Recipe by Steph Schall Hub
Serves 4
Who doesn’t love noodles? Especially noodles tangled up with veggies in a sweet and sour sauce. Everyone’s favourite Thai noodles dish, Pad Thai, is usually made with egg, lots of sugar, and some kind of animal protein. This version uses tofu, 5 types of veggies and a silky sauce that all comes together very quickly. Make sure to source the tamarind paste, find in the Asian section of your supermarket or at an Asian grocer, it’s well worth the effort and gives this dish its signature sweet and sour flavour. Change up the vegetables to whatever fast cooking veg you have on hand, but be sure to serve with plenty of lime and roasted peanuts!
Ingredients
100g dry pad Thai noodles (rice noodles)
Boiling water to cover noodles
2 tablespoons light olive oil, divided
2 large shallot or 1 small onion (brown or white), finely diced
4-5 garlic cloves, minced
200g tofu, cubed
salt and pepper to taste
4-5 shiitake mushrooms, thinly sliced
2 carrots, julienned
1 cup broccoli florets
1 red capsicum, julienned
4 spring onions, roughly chopped
1 lime, juiced
Pad Thai Sauce
3 tablespoons tamari
2 tablespoons coconut sugar (or maple syrup)
2 tablespoons tamarind paste
1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
1 tablespoon sriracha (omit for kids)
2 tablespoons water
Garnish
lime wedges
chili flakes
thinly sliced spring onions
roasted peanuts
coriander
Steps
Place rice noodles in a large bowl and cover with boiling water. Soak for 5-7 minutes, until soft and pliable, but not fully cooked. They will continue to cook in the frypan. Rinse with cold water, drain and set aside.
To a jar, add the dressing ingredients and shake to combine. Set aside.
Add half of the oil to a large fry pan or wok, over medium heat. Add tofu cubes and cook for 5 minutes, until browned on all sides.
Move tofu to side of pan and remainder of oil. Add the mushrooms and sear for 2 minutes on each side, until caramelised and brown. Move to side of the pan with tofu.
Add shallots top pan. Sauté for 2 minutes, then add in garlic for 30 seconds, stirring continuously until fragrant. Add in vegetables and toss for 4-5 minutes.
Pour over half of sauce, tossing to coat everything, and simmer for 2 minutes, or until vegetables are mostly cooked.
Add in noodles and remaining sauce, then toss for a further 4 minutes, until noodles are cooked through, and vegetables are tender. Add in lime juice and adjust seasoning to taste. It may need more sugar for sweetness, tamari for saltiness, lime juice or tamarind for acidity.
Serve immediately, garnished with roasted peanuts, sliced spring onions, coriander and wedges of lime.
Steph Schall is a plant-based chef, registered nurse, qualified yoga instructor and health coach. She is the resident chef at the Abbie James HQ and you can find out more about her culinary adventures and her cooking classes at www.stephschallhub.com
Read our interview with Steph here.