking about 2 minutes.

5) Add 2 eggs and let sit to cook without stirring for about 2 minutes until egg whites start to cook.

6) Drain your rice noodles (that have been soaking this whole time you've been prepping) and add it on top of the proteins.
7) Don't stir too much. Rice noodles can become soggy if you move it around too much.
8) Let the noodles cook for about 2 minutes before stirring. At this point I'd switch to using tongs to toss the noddles.
9) Gently stir in the sauce.
10) Cover the pan and let sit for about 2 minutes so the rice noodles can absorb all the liquid.

11) Fold in the bean sprouts and green onion and let sit on low-medium heat for a few more minutes.

12) Garnish with cilantro (optional) and sriracha sauce (as spicy as you want it)