Thai Me Up!

I have a 2nd cousin who lives in Seattle. A couple times a year, she comes to visit and brings with her smiles, laughs, wisdom and insight into new things. This time around, she brought with her one of my favorite things to eat... Pad Thai.

Rumor has it that her Pad Thai recipe is how you actually find it from cart cooks in the streets of Bangkok. After eating this Pad Thai, I will never order out again. Truth be told, this was way better then some of the greasy Americanized versions I've gotten from Thai places around here. In fact, I want this Pad Thai right now. I didn't even know I was hungry.

This recipe make 2 - 3 servings and is taken from thaitable.com

Things you'll need
1 egg
4 teaspoons fish sauce

3 cloves minced garlic

1/2 teaspoon ground dried chili pepper

ground pepper (The cuz says use white pepper if you have it, if not leave it out)

1/2 lime
1 minced shallot
2 tablespoon sugar
2 tablespoon tamarind (this adds some flavor and acidity, but you can substitute white vinegar)
1/2 package Thai rice noodles

1/3 cup extra firm tofu

2 tablespoon vegetable oil

1/2-1/4 lb shrimp Optional ( you could always do chicken too, Like my cousin did)

1/2 banana flower Optional (my Cuz doesn't use this, cause it's hard to find)
1-1/3 cup bean sprouts Optional ( I FRIGGIN LOVE BEAN SPROUTS!!)
1-1/2 cup Chinese chives Optional  (also known as garlic chives)
2 tablespoons peanuts Optional
1 tablespoon preserved turnip Optional

By the time I'd arrived for the dinner gathering, the noodles were already being soaked. Jeannine (that's my cousin) was putting on her very own Food Network show. She'd tell me stories about how shes perfecting her recipes while she crushed garlic and chopped chives. It was fun.

I guess getting the noodles to be just right can be tricky. Jeannine soaked them in HOT water for around 10 minutes. When in doubt, under soak. You can always add more water in the pan later, but you can't take the water out. 

Jeannine did not use tofu or shrimp. She used chicken instead. She had that chopped and cooked before I got there also. If you're using tofu though, Julienne the tofu and cut into 1 inch long matchsticks.  When cut, the super firm tofu/pressed tofu should have a mozzarella cheese consistency. You can fry the tofu separately until golden brown and hard, or you can fry with other ingredients later. Cut the Chinese (garlic) 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 shallot and garlic together. 

For cooking, it's best to use a wok. But, if you do not have a wok, any big pot will do. Heat it up on high heat and pour oil  in the wok. Fry the peanuts until toasted and remove them from the wok (you can skip this step to save time). The peanuts can be toasted in the pan without oil as well. Add shallot, salted turnip, garlic and tofu and stir them until they start to brown. The noodles should be flexible now, but not mushy. Drain the noodles and add them to the wok. Stir quickly to keep things from sticking.

Add tamarind, sugar, fish sauce, chili pepper and preserved turnip. Stir. The heat should remain high. If your wok is not hot enough, you will see a lot of juice 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 be 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 (or whatever you want instead) 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 peanuts. Serve hot with the banana flower slice, a wedge of lime on the side, raw Chinese chives and raw bean sprouts on top.

In Thailand, condiments such as sugar, chili pepper, vinegar and fish sauce are available at your table for your personal taste. Some people add more chili pepper or sugar at the table. If you decided to include banana flower, cut lengthwise into sections (like orange sections). Rub any open cut with lime or lemon juice to prevent it from turning dark.

Jeannine served us some real Sangria as well. I was the lucky recipient of the leftover ingredients too. Jeanine bought them at an Asian market in Seattle. I have yet to buy these in Illinois so I can't tell you where to get them for sure. But I know there are Asian markets and oriental food stores all over the place. For a list of them, visit here.

This was an A++ dinner! I was only able to see Jeannine for a few hours while she was in town. This was a fantastic use of our time together. Last year when she visited, we watched the movie Troll, because there is a character named Harry Potter in that film. You don't even wanna hear about that mess. Anyway, it's not often enough that I visit with my mom's side of the family and I'd really like to do it more often. It was a comforting feeling to share a dinner table with those family members I used to spend so much time with. Thank You, Jeannine and Aunt Jean, for the beautiful dinner party and tasty meal.