Pad Thai

An incredibly flavourful dish, pad thai combines sweet, sour, salty and chilli flavours all in one easy stir-fried dish.

Ingredients

  • 4 tbsp fish sauce
  • 2 tbsp light brown sugar
  • 1/2 tbsp tamarind paste (mixed with 1/2 tbsp water)
  • 200g rice noodles
  • 2 tbsp vegetable oil
  • 100g pak choi, sliced lenghtways
  • 3 cloves of garlic
  • 100g bean sprouts
  • 1 red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped
  • 6 spring onions, finely chopped
  • 100g cooked prawns
  • 2 eggs, beaten
  • Small handful of coriander
  • 50g roasted peanuts

Method

  1. Take a small saucepan and pour in the fish sauce along with the sugar and tamarind paste. Set over a medium heat and gently warm until the sugar has completely dissolved, then remove from the heat.
  2. Soak the noodles in hot water for about 5 minutes, and blanche the beansprouts in boiling water for about 15 seconds, then put to one side.
  3. Heat the vegetable oil in a wok over a high heat, and add the pak choi, garlic, bean sprouts, chilli and most of the spring onions. Stir fry for 1 minute until the garlic is aromatic, being careful that it doesn’t burn.
  4. Add the prawns and noodles to the wok and pour in 1 tbsp of water. Add in the sauce and cook everything together, tossing occasionally, until the noodles have absorbed most of the liquid.
  5. Push the noodles to one side and add the beaten egg. Scramble it in the wok, making sure that the yolk is cooked, and then stir in the noodles.
  6. Serve with the remaining spring onions, chilli, coriander and peanuts.

Lead image: OksanaKiian via Getty images.