INGREDIENTS

Pad Thai Sauce

Palm sugar, chopped (3 tablespoons tightly packed)

3 Tbsp water

3-4 tablespoons Thai tamarind concentrate 

2 Tbsp good fish sauce

Pad Thai

4oz dry rice noodles, medium size, soaked in room temp water for 1 hour

2 Tbsp dried shrimp, medium size, roughly chopped

3 cloves garlic, chopped

¼ cup roughly chopped shallots

3 oz pressed tofu, cut into small pieces

3 Tbsp finely chopped SWEET preserved daikon radish

Dried chili flakes, to taste (optional)

3 Tbsp vegetable oil

10 medium-sized shrimp

2 eggs

2 ½ cups bean sprouts, loosely packed

7-10 stalks garlic chives, cut into 2" pieces

¼ cup roasted peanuts, roughly chopped

Garnishes and condiments for serving: 

Chili flakes

Roasted peanuts

Bean sprouts

Garlic chives

DIRECTIONS

Prepare the Pad Thai Sauce:

Add palm sugar to a small pot and melt over medium heat. Once the sugar has melted, keep stirring until it darkens.

Immediately add water, fish sauce, and tamarind paste. The sugar will harden immediately; this is okay.

Bring sauce to a simmer, then turn off the heat. The hardened sugar will not have dissolved at this point, but let it sit while you prep the other ingredients; it should be dissolved by the time you need it.

Prepare the Aromatics:

In a bowl, combine dried shrimp, garlic, shallots, tofu, preserved radish, and chili flakes.

Cook the Shrimp:

Heat a wok or a large nonstick skillet over high heat and drizzle enough oil along the perimeter to coat the bottom. Sear shrimp on one side for a couple of minutes, then flip and cook for an additional minute. Set aside. Wipe wok clean.

Cook the Aromatics:

Over medium heat, add a little more oil to the wok if needed. Then add dried shrimp, garlic, shallots, tofu, preserved radish, and chili flakes. Sauté for a few minutes until garlic starts to turn golden, and shallots are wilted. If the wok looks dry, add a little more oil.

The Noodles:

Cut soaked noodles in half and drain.

Turn heat up to high, then add noodles and sauce. Keep tossing until all the sauce is absorbed. Once absorbed, turn heat off and taste the noodles for doneness. If they're still undercooked, add a little more water and continue cooking, being careful not to add too much water.

The Eggs:

Once noodles are done, push them to one side of the pan. Add a little extra oil to the bottom of the wok, then add the eggs. Break the yolks, then put noodles on top of the eggs and cook for about 30 seconds.

Flip and toss to mix eggs into noodles.

To finish assembling the Pad Thai:

Toss the shrimp back in, plus any collected juices. Add the bean sprouts, garlic chives, and half of the peanuts. Turn off the heat and toss until well mixed.

To Serve:

Serve immediately with a lime wedge and extra peanuts on top. For a classic presentation, you can add a little extra side of bean sprouts and garnish with garlic chives. Enjoy!

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Note: For helpful tips and the original recipe, please visit the Hot Thai Kitchen website here: https://hot-thai-kitchen.com/best-pad-thai/