Phad Thai is pretty easy to make as there are a million legitimate variations. The recipe we like is simple and relies on some key fresh ingredients--cilantro, bean sprouts, and limes.
At this point, I'm mainly using pre mixed phad Thai sauces with a little modification. I would like to branch out and make my own sauce.
Here is how I currently do it:
I put about 1/2 a package of Phad Thai noodles in a bowl of warm water and let them soak for at least 45 minutes.
When the noodles are soft, I get a large pan and heat up about 4 tbs of vegetable oil on high. I throw in about 2 tbs of minced garlic and let that sizzle for a minute then I add about 1/4 pound of sliced chicken. After that cooks for a minute I add a bunch of diced green onions. After that cooks for a minute or two I drain the noodles and add them to the pan with two eggs and about 4 tbs of Phad Thai sauce. I stir that up and add a few shakes of paprika. I cook this on high stirring frequently, cooking the noodles evenly for about 15 minutes.
Meanwhile , I crush 1/4 cup of roasted peanuts and chop up 1/2 cup of cilantro and slice a lime or two. I also have about a cup of fresh bean sprouts ready.
When the noodles are nice and brown I sprinkle in about 2 tbs of sugar and stir for another minute then remove them from the heat. Then I serve the noodles in a bowl with the bean sprouts, peanuts, and cilantro on top in whatever amount you like. We like to periodically squeeze more lime juice on top as we eat to keep its flavor in the mix.
Enjoy.
WOW Looks good. Would you come and cook dinner for me sometime?
ReplyDeleteYou are really expanding your blogging horizons. I love Thai food, with the strange exception of Pad Thai. Something about it just rubs me the wrong way. Maybe your liberal use of limes would make it more palatable. I think it's the sweetness I don't like. Spicy Noodles? Yes! Panang curry? Yum! Tom Kah, Gai, Fresh Rolls, love them all! I don't know why I don't like Pad Thai.
ReplyDeleteYou're getting even better at the food photography.:-)
ReplyDeleteYour Pad Thai was quite a bit better than the restaurant Pad Thai I tried. Like Lucy said, the restaurant Pad Thai was too sweet, almost syrupy. But yours is pretty darn tasty. Don't you add fish sauce to yours, though? I didn't see it on the recipe.
ReplyDeleteLucy,
ReplyDeleteI don't make it too sweet, as Joal mentioned. I like to make massamun curry as well, but I just use some curry paste. It's really hard to call this real cooking since the sauce or curry (the hard part) is already mixed up and packaged. But it still tastes good.
Joal,
The first few times I made it I tried to make the sauce but the fish sauce was too overpowering and I didn't have all the ingredients you need--like tamarind juice. That's what I want to try again.
We had some very good(real)Thai food when we were in Thailand. I didn't get photos of it or do I know what most it was called, but it was delicious.
ReplyDeleteyou guys made this for me when I was there the first time, I can attest, it is great.
ReplyDelete