Let’s face it, we all probably know and love Pad Thai in some respect. It’s perhaps the most popular Thai dish in America today, something that you’ll likely try before anything else if you’re not a seasoned Thai food connoisseur. We’ve tinkered with other Thai dishes in the past, such as this Pad Kee Mao recipe and this green curry with tofu recipe, but this Pad Thai may be the best one yet.

Pad Thai’s flavors are part salty (fish sauce), part sweet (brown sugar), part spicy (sriracha) and part sour (tamarind) – all of which combine with the peanuts, noodles and vegetables and are awesome on the palette. This recipe comes from the excellent blog of Chez Pim, who’s post seemed the most traditional and authentic to me, and really was excellent (Thanks Pim!!)

This video should explain most of it – this is @taylorbarstow making the same dish a few months back:

Here’s the recipe: The Sauce first!  This amount of sauce will make around 5-6 servings of Pad Thai

• 1/2 cup fish sauce
• 1/3 cup brown sugar
• 1 Tbsp. paprika
• 2 Tbsp. Sriracha hot sauce (less or more depending on your level of spice needs)
• 2 Tbsp. tamarind concentrate (or 1/2 cup tamarind extract) – (likely you’ll need an Asian market to find this, but potentially you can get it at a standard super market)
• Water to thin out the sauce (see the consistency in the video)

Simply combine all of the ingredients in a small sauce pan and bring to a boil.  Then kill the heat and let the sauce rest while you do the rest:  PLEASE NOTE, these quantities are PER SERVING, which you make separately!!!

• 1 medium package or thin rice noodles – soak them in warm water until pliable but not mushy
• Eggs – 1 per serving
• Tofu – around 5-6 thin slices per serving, so 1 standard block is sufficient
• 5-6 medium sized shrimps per serving – peeled and de-veined
• 1 generous handful beansprouts per serving
• 1-2 Tbsp Thai basil per serving
• Small handful coarsely ground peanuts per serving
• 1 handful Chinese garlic chives, green onion tops or regular chives – roughly chopped
• 2 baby bok choy heads – halved (optional) – Yes, you can use broccoli instead if you want!
• Peanut or canola oil
• 1/4 lime for finishing

See video for prep instructions!

Start with the oil in a hot wok until it’s basically smoking, then add the tofu (being careful not to splatter yourself with the hot oil).  Once the tofu starts to brown slowly, add the bokchoy (if using) and then the noodles and a small ladleful of sauce on top.  Keep things moving while you go, and cook the noodles until rather soft.

You’re then going to want to add the egg on one side of the wok, stir to incorporate, then add the rest of the vegetables and the shrimp and cook until the noodles reach the desired texture.  You then want to make sure it’s got the right amount of sauce and seasoning (add more sriracha if you want) and serve with lime juice squeezed on top.  Serve immediately and enjoy!

Drunken noodle is a Thai noodle dish that is made with wide rice noodles, Thai basil, chilies, onions, and garlic.  I first ordered drunken noodles, or Pad Kee Mao, when I was in college.  I would frequently get take out from a delicious Thai restaurant called Brown Sugar which is practically on the Boston University campus.  Drunken noodles, a highly popular entree in Thai restaurants in America, originated in Thailand as late night street food served to satiate drunken hunger.  I haven’t tested it out in this context, but I can imagine why this would be a popular choice.  It is absolutely loaded with flavor, and the spice from the chilies would be a good cure for a hangover!

The best drunken noodles I have ever had were from a hole in the wall restaurant in Seattle called Thai Toms.  This is the kind of eating establishment that you would never find unless you were with someone who had been there before.  It is located right next to the University of Washington campus, and you would easily walk by its inconspicuous front if you weren’t looking for it.  When you walk in, tables are packed in to the tiny dining room which surrounds an open kitchen.  One man (Tom, I guess) stands in the kitchen and turns out all of the delicious offerings, and he does it fast and well. The pad kee mao, or star noodle as it was called there, was  spicy and coated with just the right amount of sauce.  I was served a huge plate of these tasty noodles, and I finished every bite.  I often still dream about this dish.

When the cooler weather hit this fall, and it was time to use the last of the Thai basil crop from our herb garden, I decided I would give this noodle dish a try.  I researched some recipes, and discovered that they were sort of all over the place in terms of ingredients and methods, so I combined a couple that looked like they knew what they were doing and came up with a delicious version of this dish.  One suggestion that many recipes had was to only cook one to two servings of this dish at a time.  This is a wise suggestion because too many noodles will stick together and it will be more difficult to toss well and coat with sauce. Overall, though, the whole dish took me about twenty minutes to cook!

