Phat Thai

Recipe

• 250 gms dried rice noodles
• 3 spring onions – white and green parts separated and chopped finely
• 2 bak-choy- roughly chopped
• 1/2 cup bean sprouts
• 1/2 cup tofu – bite size chunks
• 3 tsp of oil
• 3 cloves garlic- minced
• 1 inch ginger – finely chopped
• 1 medium green chilli- finely sliced
• 3 tsp roasted peanuts/cashews
• 2 tsp chopped coriander
• 1 tsp toasted sesame seeds

For the Pad Thai Sauce

• 1 tsp tamarind paste
• 1/4 cup water
• 2 1/2 tsp soya sauce
• 2 tsp sugar
• 2 tsp lemon juice
• 1/2 tsp chilli sauce
• salt to taste
• pepper to taste
• paprika to taste

Method

1. In a pot, boil water and soak rice noodles for 10 minutes. Drain and run under cold water. Keep aside with a little oil drizzled into the rice noodles to keep it from sticking to each other. Keep the rice noodles a little under cooked as it will further cook when stir fried.
2. In a wok pan, add the oil. Heat it and to it add the whites of the spring onions and bak-choy. Fry for a minute. To this, add the ginger, garlic and chilli and stir fry on high flame till the flavors are released.
3. In a separate bowl, add all the ingredients for the pad thai sauce and mix well. The flavor should be sweet-sour followed by spicy and salty. Adjust the proportions of the ingredients for the sauce to suit your taste.
4. Add 1/2 the sauce to the wok pan and the rice noodles. Toss with the help of 2 spatulas. Keep the flame medium high. Add the rest 1/2 of the sauce and mix well. Adding sauce in portions helps in a better stir fry as pouring all the sauce at once makes the mixture too saucy for stir fry.
5. In a separate pan, roast the tofu chunks and keep aside.
6. Add the roasted tofu and sprouts into the rice noodles. Add the chopped spring onion greens, coriander and nuts.Sprinkle toasted sesame seeds before serving warm.