Shrimp Pad Thai with Peanut Sauce
Serves 4
If you are not into shrimp this is great with chicken or tofu.
Here is what you need:
For the sauce: I like a lot of sauce so I double the ingredients
½ cup creamy peanut butter
2 TBS fish sauce (If you don’t have/like fish sauce sub soy sauce)
1 fresh red or green chili, minced- remove the seeds and stems if you want to make it less spick, also you could use red pepper flakes
1 TBS brown sugar
½ cup hot water
2 -3 TBS low sodium soy sauce
1 tsp minced garlic
2 tsp sriracha sauce
1 tsp rice vinegar (or white vinegar)
juice of 1 half lime
For the Pad Thai
1 package Thai rice noodles (8 oz)
1-2TBS chicken or vegetable stock
4 cloves garlic, minced or grated
2 tsp fresh grated ginger
1 shallot, finely chopped
1 egg
1-2 cups bean sprouts
2 cups medium raw shrimp, defrosted, peeled anddeveined
3 to 4 scallions, sliced on the bias about 1/2 inch in length
olive oil
salt and pepper
Toppings: chopped fresh cilantro, chopped roasted peanuts , lime wedges and bean sprouts if you like
Here is what you need to do:
Cook the noodles according to package directions, except don’t cook them all the way, you still want them a little crunchy. Drain and run them under cold water to stop the cooking. Set aside.
Put the peanut butter in a microwave safe bowl and microwave if for about 30 to 45 seconds.Then add in the rest of the sauce ingredients, except the water. Combine well and add about half the water. Taste the sauce and adjust to your liking. Add more water if the sauce is too thick a little at a time.
Heat a pan or wok to medium high heat. Add in 2 TBS of oil. When the oil is hot add in your shallots, garlic and ginger.Constantly stir for a minute, careful not to let anything burn, then add in the shrimp and a little chicken stock. Cook until shrimp are just slightly cooked, it won’t take long, about 1 minute. If using larger shrimp it will take a bit more time. You don’t want to overcook it.Push everything aside and crack the egg into the center of the pan and scramble it for about 1 minute.
Turn down the heat and add the drained noodles and your sauce to the pan. Gently incorporate everything in the pan. You want the noodles to finish cooking and the sauce to thicken a bit. Add in the scallions during the last minute or so of cooking.You can also add the bean sprouts here or serve them raw as a topping, it’s a personal preference.
Plate up the Pad Thai and top with cilantro, chopped roasted peanuts , lime wedges and bean sprouts if you like . Let’s Eat!