Pad Thai

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Pad Thai! The famous national dish of Thailand. How did it come about and where can we trace its origins?

Well, interestingly enough, the invention of pad thai can be traced back to World War II. Thailand was having a severe rice shortage, and food prices were quite high. The government was not appealed to the idea of applying rations to the country’s food supply, so instead Prime Minister of Thailand at the time, Field Marshal Plaek Phibunsongkhram decided to create a national dish.

Chinese kitchens are well known for their rice noodles, so the Thai decided to borrow rice noodles from China and mix it in and stir-fry it with their local flavors to create their new national dish.

Pad thai has been introduced to many parts of the world now, and many ingredients have became a part of it. However, we can never deny that the root of the traditional, national pad thai dish is rice noodles, eggs, tofu, and dried shrimps. Those are the pillar ingredients of an authentic pad thai. As for the sauce, the combination of salty, sweet, and sour creates the perfect balance to elate our taste buds. The saltiness comes from the fish or soy sauce, the sweetness from the palm sugar, and the acidity from the tamarind. You can always add a twist to the sauce by simmering in some shallots, garlic, or even dried chilis!

All in all, pad thai started as a national dish to control food supply and have cheaper options for a meal, and now its flavors and different twists are not only traveling across the streets of Thailand, but also the entire world!

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Pad Thai

Yield: 4

Author: Yasmeen's Kitchen Diary

Prep time: 30 MinCook time: 10 MinTotal time: 40 Min

This Pad Thai is as authentic as it gets and is so simple, once everything is prepped, it can be finished in less than 10 minutes!

Ingredients

Pad Thai Sauce

• 3 tbsp palm sugar
• 5 tbsp tamarind paste (3 tbsp if the paste is too acidic)
• 2 tbsp fish sauce
• 3 tbsp water

Pad Thai

• 200 g rice noodles, soaked in cold or room temperature water for 1 hour, until noodles are pliable and don't break.
• 3 shallots, chopped finely
• 3 garlic cloves, chopped
• 100 g extra firm tofu, diced
• 3 tbsp pickled radish, diced. Traditional recipes use sweet preserved daikon radish but since it's hard to find, I used takuan, which is Japanese pickled yellow radish
• 2 tbsp dried shrimp, roughly chopped
• Dried chili flakes, to taste (optional)
• 3 tbsp vegetable or canola oil
• Shrimp, as many as you prefer
• 2 eggs
• About 2-3 cups bean sprouts
• A bunch of garlic chives, cut an inch wide
• ¼ cup roasted peanuts
• Lime wedge, for serving
• Extra garlic chives, bean sprouts, chili flakes, and peanuts can be used for garnish.

Instructions

Pad Thai Sauce

1. Melt the palm sugar with a tablespoon of water and boil until slightly browned and completely melted, to give it a nice caramelized, deeper flavor.
2. Add the fish sauce and tamarind paste and stir well.
3. Set aside for later.

Pad Thai

1. Cut the rice noodles in half – cutting the rice noodles in half will make tossing it easier in the pan/wok.
2. Prep your ingredients in designated bowls. Combine shallots, garlic, tofu, pickled radish, and dried shrimp.
3. In a pan or wok, heat 1 tablespoon of oil over high heat.
4. Sear your protein – I marinated my shrimps in soy sauce and seared them for 30 seconds on each side. Set aside for later.
5. In the same pan/wok, sauté shallots until translucent, add garlic and extra firm tofu, as well as the pickled radish, and dried shrimp.
6. Sprinkle chili flakes to your liking.
7. Turn the heat down to medium-low and add the rice noodles and pad thai sauce. If the pan/wok is too dry, add oil. Noodles tend to stick together if there isn't enough oil to separate them. Keep tossing the noodles to coat them well with the sauce and add water if the sauce is too thick.
8. Add your protein back in.
9. Create a space for the eggs and add them. Break them apart and mix them in into the noodles well.
10. Once the noodles are done and well coated with the sauce, turn the heat off or to very low and mix in all your fresh vegetables and mix until slightly wilted.
11. Serve right away with a lime wedge. Make sure to squeeze that lime juice all over before digging in!

Notes

• If you do not prefer seafood, you can replace the dried shrimp with shiitake mushrooms or omit it completely.
• To replace fish sauce, you can add soy sauce alone or mix it in with lime, rice vinegar, and anchovies, you can also use vegan fish sauce. You can also add Japanese miso.
• If you have a peanut-allergy, you can replace peanuts with cashews or almonds or even seeds, such as pumpkin seeds or flax seeds to get that crunchy texture.
• Check the doneness of the noodles. If still undercooked, add a little more water until they're perfectly cooked. Be sure to be wary about adding too much water and diluting the sauce!
• The best tamarind paste to use is the ones that have been produced in Thailand. Indian tamarind paste is too strong and too thick for a pad thai.
• You can prep your ingredients a day ahead and keep your soaked noodles in the fridge for up to 3 days!
• A large batch of pad thai sauce is possible to keep frozen until needed in your freezer!
• Any protein can be used for this recipe, just be sure to slice it into bite-sized piece for the recipe and marinate it with soy sauce beforehand.
• If you can't find garlic chives, you can use green onions but not in the same amount. Garlic chives are milder in flavor and is used as a vegetable, so if you're using green onions, you may use about 2-3 stalks.
• If you can't find palm sugar, you may substitute it with an equal amount of sugar.

Nutrition Facts

Calories

514.11

Fat (grams)

18.45

Sat. Fat (grams)

2.4

Carbs (grams)

72.55

Fiber (grams)

4.64

Net carbs

67.91

Sugar (grams)

18.45

Protein (grams)

17.92

Sodium (milligrams)

1186.99

Cholesterol (grams)

166.09

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pad thai, thailand, thai, noodles

main course, easy dinner

Thai

Bon appétit!