David Rubel's What's For Dinner?1/5/05
As with any stir-fried dish, the most important trick to getting it right is to do all the prep work in advance. Small glass bowls come in very handy here.
2. Combine in a small bowl the sugar, rice vinegar, and fish sauce. Set aside. 3. Combine in a small bowl the garlic, shallots, and 1/4 teaspoon of the red pepper flakes. 4. Shell and devein the shrimp. Cube the tofu. Chop (or roughly crush) the peanuts. Slice the scallions, white and green parts, into half-inch lengths. Place each of these ingredients in its own small bowl. 5. In a small bowl, beat the eggs with a little salt. 6. Heat a wok (or large skillet) over a high flame until it just begins to smoke. Add a film of peanut oil, then pour in the eggs. Tilt the work so that the egg spreads out and form something akin to a crepe. In about 45 seconds, the egg should set, at which point you should flip it out onto a cutting board. Shred it, and set it aside. 7. Return the wok to the heat, and bring it back up to temperature. Add another tablespoon of peanut oil, and let it heat. Then stir fry the shrimp with the remaining 1/2 teaspoon of red pepper flakes until cooked through, about 2 minutes. Set aside. 8. Return the wok to the heat, and bring it back up to temperature. Add another 2 tablespoons of peanut oil, and let it heat. Then stir fry garlic mixture until it becomes fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the tofu, and stir fry for another 2 minutes. 9. Add the noodles, using tongs to lift and separate any clumps. Toss with the sauce to coat (which will also reduce clumping). Add the scallions, and continue to toss. After about 1 minute, add the fish sauce mixture by pouring it down the sides of the wok, and continue to toss until the noodles are covered. 10. Add back the cooked egg and shrimp, the bean sprouts, and 1/2 cup of the peanuts, and continue to toss until everything has been heated through. Serve with the remaining peanuts, lime wedges, and an Asian hot sauce. Tips * I use Thai Kitchen-brand "stir-frying" rice noodles, which are available in most supermarkets. * If you don't already buy frozen shrimp, start doing so. As it turns out, nearly all shrimp are frozen at sea soon after they're caught. The shrimp that are sold unfrozen in fish stores and supermarkets have merely been thawed in advance. Better to keep the shrimp frozen and defrost them as needed, I think. It takes only a few minutes in a cold water bath. * I usually use raw peanuts in my Asian cooking, but for this dish, roasted salted peanuts seem to work better. * It's important to pour the fish sauce mixture down the sides of the wok. If you simply pour it on top of the noodles, the pad Thai tends to congeal. * You can also garnish the pad Thai with finely chopped scallions and additional bean sprouts.
If you have tried one of these recipes and have an improvement or tip or variation to suggest, please e-mail David at dinner@wamc.org. Also feel free to send along your own family cuisine recipes. You can even request dishes that you'd like David to present in the future. David Rubel is president of Agincourt Press, a book production company in Chatham, New York. He spends his days writing American history, then heads home after work to cook for his wife and two young children. His most recent book is The Story of America (DK, 2002). |
