Thai One On
by
Heidi at Betty Crocker
11/16/2007 12:33:00 PM
I always thought Pad Thai was one of those exotic dishes best left to restaurants. Not so much anymore since I dared myself to make the Pad Thai in the Betty Crocker Cookbook (10th edition). Upon reading the recipe it is very easy to be scared off by the list of ingredients. There are 18—count ‘em—18 in all (if it makes you feel any better, water is listed twice). Do not let this intimidate you. You can do this.
* The stir-fry rice noodles are a snap to make. They’re really not that much different from regular pasta, they’re just quicker.
* Step 2 just involves mixing eight ingredients in a bowl (a word of advice: whatever you do, DO NOT smell the fish sauce! I cannot stress this enough. If you do, you will be tempted to leave it out of the recipe and you really, really shouldn’t, no matter what your nose tells you).
* It’s a good idea to have the garlic, shallot, eggs, shrimp (I prefer to use chicken), peanuts, bean sprouts and green onions cut up and/or measured out before you start heating the vegetable oil in your wok or skillet. That way you can just toss them in as directed. The fancy French term for this is mise en place. The Boy Scout version is “Be prepared.”
*The recipe says it serves four, but when I make it for my friends A.C. and Luke, the three of us easily polish off the whole thing. If you’re serving four, you may want to add pot stickers or cream cheese puffs to your menu (purchased, of course—let’s face it: Some foods really are best off left to the pros).
Try it (I dare ya) and let me know how you like it.
Have a good weekend!
Pad Thai with Shrimp
Prep: 35 Minutes
Cook: 5 Minutes
4 servings
4 cups water
1 package (6 to 8 oz) linguine-style stir-fry rice noodles (rice stick noodles)**
1/3 cup fresh lime juice
1/3 cup water
3 tablespoons packed brown sugar
3 tablespoons fish sauce or soy sauce
3 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon rice vinegar or white vinegar
3/4 teaspoon ground red pepper (cayenne)
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 medium shallot, finely chopped, or 1/4 cup finely chopped onion
2 eggs, beaten
12 oz frozen cooked peeled deveined medium shrimp, thawed OR 2 cups chopped cooked chicken
1/4 cup finely chopped dry-roasted peanuts
3 cups fresh bean sprouts
4 medium green onions, thinly sliced (1/4 cup)
1/4 cup firmly packed cilantro leaves
1. In 3-quart saucepan, heat 4 cups water to boiling. Remove from heat; add noodles (push noodles into water with back of spoon to cover completely with water if necessary). Soak noodles 3 to 5 minutes or until noodles are soft but firm. Drain noodles; rinse with cold water.
2. Meanwhile, in small bowl, stir lime juice, 1/3 cup water, the brown sugar, fish sauce, soy sauce, vinegar, red pepper and 1 tablespoon of the oil until well mixed; set aside.
3. In nonstick wok or 12-inch nonstick skillet, heat remaining 2 tablespoons vegetable oil over medium heat. Cook garlic and shallot in oil about 30 seconds, stirring constantly, until starting to brown. Add eggs. Cook about 2 minutes, stirring gently and constantly, until scrambled but still moist.
4. Stir in noodles and lime juice mixture. Increase heat to high. Cook about 1 minute, tossing constantly with 2 wooden spoons, until sauce begins to thicken. Add remaining ingredients except cilantro. Cook 2 to 3 minutes, tossing with 2 wooden spoons, until noodles are tender. Place on serving platter. Sprinkle with cilantro. Garnish with additional chopped dry-roasted peanuts and green onions if desired.
** Thin or thick rice stick noodles can be substituted for the linguine-style stir-fry rice noodles.
Tags:
Pad Thai, recipe, Betty Crocker Cookbook
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