Pad Thai was the first Thai dish I ever tried while dining out. For years after that I gobbled the stuff, eventually expanding my horizons to curries, stir-fries and all sorts of other Thai delights. It was a new vegetarian’s dream. I was in bliss, until one dark day when a helpful server noted that I had requested tofu Pad Thai (as opposed to the other option, which was probably shrimp), “…because I’m a vegetarian.” That was when I learned that Pad Thai is typically not vegetarian. Nor, sadly, were many of the curries and stir-fries I’d also been enjoying. The culprit: fish sauce.
While I see lots of vegetarian Pad Thai recipes online and in cookbooks, I don’t see many that replicate classic Pad Thai. Peanut sauce over noodles is a popular vegetarian dish you’ll often see, and it’s usually delicious. However, my goal for this post was to replicate the dish I was painfully denied while dining out, all those years ago. That dish would be made with stir fried rice noodles in a tangy tamarind sauce, which is what you’d probably get in Thailand if you ordered this from a street vendor. (Yes, they sell this stuff to you right on the street in Thailand. Can you imagine?!)
Recipe
Ingredients
For the Pad Thai Sauce:
- 3 tablespoons tamarind paste
- 3 tablespoons brown sugar
- ½ tablespoon Asian chili paste or to taste
- 1 ½ tablespoons soy sauce
- ¼ cup + 2 tablespoons vegetable broth
For the Pad Thai:
- 1 15-ounce package extra firm tofu, pressed for at least 15 minutes and cut into ½ inch strips (optional)
- ¼ cup cooking oil plus a little extra (see note)
- 8 oz. Pad Thai flat rice noodles
- 4 heads baby bok choy
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 2 eggs optional
- 4 scallions sliced into 2-inch pieces
- ¼ cup chopped peanuts
- 1 cup bean sprouts
Instructions
-
Add the sauce ingredients to a small bowl and whisk together to combine. Set aside.
-
If using tofu, heat a small amount of oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Place the tofu strips into the skillet and cook 3-5 minutes on each side, until golden brown. Transfer to a paper-towel-lined plate and set aside.
-
Fill a large saucepan or stock pot with water. Bring to a boil and remove from heat. Add the noodles and allow them to soak until just a little firm — think one step ahead of al dente. This normally takes about 8-10 minutes, but since different brands may vary, refer to your noodle package instructions. Once the noodles are done soaking, drain them in a colander and rinse with cold water.
-
Separate the baby bok choy into individual leaves and slice each one lengthwise into 2 or 3 strips.
-
Place oil in a wok over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and baby bok choy. Stir fry until the bok choy just starts to wilt and turns deep green, about a minute.
-
Add the noodles and sauce to the wok. Stir fry until the sauce thickens and the noodles are tender, about 3 minutes.
-
If you’re using eggs, push the noodles to the side of the wok to create a little space. If the wok looks a bit dry at this point you can add another splash of oil. Add the eggs into the space you’ve created and break them up with a spatula; scramble for about a minute. Do your best to keep the eggs separated from the noodles until they’re cooked.
-
Add the scallions and tofu to the wok. Stir fry everything for another 30 seconds or so, just to get everything hot and the flavors blended. Remove from heat.
-
Divide the noodles onto plates. Top with peanuts and bean sprouts.
