Pad Thai
Pad Thai is a dish of stir-fried rice noodles
with eggs, fish sauce, tamarind juice, red chili pepper, plus any
combination of bean sprouts, shrimp, chicken, or tofu, garnished
with crushed peanuts and coriander. It is normally served with a
piece of lime, the juice of which can be added along with the usual
Thai condiments.
Click here to see just how easy it is to
cook Pad
Thai
- Heat a large wok over
high heat until very hot, to
the point of smoky.
- Add a splash of oil,
about 3-4 tablespoons.
Don't be shy, this ain't no
diet food.
- If you are making
chicken Pad Thai, add the
chicken first, cook,
stirring vigorously, until
it's half way done, about
1-2 minutes, then add the
tofu, a tablespoon or two of
the sauce to flavor the
chicken, and a pinch of
garlic if you're using it.
If you are making tofu or
shrimp and tofu Pad Thai,
then only add the tofu (and
garlic) for now. Cook for
another minute until the
tofu is crisp and slightly
brown at the edges.
- Add the noodle, about 2
loosely packed cups for one
portion is my standard, and
then a ladle (about ¼ cup)
of warm sauce. Stir
rigorously, keep everything
moving in the wok, and cook
the noodle until soft.
Remember to break up the
noodle and don't let it lump
together. If the sauce
evaporates too quickly and
your noodle isn't quite
ready, sprinkle a bit of
water and keep stirring. Add
a bit of oil if the noodle
still stubbornly sticks
together. As I said,
this ain't no diet food.
- When the noodle is ready
(taste it to be sure), push
it up to one side of the wok
and crack an egg into the
middle. Let it set for 10-15
seconds and toss everything
all together.
- Add the shrimp meat,
pickled turnips, ground
peanuts, ground dried
shrimp, beansprouts. Keep
things moving. Add more
sauce if it looks a little
pale.
- When the shrimps are
done, shouldn't take more
than a minute, add a handful
of Garlic Chives. Turn the
heat off, and quickly give
the wok a good stirring to
mix everything together.
- Add the finished Pad
Thai to a plate and serve to
your first lucky dinner
guest. Give the used wok a
quick rinse with warm water,
wipe off any excess bits of
food with a warm towel, then
put the wok back on to the
fire.
- As soon as it heats back
up to a smoking point,
you're ready to do another
portion. Repeat this process
until all your dinner guests
are fed.
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