Delicious Pad Thai

 

This recipe is super easy when you have all the ingredients on hand, so unless you have an Asian kitchen, you probably need to get the ingredients from pretty much any store that has a small Asian section (health foods stores or a Whole Foods type store carries the ingredients).

Although this is easy, it take some preperation the first time making it, but the second time is much quicker.You can prepare a day in advance so the ingredients can be thrown together the next day.

This recipe goes well with another easy Red Curry dish and some refreshing spiced tea.

Ingredients:

• 8 oz dry Rice noodles, linguine size

PAD THAI SAUCE:

• ½ C warm water
• 1 ½  Tbs. tamarind paste or 1 ½ Tbs. any other molasses (cane, carob, etc…) plus juice of 1 lime (tamarind is sweet and sour so this mixture can substitute the flavor nicely.
• 5 Tbs. fish sauce (no MSG or preservatives)
• 1-3 tsp. crushed chili or cayenne, to taste (optional)
• 3 Tbs. coconut sugar or brown sugar (Note: this may seem like a lot of sugar, but you need it to balance out the sourness of the tamarind – this balance is what makes Pad Thai taste so amazing!)

Meat and Marinade:

• 1 ½  cups chopped chicken breast and/ or thigh (or same amount in whole shrimp)
• Marinade for Chicken: 1 tsp. arrowroot starch
• 3 Tbsp. Braggs amino acids or Coconut amino acids
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1-2 fresh red chilies, minced (optional)

 

• 1-2 Tbs. coconut oil for frying
• ¼ Cup chicken stock or water

 

• 3 large eggs, scrambled (optional)

 

Topping:

• 3 green onions, sliced
• ½ C fresh coriander/cilantro, minced
• 1/3 C crushed or roughly chopped peanuts (or other nuts, such as cashews)

 

Instructions:

Preparation:

1. First assemble the Pad Thai sauce by dissolving all ingredients in a jar with a lid with a fork then store in fridge until ready for use. (Stores for up to 3 weeks in the fridge)
2. Soak the rice noodles in warm water for 30-60 minutes (or you can dip them in boiling water but soaking them seems to give better texture.) You could soak these and drain them a day in advance and store in fridge until use.
3. Cut the chicken into strips (or if using shrimp, leave whole) and place in a bowl along with the rest of the marinade.
4. Mix well, set in fridge until needed. You can marinate over night if you like.
5. If using eggs – In a separate pan, scramble eggs with a little coconut oil (this will be added to the chicken after it is cooked) omit if using shrimp.

Cooking:

1. Heat oil in a wok or large frying pan on med-high.
2. Add the chicken/shrimp in marinade and fully cook. Add a little chicken broth at a time if needed to prevent sticking.
3. When the chicken/shrimp is fully cooked about 10 minutes later, add scrambled egg (omit if using shrimp).
4. Add the noodles, and pour the Pad Thai sauce over.
5. Using two utensils, use a gentle “lift and turn” method to fry noodles (like tossing a salad). Stir-fry in this way 1-2 minutes. If you find your wok/frying pan too dry, push noodles aside and add a little more oil to the bottom of the pan.
6. Noodles are done to perfection when they are no longer “hard” or crunchy, but chewy-sticky wonderful!
7. Lift noodles onto a serving plate. Top with generous amounts of fresh coriander, spring onion, and crushed/chopped nuts.
8. Add fresh lime wedges to squeeze over each portion.

This recipe was modified slightly from HERE.

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