Recipe: Easy Pad Thai

Pad Thai is a noodle dish from Thailand. Tradionally, it is made with peanuts, egg, fish sauce, tamarind paste, lime, rice noodles and Thai chillies.

This recipe is a mid-week and "great everyday meal" version using readily availble ingredients. I took out the tamarind paste and fish sauce and substituted rice noodles with spaghettini.

I also used a go-to staple in my kitchen, rotiserrie chicken. I took one breast and shreddded the meat. To add a healthier ingredient, I also used cubed, extra-firm tofu that I pan fried until golden brown and sprinkled with Paprika. Your kids will think it's chicken…mine did!
The result is great restaurant style meal to spruce up your midweek dinner menu.

TIP: Add as much or as little vegetables you want to this dish. Bean sprouts, cilantro leaves, and red cabagge are also traditional ingredients you add. But feel free to get creative and experiment with zucchini, yellow squash, bell peppers, asparagus and eggplant. You can use whatever you want!




EASY PAD THAI


1/2 lb of spaghettini pasta – cooked to al dente
1 cup of salted peanuts – roughly chopped
1/2 head of green cabbage – slice
2 cups shredded carrots
1/2 cup yellow onions – sliced
1 rotisserie chicken breast – shredded
1 package of cubed extra-firm tofu – pan fried
2 tsp of Serrano Pepper – finely diced
5 eggs – scrambled


PAD THAI SAUCE


1/3 cup of low sodium soy sauce
2 TBL brown sugar
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp red chili flakes
1 cup of low sodium chicken stock
Juice of 1 lemon

Wisk all ingredients in a large bowl and set aside.

In a large saute pan, eat 2 TBL of canola oil (or peanut oil) on medium/high heat. Add the onion and diced Serrano Peppers and saute for 2 minutes. Add rotisserie chicken, cabbage and shredded carrots. Toss around for about 1 minute and add the sauce mixture. Toss the vegetables around for about 1 minute.

In a large mixing bowl, put in the cooked spaghettini. When the vegetable mixture is done, toss it in with the noodles until all the ingredients are fully mixed together.

Top with chopped peanuts and serve.




Contact:


Johanna M. Cook
johanna@mommacuisine.com
http://mommacuisine.com/

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Momma Cuisine is about empowering moms to create "Great Everyday Meals" by using simple ingredients and basic cooking techniques.

Chicken & Shrimp Chow Mein

Everyone loves a good Chow Mein. But sometimes, when ordering from your local Chinese restaurant, their recipe comes with MSG. Cooking chow mein may look complicated but it's actually quite easy and inexpensive. And what's great about it is you can customize the protein and vegetables to your liking and whatever is in season and the freshest. You can make salmon chow mein with asparagus and leeks, or shrimp chow mein with spring vegetables...whatever you fancy, you can do it!

Chow Mein is a Chinese term for stir-fried noodles. In my recipe, I use a typical flour noodle that has a distinct yellow color. A large pack cost me only about $3.50 at the local Asian market and I know it's also available at your local grocer. If not, substitute it with Soba noodles.

Chicken & Shrimp Chow Mein

1 large pack of "Flour Rice Stick" Noodles
3 chicken leg quarters
2 4 oz bags of "salad shrimp"
1 red bell pepper
1 green bell pepper
1 14 oz can of baby corn
2 large carrots
1/2 head of Savoy Cabbage
2 large onion
2 celery stalks
1 bay leaf
1 tsp oregano
2 TBL soy sauce
3 TBL vegetable oil
1 TBL cornstarch
salt & pepper

Poach the chicken leg quarters in a pot with water(until chicken in completely submerged), salt, pepper, oregano, 1 carrot, and 1 onion until cooked. Once chicken is cooked, drain the poaching liquid of vegetables and put it back into the pot to boil. Discard of the skin of the chicken and pull the meat off the bones and set aside to cool.

Julienne(cut into matchstick pieces) all the vegetables. In a 14 inch pan, heat 3 TBL of oil and sautee all the vegetables and cornstarch except for the cabbage until tender (not wilted). While the veggies are sauteing, take the dried noodles and boil them in the poaching liquid for about 3-4 minutes. This will give the noodles great flavor. Once the noodles have softened, take them out of the poaching liquid (DO NOT DISCARD) and set aside.

When the vegetables are done, add 2 cups of the poaching liquid until the sauce thickens a bit and add soy sauce. Add the 2 bags of shrimp, pulled chicken and noodles, and toss gently. Add the cabbabe and heat through and until the cabbage has slightly wilted. Plate and serve!