Phat Thai( Pad Thai) The Ultimate in Thai Street Food.

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Pad Thai is the ultimate “street food”  The best of these cooks have cooked the same dish day-after-day, year-after-year and have achieved near perfection.

A great Pad Thai is dry and light bodied, with a fresh, complex, balanced flavour. It should be reddish, brownish in colour.

Pad Thai is another perfect vegetarian dish, just omit shrimp and substitute soy sauce for fish sauce. Add tofu if you like and viola perfect for a vegetarian.

Ingredients:

1/2 pack  Thai rice noodles

1-1/3 cup bean sprouts.

 1-1/2 cup Chinese chives.

2 tablespoon cooking oil

2 tablespoons tamarind paste

2 tablespoon sugar ( I use palm Sugar)

1 minced or finely chopped shallots

1/2 lime

2 tablespoons peanuts ( Optional )

1/2-1/4 lb shrimp.

ground pepper

1/2 teaspoon ground dried chilli pepper

3 cloves minced garlic

1tbsp Soy sauce

4 teaspoons fish sauce

1 egg

Tips:

The trickiest part is the soaked noodles. Noodles should be somewhat flexible and solid, not completely expanded and soft. When in doubt, under-soak. You can always add more water in the pan, but you can’t take it out.

In this recipe, pre-ground pepper, particularly pre-ground white pepper is better than fresh ground pepper.

 For kids, omit the ground dried chilli pepper.

Tamarind adds some flavour and acidity, but you can substitute white vinegar.

Now to cook……

Start with soaking the dry noodles in lukewarm or room temperature water while preparing the other ingredients. When you are ready to put ingredients in the pan, the noodles should be flexible but not mushy.

Cut the Chinese chives into 1 inch long pieces. Set aside a few fresh chives for a garnish. Rinse the bean sprouts and save half for serving fresh. Mince or finely chop shallot and garlic together.

Cooking:

 Heat wok on high heat and pour oil in the wok. Fry the peanuts until toasted and remove them from the wok. The peanuts can be toasted in the pan without oil as well. Add shallot and garlic, stir them until they start to brown.

Drain the noodles and add to the wok. Stir quickly to keep things from sticking. Add tamarind, sugar, fish sauce, soy sauce and chilli pepper. Stir. The heat should remain high. If your wok is not hot enough, you will see a lot of juice in the wok at this point. Turn up the heat, if it is the case.

Make room for the egg by pushing all noodles to the side of the wok. Crack the egg onto the wok and scramble it until it is almost all cooked. Fold the egg into the noodles. The noodles should soft and chewy. Pull a strand out and taste. If the noodles are too hard (not cooked), add a little bit of water. When you get the right taste, add shrimp and stir. Sprinkle white pepper around. Add bean sprouts and chives. Stir a few more times. The noodles should be soft, dry and very tangled.

Pour onto the serving plate and sprinkle with ground pepper and peanuts. ( I serve peanuts) on the side as do many restaurants now.

Serve hot with a wedge of lime on the side, raw Chinese chives and raw bean sprouts on top.

Enjoy!

If you enjoyed this authentic recipe then please share or reblog as I love authentic dishes as many others do. and that is all you will get from me authentic cooking made from scratch.

Thank you for reading.

 

32 thoughts on “Phat Thai( Pad Thai) The Ultimate in Thai Street Food.”

  2. Léa

    Oh yum! A young friend of mine who is from Thailand just began her food truck here at the beginning of the year. She makes excellent Pad Thai. Today is market day in my village and she will be serving it up shortly along with many other treats! 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

  3. Pingback: Phat Thai( Pad Thai) Ultimate Thai Street Food – The Militant Negro™

  6. Doctor Jonathan

    Although I don’t eat this dish often, I can’t ever remember being served a portion I didn’t thoroughly enjoy. I have eaten it with chicken, tofu and beef. Each offered its own wonderful accent!

    Liked by 1 person

  10. ellenbest24

    I have pinned this as one to try, some of the ingredients are new to me having ate them but never cooked with them. I do wonder if there is an ingredient missing from your list? Or maybe I have gone bonkers and at long last admit it …

    Liked by 2 people

      1. ellenbest24

        No it is silly old me! I was looking for Prawns. Feeling sure I had this not so long ago with hugest of prawns … you call them shrimp. *slaps head with palm* shrimp here are no bigger than your pinkie fingernail here, they are brown and … not Prawns.

        Liked by 1 person

    2. blondieaka Post author

      Well done, you spotted the deliberate mistake I left the soy out…Thank you, I will officially verify you are not bonkers…lol

      Like

  11. Scott andersen

    I remember taking my kids to Thailand. My oldest son discovered Pad Thai. Since then it is his go-to dish. I am still more a beef salad and tom yum person, but that is the only thing he orders!

    Liked by 1 person

  12. Paul White

    Thanks Carol. I love Pad Thai.
    If your are really lazy but want a great dish of Phat Thai, try the Mango Tree restaraunt in Dubia City, at the Souk Al Bahar, (Opposit the Kalifa towers).Not only is the food wonderful, but you get the best views of the fountain show too.
    It’s one of my favourite restaurants in the world just now and will be mentioned on my travel blog soon.

    Like

  16. Heather of Wishing Wells Life

    Do you know if there’s something you can sub the peanuts with or leave the peanuts out and it still taste similar?

    Liked by 1 person

    1. blondieaka Post author

      Are you allergic to all nuts? Or just peanuts? Although The peanuts now are generally served as a side on the plate and it doesn’t make that much difference in taste it is just another texture 🙂 If you are ok with cashew then use them..Hope that helps 🙂

      Like

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