Recipe: Pad Thai

PAD THAI

1 pound rice noodles (pad Thai noodles or linguine-style rice noodles)
2 tablespoons butter
5 eggs, beaten
1/3 cup vegetable oil
3 tablespoons minced garlic
1 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined*
1/2 cup chicken stock or broth
1/3 cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons tamarind water**
6 tablespoons fish sauce***
5 green onions, chopped into 1-inch pieces
3 cups bean sprouts
1/4 cup dry-roasted salted peanuts, chopped, for garnish
4 lime wedges, for optional garnish

Bring a saucepan of water to a boil over high heat. Remove from heat; add noodles. Let noodles soak for 3 to 5 minutes. Drain in a colander; rinse with cold water.

In a small skillet, melt butter over medium-low heat. Add eggs and scramble. Set aside.

Heat a large pan or wok over medium-high heat. Add oil. Add garlic; stir-fry until fragrant, about 10 seconds.

Add shrimp; stir-fry 3 minutes or until pink.

Add noodles and chicken stock. Cook, stirring gently, for 2 minutes. (Try not to break the noodles).

Add sugar, soy sauce, tamarind water and fish sauce. Stir-fry for 2 minutes or until noodles are tender.

Add scrambled eggs, green onions and bean sprouts. Toss to mix.

Serve with peanuts and with lime wedges on the side.

*Pork, chicken or tofu can be substituted for shrimp.

**To make tamarind water:
Place a small piece of tamarind paste (available in Asian markets) in a bowl or cup, cover with warm water, and let sit, breaking up the tamarind paste occasionally with a spoon or knife. It's ready to use when the paste is mostly broken up and the water is dark brown.

***Fish sauce is available in Asian markets. For this recipe, Thai fish sauce (nam pla) is preferable to Vietnamese fish sauce (nuoc nam).

Yield: 4 servings
Adapted from source: Introduction To Asian Cooking by Kristin Enkvetchakul