Pad Thai (Thai Noodles)

Thai fried noodles, great with a meal, great as a snack, great as a meal all by themselves. In fact, if you're not eating them at this very minute, you're probably criminally insane.

Recipe

Ingredients

1/2 pound dried rice noodles, 1/8 inch wide
warm water
1/2 pound shrimp, chicken, pork, or a combination
1/4 cup fish sauce
1/4 cup + 2 Tbsp granulated sugar
1/4 cup + 2 Tbsp white vinegar
1 tsp paprika or 1 Tbsp tomato paste or 1 Tbsp catsup (all optional)
4 green onions
vegetable oil for frying, at least 1/2 cup
1 tsp (2 cloves) finely chopped garlic
2 eggs
3/4 pound mung bean sprouts
2 TBSP ground roasted chilies
3/4 cup ground roasted unsalted peanuts
lime wedges

Preparation:

Soak the noodles for 20-25 minutes in enough warm water to cover, until flexible but not so soft as to be easily mashed with the fingers. (They will soften more when cooked later.) Drain in a colandar.

Peel and devein the shrimp, leaving the tails intact, or slice the chicken or pork across the grain into strips 1/8 inch thick and 1-2 inches long.

Mix the fish sauce, sugar, vinegar (and optional paprika/tomato paste/ catsup) in a bowl, stir until the sugar is dissolved, and set aside.

Slice the green onions (green and white parts) diagonally into pieces 1 1/2 inch long and 1/4 inch thick.

Cooking Procedures:

Heat a wok, add 1/2 cup of oil, add the garlic and stir-fry until golden. Add the meat and stir-fry until cooked (for chicken or pork, until the pink color disappears; for shrimp, until it turns pink). Add the noodles and toss lightly to coat them with oil and to mix well.

Add the fish sauce mixture and bring to a boil rapidly, gently folding the noodles without breaking them. Reduce the heat to medium and continue to boil, folding frequently, until the noodles have absorbed the liquid.

Lift the noodles gently from one side of the wok. Pour in a little oil, break 1 egg, and slip it in the oil. Break the yolk, and cover the egg with the noodles immediately. Repeat this on the opposite side of the wok with the remaining egg. Allow the eggs to cook undisturbed, over moderate heat, until they are set and almost dry. Additional oil may be added if the eggs or the noodles begin to stick to the wok. (See Tips below.)

When the eggs are set and almost dry, fold them gently but rapidly into the noodles. Try not to break the noodles, which will be soft and fragile at this point. (One way: insert your stir-fry implement under the eggs, lift it through, and fold the noodles over. Continue lifting and folding until the eggs are broken up and well distributed.)

Add the bean sprouts and sliced green onions and toss the entire mixture quickly and gently, without breaking the noodles. Cook about 2 minutes, or until the sprouts and green onions are tender but still crisp.

Place on a warm platter. Sprinkle ground chilies and peanuts over the top and squeeze lime juice over that, or serve garnishes separately.

Tips:

I found the instructions from this book on how to cook the eggs very hard to carry off. Another book I have suggests scrambling them pretty much normally in place and then mixing them with the noodles while the eggs are still moist.

Traditionally the noodles are left as full-length strands, but may be cut into shorter lengths for easier stir-frying.

Note that this dish uses a fearsome amount of fish sauce. Ignore the smell while it's cooking.

Attribution:

Thai Home-Cooking From Kamolmal's Kitchen, by William Crawford and Kamolmal Pootaraksa (ISBN 0-452-26133-3).

jfw@funhouse.com

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