As much as I do enjoy cooking (mostly the eating), I rarely do it because groceries are expensive, I get lazy, etc., etc., but every once in a while I'll get the hankering to make some food.
I consider myself pretty adventurous in my cooking. Not in that I'll try and make something up, but I like to try new things and try things I haven't done before. So today for dinner I made Pad Thai with a recipe from my cookbook and peanut sauce from here. I haven't tried anything like this before, but I love Pad Thai and the recipe seemed simple enough so it was worth a shot.
The peanut sauce was really simple. Obviously there's more to it than just peanuts, but it was surprising to find out what else went into it.
It starts with coconut milk over medium heat until it comes to a slight boil.
Then, in goes some curry paste. Stir until fully incorporated.
Then goes a bunch of peanut butter. Stir until incorporated.
And finally, some brown sugar and fish sauce (I used soy sauce. You can use anything salty, really).
At this point you can keep it as is or add water to thin it out. I added a little bit and this was my final product. It was pretty thick and creamy. I probably should have added more water, but it was still really tasty. It's good hot or cold.
After I finished the sauce, I started the dish. First up is prep. Chop up some garlic, a shallot, green onions, peanuts, lightly beat a couple eggs, and rinse some sprouts.
While you're prepping all that stuff, you should boil some water. When it comes to a boil, take it away from heat and drop in your rice noodles. Gently ease them into the water so they're completely immersed and let them sit for a few minutes until they're soft but still chewy.
When they're done, strain in a colander, rinse with cold water, and set aside.
I love Pad Thai with chicken and I just happened to have some frozen, left over from a pasta dish I made a while ago. I added some more cayenne pepper, some sweet basil, and a little curry powder. You can, of course, leave chicken out, or use shrimp or tofu. Whatever you want.
After it's done, chop the chicken into pieces.
While my chicken was cooking, I made the sauce for the noodles. Some water, lime juice, brown sugar, cayenne pepper, fish sauce (Again, I used soy sauce).
When all that's done, on medium heat pour a little vegetable oil into your wok and dump in the garlic and shallot. Stir while cooking, wait for them to brown a little.
Then pour in and slowly stir the eggs. Stir until they're slightly scrambled but still wet looking.
Increase to high heat and add the noodles and lime juice mixture. Continuously toss with wooden spoons until the sauce thickens.
Continue tossing, add the green onions, sprouts, peanuts, chicken and let it cook for a few minutes.
And you're done! From here, the rest is up to you. You can toss in the peanut sauce while the noodles are still in the wok or put it on top of the dish, garnish with cilantro, sprouts, peanut sauce, more chopped peanuts, lime, etc. This was my finished product.
It turned out really well. Everything you'd expect from a Pad Thai. Spicy, limey, peanuty. I wish I would have been more generous with the lime juice when making the sauce (easily remedied by squeezing some extra juice over the dish), and like I said earlier, thinned out the peanut sauce a little more, but all in all still really delicious.
So. Pad Thai. Surprisingly simple, fun to make, and delicious. Give it a shot! Personalize it. The reason I didn't give measurements is because not only can you find TONS of recipes online, you can really do this any way you want. You can make it spicier, saltier, thicker, soupier, throw in more vegetables, etc. After dinner I was thinking about what else I could put in next time and I thought about corn. Make it a little sweeter, add a nice crunch.
Happy cooking!
