Pad Thai

We all have dishes that take us back to a particular time or place in a surprisingly visceral way.

For me, pad thai, is one of those dishes. Even though I make different variations of this recipe all the time, there is something about the particular combination of rice noodles, sweet, sour and salty seasoning, the crunchy veg, the egg, peanut and lime that takes me straight back to Thailand.

This is less of a recipe, and more of a list of options! I find this to be a very pleasing and quick meal when I have random little bits of veg leftover and needing used up. It’s particularly speedy if you already have a jar of pickled chillies (just chopped fresh chillies or chilli flakes and rice wine vinegar) in the fridge, and a jar of chopped roasted peanuts in the cupboard!

Beansprouts are a standard ingredient in proper pad thai, but I never have them in the house, so never use them. Instead I go with a random selection of homegrown, crunchy, Irish vegetables, cut into fine matchsticks. Always different, but always delicious.

Serves 2

Note: It’s hard to scale up this recipe. If you’re cooking for lots of people I would recommend cooking this in small batches in your wok - or get yourself a few more woks!

150g rice noodles (the wide ones - about 1cm wide)
150g mixed veg, cut into matchsticks (more details below)
2 garlic cloves
50g kale or kohlrabi leaves, large stalks removed (optional)
100g firm tofu, cut into 1cm cubes (optional).
1-2 tablespoons fish sauce (or use light soy sauce, or a mix of light soy sauce and pineapple juice if you’re veggie)
1-2 teaspoons palm sugar (or use granulated sugar)
1-2 tablespoons of tamarind juice (to make this, soak tamarind in boiling water, then strain out the seeds/flesh - or buy tamarind concentrate and use a teaspoon of this diluted with water. If you can’t find tamarind, then tomato ketchup is a surprisingly good substitute, though it’s sweet, so use less or no sugar in your sauce.)
2 tablespoons sunflower or peanut oil
2 eggs

1) Cook the rice noodles. The brand that I buy take about 8 minutes in boiling water (I turn the heat off when I put the noodles in). You don’t want to overcook them. Once they are almost cooked, take them out of the hot water and rinse them with cold water. (You could do this well in advance if you want.)

2) Prepare your matchstick vegetables. I use a combination of green parts of scallions, kohlrabi, carrot, Jerusalem artichoke and white cabbage and set to one side.

3) Peel and chop the garlic and finely slice your kale or kohlrabi leaves (if using)

4) Prepare your sauce. Mix the fish sauce (salty), palm sugar (sweet) and tamarind (fruity and sour) in a mug or small jug. Taste it and add more of whatever is required. It should taste both salty and sweet and fruity and sour. If one of those flavours isn’t balanced with the others, add a splash more of the relevant ingredient. I would generally make a larger batch of this sauce and keep it in the fridge for seasoning various stir-fries, adding to marinades or dipping things into over the next week or two.

5) Heat up 1 tablespoon of oil in a wok over a high heat. Once hot add the garlic and kale/kohlrabi leaves and stir quickly - you don’t want the garlic to burn. Add the tofu (if using) and fry until nicely browned. You can use chicken or prawn instead, or leave this out entirely.

6) Add the noodles to the wok and stir. Add a splash of water and cook for about a minute. (If the noodles are still a little uncooked, you can keep cooking for longer).

7) Add the sauce to the wok and stir. Add the matchstick vegetables and stir again.

8) Move your noddles to one side of your wok. (If you’re wok isn’t big enough for this you can take the noddles out completely for this). Add the remaining tablespoon of oil to the empty side of your pan. Crack in your eggs and make a quick, thin omelette. Once your eggs are cooked, stir the omelette through the noddles.

9) Serve with a squeeze of lime juice, chilli flakes or fresh chilli in white rice vinegar, and roasted, chopped peanuts.