Pad Thai. Who doesn’t love Pad Thai? You can actually make this at home rather easily. I don’t love Bean Sprouts, hence I didn’t include them in my version, but if you do like them, you can add in 1-2 cups. You can substitute shrimp for chicken breast or thigh pieces. And I get some people just don’t do Shrimp Paste and Fish Sauce as they are pungent, but truly you’re not a fan of Pad Thai if you don’t enjoy those essential notes which make it authentic.
Ingredients:
1/2 package of Rice Noodles
12 Jumbo Argentinian Shrimp, shells removed and deveined
1 block of firm Tofu pat-dry and cut into small cubes
1/2 cup cashews, crushed
1/2 sweet red pepper, sliced thin
3 tbsps Tamarind Paste (if you absolutely can’t find, then ketchup it is)
3 tbsps Brown Sugar
2 tbsps Oyster Sauce
2 tbsps Fish Sauce
2 tbsps Rice Vinegar
1/2 tsp Sambal Sauce
1/4 tsp Shrimp Paste
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 white onion, minced
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 stalks green onion, chopped
1 lime, sliced in wedges
Cilantro, minced
Olive oil
Sea salt and pepper
Instructions:
1. In bowl, coat tofu cubes in a drizzle of olive oil. Air-fry at 380°F for about 12 minutes, stirring once. Divide in two batches if too crowded. You also can deep fry in oil till golden for same effect. Set aside.
2. Soak noodles in a large pot of hot water for about 7 minutes till noodles are “cooked”. Drain noodles, but ensure they are not out of water for more than 10 minutes as they will dry and harden.
3. In small bowl, mix fish, tamarind and oyster sauces with sugar, rice vinegar and shrimp paste. Set aside.
4. In large skillet, heat oil on medium-high heat. Sautée red peppers, green and white onions and garlic (also sprouts if you like) till caramelized.
5. Add shrimp and cook 1-2 minutes till slightly cooked. Shift with spatula to side of skillet.
6. Add whisked eggs and scramble with shrimp, pepper and onion mixture. Once almost cooked, shift to side of skillet again. The trick is not to cook the eggs and shrimp too well just yet.
7. Toss-in tofu, half of cashews and bowl of sauce and cook till you get a bit of bubbling.
8. Toss-in noodles and coat in sauce entirely. Heat for about 2 minutes and remove from skillet.
9. Transfer to plate, layering shrimp and tofu on-top of noodles. Garnish with lime wedges, cilantro, more cashews and some green onion. Serve.
Gallery:
(Photo credit: Mr. Will Wong)
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