A lot of veggies with spicy, saucy rice noodles and shrimp or tofu
I fell in love with Thai food when I lived in New York City in the late 70’s. I was dating a man who had lived in Thailand — his dad was the ambassador to Thailand for the USA when he was in high school. I’d had Chinese food when I was growing up in Ohio. This was different. And I don’t think there were any Thai restaurants in Cincinnati at that time!
James and I have tried many different recipes for Pad Thai because it’s one of our favorite Thai dishes. My friend Suzie went to Thailand and brought me back a cookbook of noodle recipes to try. My mom gave me the cookbook by Mai Pham of the Lemon Grass Restaurants. We have eaten Pad Thai in Paris, France, and Denver, Colorado.
Most Pad Thai recipes I found were either just noodles and a few vegetables or just noodles and tofu or shrimp. I wanted a lot of vegetables, and shrimp and tofu with my noodles! So, I created my own recipe, of which I am very proud. I’ve prepared it for friends several times and they all agree, it’s the BEST!
Yes, this recipe has a lot of ingredients and yes, you have to pay attention while you make it. If these are not your favorite veggies, use what you like! This is not a recipe to throw together at the last minute. Make it for a special occasion, or when you want to learn something new. It will be worth it, I promise!
Claire’s Pad Thai
Equipment
- 1 wok
- 1 large skillet
- knife and cutting board, measuring tools
Ingredients
- 7 or 8 oz. dried rice stick noodles, medium width
Noodle sauce
- 2 TBLS Peanut oil, or other vegetable oil
- 1/2 TBLS minced garlic
- 2 shallots sliced thin
- 2 teas. ground chili paste (such as sambal olek)
- 6 TBLS ketchup
- 1 TBLS sriracha
- 1/4 cup teriyaki sauce
- 3 TBLS. chunky peanut butter
- 1/2 teas. salt If using tofu
- 2 TBLS fish sauce If using shrimp
- 3 cups bean sprouts
- 3 green onions, chopped
Veggie Topping with Tofu or Shrimp
- 1 TBLS Peanut or other vegetable oil
- 1 lb peeled raw shrimp or cubed tofu
- 1 shallot, thinly sliced
- 1/2 teas. garlic, minced
- 2 cups cabbage
- 2 red, ripe tomatoes, in thin wedges
- 2 cups broccoli florets, cut bite size
- 1/2 yellow onion, thinly sliced
- 1/2 cup snow peas, cut in thirds
- 1/2 cup vegetable stock
Garnish
- chopped peanuts, cilantro, lime wedges
Instructions
- Mix together ketchup, Sriracha, teriyaki, peanut butter, salt (if using tofu) and/or fish sauce (if using shrimp), and the vegetable broth.
- Bring a pot of water to a rolling boil, then add the rice sticks. Stirring often to untangle the noodles, cook for 2 minutes, then rinse extremely well under cold running water. This will ensure that the noodles are clean and free of the pungent dried rice flour odor. Drain the noodles in a colander and let dry. Don’t worry if the noodles stick together.
- Heat 2 Tablespoons of oil in a large wok or large nonstick fry pan over medium heat.Add the garlic, shallot, chili paste and allow to sizzle about 30 seconds. Add the ketchup mixture (ketchup thru vegetable broth) and reduce heat to low. Stir frequently for about 5 minutes.
- Set aside 3 Tablespoons of the sauce.
- Add the rice noodles to the bubbling sauce, toss until the noodles absorb all of the sauce and are cooked, 5 to 7 minutes. Add the bean sprouts and green onions and remove the pan from the heat, set aside and put a lid on it to keep warm.
- In another pan, heat 1 TBL oil over moderate heat. Brown the shallot and garlic with the tofu or shrimp until aromatic, take the tofu/shrimp out, add the vegetables and the broth, except for the snow peas. Stir fry until vegetables soften, 3 or 4 minutes. Add the snow peas, reserved sauce and tofu or shrimp, toss for another 2 minutes. Add water or vegetable broth as needed. Remove from heat.
- To serve: portion noodles onto individual dinner plates and top with the sautéed vegetables and tofu/shrimp. Top with peanuts, cilantro and lime wedges.
