The monday after the superbowl, and I'm blanking about what to serve la famiglia for dinner as I dawdle down the supermarket aisles. Still feeling the effects of the deep-fried chicken wings and a deluxe burger, I curse my weak-willed deviation from my clean eating plan, and contemplate a liquid fast for the next two days. But who cares about me and my digestive system when there's a nest full of little birdies relying on me fill their beaks with tasty morsels. Carrot Juice with a side of wheatgrass would just not be an acceptable dinner to my little chickadees. Which brings me back to the supermarket and what to make for supper. Boring, boring, boring...it's all so boring- the casseroles and the quiches and the stews of my usual weeknight repertoire. Until I get to the Asian food section, and I have a mental flash of a gorgeous, glistening mound of pad thai noodles studded with chopped peanuts and morsels of tofu, and crunchy green snow peas. I didn't have a recipe, but had a vague notion of what makes up a Pad Thai. I bought the rice noodles, Thai chili sauce, snow peas and hoped I had everything else I would need at home (peanuts, limes...). It turned out pretty good, my little birdies slurping up their noodles without much squawking is proof enough for me. Authentic traditional Pad Thai requires tamarind, fish sauce, cilantro, and Thai chili paste- which I didn't use, so instead it's Pad Thai my way.
Pad Thai-My Way
Drain 1/2 block of extra-firm tofu sliced into 1" slabs, when sufficiently drained (20-30 mins) slather with chili sauce with pastry brush. Slice into 1" nuggets, place on baking sheet and broil for 10-15 minutes until nice 'n roasty. In the meanwhile: bring a pot of water to a boil, add half a box of rice noodles and cook until water returns to a boil. Quickly remove noodles and drain them. Rinse in cold water to stop from cooking. The noodles at this point are very al dente- worry not, after sauteeing in the sauce they will be were you want them. Heat 1/4 c. veg oil in a wok or saute pan. Add 3 cloves of minced garlic, 3 tbsp. Thai chili sauce, 1 tsp. sugar, 2 tbsp. worcestershire sauce. Cook for about a minute or two, until it thickens a bit. Then add 2 beaten eggs, constantly stirring- until eggs are soft set. Add the noodles to the pan, toss and saute for about 5 minutes. Add a bunch of thinly sliced scallions, julienned snow peas, and a handful of bean sprouts and the juice of half a lime. Toss to mix. Garnish with chopped dry roasted peanuts
Pad Thai-My Way
Drain 1/2 block of extra-firm tofu sliced into 1" slabs, when sufficiently drained (20-30 mins) slather with chili sauce with pastry brush. Slice into 1" nuggets, place on baking sheet and broil for 10-15 minutes until nice 'n roasty. In the meanwhile: bring a pot of water to a boil, add half a box of rice noodles and cook until water returns to a boil. Quickly remove noodles and drain them. Rinse in cold water to stop from cooking. The noodles at this point are very al dente- worry not, after sauteeing in the sauce they will be were you want them. Heat 1/4 c. veg oil in a wok or saute pan. Add 3 cloves of minced garlic, 3 tbsp. Thai chili sauce, 1 tsp. sugar, 2 tbsp. worcestershire sauce. Cook for about a minute or two, until it thickens a bit. Then add 2 beaten eggs, constantly stirring- until eggs are soft set. Add the noodles to the pan, toss and saute for about 5 minutes. Add a bunch of thinly sliced scallions, julienned snow peas, and a handful of bean sprouts and the juice of half a lime. Toss to mix. Garnish with chopped dry roasted peanuts
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