Feel free to play around with the vegetables you use and the meat.  I used tofu because I love the way it takes on the flavor of the sauce, and it is easy and super affordable, but I would also recommend chicken or shrimp. This dish is the best with fresh rice noodles which don’t need to be precooked, but if you can’t find them you can use dried rice noodles.  If you make this substitution, precook the noodles al dente before adding them to the pan.

You’ll want to prepare the sauce first, and then have the remaining ingredients prepared before you start cooking.

Ingredients for sauce:

• 1/2 package of fresh rice noodles, separated
• 2 tablespoons black soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons light soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon fish sauce
• 1 tablespoon oyster sauce
• 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• Juice of 1/2 lime

In a measuring cup or small bowl mix together all of the ingredients above until the brown sugar is dissolved.  Set aside and prepare the vegetables and noodles.

Remaining Ingredients:

• 1/2 package of fresh rice noodles, separated
• 1/2 package of extra firm tofu
• 1/2 large yellow onion, sliced into wedges
• 1/2 cup fresh green beans, trimmed
• 1 sweet red ball pepper
• Fresh Thai chilies, chopped, to taste
• 4-5 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1/2 cup of Thai basil leaves
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper

Heat the oil in a large wok or skillet over high heat.  Add the onions, chilies, and garlic and cook for about a minute.  Add the beans, sweet peppers, and tofu and cook until the tofu browns slightly and the vegetables soften, about three or four more minutes.

Add the noodles, sauce, and basil and stir fry until the noodles begin to soften, which usually takes about three more minutes.  Garnish with slices of lime and one or two fresh Thai basil leaves, sprinkle white pepper and serve immediately.  This recipe makes about two servings.

Ok, so I realize that this post is a drastic deviation from the country-style Italian dishes I usually have to offer, but I do have a palate for all kinds of cuisine and this is so easy and delicious I wanted to share it.  I started making this dish when I was in college.  I was already borrowing money for school and living on a tight budget, so I was always looking for inexpensive meals that had more nutritional merit than take out pizza.  This dish will cost you about as much to make as it would to order take out from your local Thai restaurant, but it will feed you for three or four meals rather than one.  I also like being able to choose which vegetables to include and how much oil to use.  The best part is that it only takes about twenty minutes to cook.

The recipe can easily be adapted to substitute any vegetables you like or have on hand and can certainly be made with other protein, such as chicken or shrimp.  I am not a vegetarian, but I like the silky texture and the nutty flavor of the tofu in this dish. 

If you haven’t tried cooking with tofu much, this is a fail-proof method to try it.  The tofu also takes on the flavor of the curry really well, and it is healthy and cheap!   What’s not to like?  I find it to be critical, however, to fry the tofu in a bit of vegetable oil prior to adding it to the curry.  It holds its shape much better that way and has a richer flavor.  Also, I have experimented with all kinds of curry paste for this dish, including red and yellow curry, which are a little sweeter and less spicy, but also extremely delicious.

Here is the way I prepared it on the last go-round:

Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp. vegetable oil
• 1 package of extra firm tofu
• 2 tbsp. olive oil
• 1 medium onion, roughly chopped
• 3 cloves of garlic, peeled and chopped
• 1 large poblano pepper, roughly chopped
• 1 small head of broccoli, chopped into florets
• A handful of cherry or grape tomatoes
• 1/2 cup of Crimini mushrooms, quartered
• 1 can coconut milk
• 1/4 cup Thai green curry paste
• 1 tsp. fish sauce
• The juice of one lime
• Salt to taste

Heat the vegetable oil in a skillet.  I used my cast iron for this part, which worked excellently.  Cut the tofu into 1 inch cubes.  Place the tofu in a layer in the skillet and do not move them for about four minutes or until they are golden brown on this first side.  Turn the tofu and brown on each side.  Remove from the pan and place on paper towels until the curry is prepared.

Heat the olive oil in a heavy bottom pan over medium heat.  Add the onions, garlic, and peppers and salt to taste.  Cook until the onion start to soften and become translucent.  Add the broccoli, mushrooms, and tomatoes and continue to cook until the vegtables soften but still have a bite.  Add the coconut milk, curry paste, fish sauce, and lime juice.  Stir well to combine.  Add the tofu and stir to coat.  Continue to cook for a couple of minutes until the coconut milk is thoroughly heated through.  Serve immediately over white or brown rice.