Pad thai

vegan pad thai

One day I would like to go to Thailand....and eat pad thai, but for now I am in my kitchen making my own version. I went to Tian Phat Asian Grocery store this afternoon and picked up some stuff. One of those things, Tamarind.

 It is an essential ingredient tamarind, a fruit that grows in tropical Africa and is used all over the world in cooking. It has a sour flavor but when you add brown sugar and garlic you get a beautiful sauce for pad thai,

tamarind

The structure of pad thai is fairly simple, with few ingredients. The process is mostly having everything in place before you start up the wok. Cooking the rice noodles is the first thing I do, because they can be rinsed and set aside.  As those are cooking I also cut off a chuck of the tamarind and soak it in boiled water, making a paste or juice.

pad thai ingredients

Once you have everything chopped, pureed and browned (tofu). It is only a matter of minutes before you have a plate of steaming hot noodles topped with fresh cilantro and peanuts.

Mise en place

Vegan Pad Thai


1/2 package of rice noodles-cooked according to package

small chunk of tamarind (about 1/4) cup soaked in 1 /4 cup boiled water
3 cloves garlic
1 tbsp fresh ginger- minced
1/2 lime-juiced
2 tbsp brown sugar
1 tbsp tamari
1 thai chili-seeded
1/2 tsp sea salt

Vegetables of your liking, I used.....
Broccoli, red pepper, onion, shredded carrot, green beans, cabbage

1/2 block of tofu-
cubed and sprinkled with garlic powder and sea salt

fresh cilantro
peanuts-roughly chopped

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Cook noodles, drain and rinse.
Set aside

Place everything in a food processor and blend.
Set aside

Chop veggies to mouth bite sizes
Set aside.

Brown tofu in saute pan with a little oil.
Set aside.

In a wok heat 2 tbsp sunflower oil and a few drops of sesame oil.
Add veggies, saute until they change color (bright)
Add noodles, if they are stuck together, add a little water to loosen.
Pour sauce over top and heat up for a few minutes.
Serve with tofu, cilantro and chopped peanuts.

I would highly recommend getting some restaurant tongs. Good ones!