This is a weekday meal which you can make in 30 minutes. An easy meal to make after a long day at work.
This recipes uses tamarind. Tamarind is extensively used in Asian cooking. It is a fruit and when ripe is slightly sweet and very tart. These trees are not usually seen in cities but when you see a tree, it is always fun to pick a fruit from the ground as most fruits are very high in the tree. Peeling the hard pod and eating the sweetish sour pulp is a feeling which is difficult to describe. It is so sour and leaves a tingling sensation on your tongue. It is almost like sucking a lime. Most Indian homes have a box of tamarind (which is shelled, deseeded and salted). Take a lime sized piece and soak in hot water, to extract the juice. Discard the pulp and use the juice/paste. You can find tamarind concentrates at most Asian / Indian supermarkets. This is easy to use and is a must have in an Indian household. Different tamarind pastes taste different so be cautious with it.Pad thai noodles are rice flat noodles. This recipe serves 4
Ingredients
8 oz / 250 g Pad Thai noodles
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 onion chopped
1 cup broccoli
1 cup mushrooms, sliced
1 carrot, sliced lengthwise
½ cup bok choy (optional)
1 tbsp garlic, chopped
1 packet tofu – medium firm or firm diced (optional)
½ cup spring onion or/ and bean sprouts
½ cup peanuts, chopped
Cilantro/ coriander leaves for garnish
Lime for garnish
For sauce:
½ tbsp tamarind paste concentrate (or 2 tbsp tamarind extract from tamarind)
3 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp brown sugar
1-2 tbsp chilli sauce (depending on the spice level)
¼ cup vegetable stock or water
salt to taste
Boil water in a large pan. Turn off heat, immerse noodles in the hot water for about 10-15 minutes until just pliable. Drain, keep aside
Directions:
In a wok/ saute pan, heat 1 tbsp oil, toss in the tofu and pan fry. Keep aside
Add the rest of the oil, fry onions and garlic for a minute and then add rest of vegetables
Stir fry till al dente
Add noodles and tofu and mix
Mix all ingredients for sauce and pour ¾ of sauce in.
Mix and taste, add more sauce if required. Season with salt if required
Garnish with peanuts, spring onions, cilantro, bean sprouts and lime
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