Vegetarian Pad Thai

"From Gourmet Magazine, December 2007. Vegetarian if you use soy instead of fish sauce. It's a little spicy if you use all the Sriracha -- cut back if you don't like spice, or add more if you do. As good as anything I've had in a restaurant. Oh and I added some carrots for healthiness. And made a bunch of other tweaks. Also, even though it involves some deep frying, it is not too difficult to make."
 
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Ready In:
1hr
Ingredients:
15
Serves:
4
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ingredients

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directions

  • Cook noodles according to package directions; generally this involves soaking in very hot water for several minutes and rinsing under cool water.
  • Meanwhile, make sauce by soaking tamarind pulp in boiling water in a small bowl, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes. Force mixture through a sieve into a bowl, discarding seeds and fibers. Alternatively, dissolve tamarind concentrate in hot water. Add soy or fish sauce, brown sugar and Sriracha, stirring until sugar is dissolved.
  • Heat 1 1/2 cups oil in wok over medium heat until hot, then fry half of shallots over medium-low heat, stirring frequently, until golden-brown, 8-12 minutes. Carefully strain mixture through a fine-mesh sieve into a heatproof bowl; reserve oil. Spread fried shallots on paper towels to drain. Wipe wok clean.
  • Pat tofu dry. Reheat shallot oil in wok over high heat until hot. Fry tofu in 1 layer, turning occasionally, until golden, 5-8 minutes. Transfer tofu to paper towels to drain using slotted spoon. Pour off frying oil and reserve.
  • Lightly beat eggs and salt. Heat 2 T shallot oil in wok over high heat until it shimmers. Add eggs and swirl to coat sides of wok. Cook, stirring gently with a spatula, until cooked through. Break into chunks with spatula and transfer to a plate.
  • Heat wok over high heat until a drop of water evaporates instantly. Pour in 6 T shallot oil and swirl to coat side of wok. Stir-fry white and pale green scallions, garlic, carrots and remaining shallots until softened, about 1 minute.
  • Add noodles and stir-fry over medium heat (use 2 spatulas if necessary) for 3 minutes. Add tofu, 1 cup of bean sprouts, and 1 1/2 cups sauce and simmer, turning noodles over to absorb sauce, until noodles are tender, about 2 minutes.
  • Stir in additional sauce if desired, then stir in eggs and transfer to a serving dish.
  • Sprinkle pad thai with peanuts, fried shallots, and remaining scallions. Serve with lime wedges, remaining bean sprouts, cilantro sprigs, and Sriracha.

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RECIPE SUBMITTED BY

I like to cook things that are vegetarian (but sometimes fish), nutritious (minimize refined grains, sugars, and saturated fat), and most importantly delicious. This is important because usually when people put value on nutrition the resulting dishes taste like dirt. I don't understand why it has to be so black and white: either a dish is nutritious, or it is really good, never both. Because that's SIMPLY NOT TRUE. I have made incredibly delicious things that are, for the most part, good for you. (It's hard to always avoid adding sugar or butter, but one must compromise sometimes.) My dream is to have a gourmet vegetarian cookbook. I'll write it myself someday if I have to.
 
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