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Veggie Pad Thai – The Real Deal

by ninasveganrecipes

I AM SOOOO PROUD OF MYSELF FOR THIS ONE!!

You have no idea, I have been trying to make Pad Thai for YEARS with no success! I mean what I made tasted good and all, but it was not Pad Thai!  I remember my husband and I buying ‘pad thai sauce’ from the grocery store hoping that if we poured that all over our boiled noodles that it would all just come together.  Wrong. We weren’t gonna fool anyone that it was Pad Thai.

This same problem applied to Indian food for me too. I LOVE Indian food, it is my FAVORITE type of food in the world.  However, I just can never make any of the dishes like the way I get it in the restaurants.  Recently I have made a delicious Vegetable Pakora and a great Garlic Lentil Dahl (I will need to make that again so I can post it up), and even Saag with Tofu (I will need to cook again and post up here too), and it was great!!! They were all SUPER close to what you can order at an Indian restaurant.  But the success did not come until I was introduced to a YouTube Indian Chef called VahChef.

 

So I decided to look up a YouTube video for Pad Thai…and I found one!!
I followed it as best as I could (with the exception of the shrimp she added, and I added some more veggies than she did), and I feel like I am eating real Pad Thai now!!  Jamie Oliver made me a believer with her video, I CAN cook my favorite noodle dish!!  And not have to pay $10 for one meal!!  I doubled her recipe and made a HUGE amount in my new wok (hehe!!), and my husband and I are eating it for leftovers all this week.  If I saw someone else eating this all week, I’m telling you I would be jealous LOL. At work, I heat my noodles up in the office microwave with a wet paper towel on top (to prevent them from drying out), then I add the sliced lime wedge, bean sprouts and alfalfa sprouts on the side, sprinkle crushed peanuts on top, grab a pair of chop sticks and devour at my desk.  Every time I begin to eat it, I feel so proud of my bowl:) It might seem silly, but it really has made my week knowing that I accomplished this lol!  I think soaking the noodles and cooking everything in the wok was the big secret.  I know hubby is happy too, he loves Pad Thai just like me;)

I did change the recipe up a bit though from hers, making it hopefully healthier and vegan. Like I mentioned above, I did not use shrimp, but I added more veggies, coconut amino’s (in place of soy sauce, even though she does not call for soy, she calls for fish sauce), and I used Worcestershire sauce (also in place of fish sauce).  I used a healthier sugar alternative (coconut sugar), and I added chilli paste instead of the powder, but I suppose it wouldn’t matter to use either one though.

 

So yes!  Below is all of the directions you need to do it for yourself now too 😀
Let me know how yours turns out!!  GOOD LUCK!

Veggie Pad Thai - The Real Deal

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Serves: 3-4 Cooking Time:
Nutrition facts: 200 calories 20 grams fat
Rating: 4.0/5
( 2 voted )

Ingredients

  • 200 grams - Brown Rice Pad Thai Noodles (They are thin but wide noodles you can find in the asian section of the grocery store)
  • Warm Water (enough to soak the noodles)
  • 2 Tbsp - Coconut Oil
  • 1/2 - Red Onion, chopped
  • 1 Package - Extra Firm Organic Tofu
  • 3 Large Carrots - Chopped or Sliced
  • OPTIONAL - 1/2 Head of Broccoli, cut into bite sized florets
  • OPTIONAL - 1 Red Bell Pepper, diced
  • 2 Tbsp - Worcestershire Sauce
  • 2 Tbsp - Organic Soy Sauce or Coconut Aminos
  • 3 Tbsp - Coconut Sugar
  • 1 Tbsp - Sweet Radish, diced (or substitute for 1 Tbsp Tamarind Sauce)
  • OPTIONAL - 1/2 tsp - Chilli Paste
  • 2 Limes - One juiced, one sliced in 4 wedges
  • 3-4 Green Onions, chopped
  • 2 Handfuls - Bean Sprouts
  • 1 Handful - Alfalfa Sprouts
  • 4 Tbsp - Crushed Peanuts

Instructions

  1. Start off by chopping up all of your produce ahead of time, like your onion, tofu (drain the tofu and slice neatly into little cubes), carrots, optional broccoli or bell pepper (or any other veggies you want to add), green onions, crush your peanuts, juice your one lime and slice your other, and crush your sweet radish (if you are using it). Set everything aside until we are ready to use it. This will help make Everything go a lot faster when cooking, trust me!!
  2. Open your package of noodles and soak them in a bowl of warm water for 10 minutes (or until they become nice and soft! Check on them after 8 minutes or so).
  3. In a large wok or pan, add your coconut oil and turn the heat up to medium. Add your red onion, and cook for 1-2 minutes.
  4. Add in your tofu cubes, your sliced carrots, and your optional broccoli florets and bell pepper slices. Cook for 5-10 minutes, stirring every so often to prevent burning. Add more oil if needed to prevent sticking. The tofu should begin to slightly brown on the edges and your onions should become fragrant and perhaps translucent now. Cook until you are happy with the softness of your veggies.
  5. Next, drain your noodles and add to the wok/pan. Add a little water to prevent burning or sticking.
  6. Begin mixing everything together, and add in your Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce or coconut aminos, sugar, radish or tamarind sauce, and chilli paste. Taste as you go, as you might want to add in more Worcestershire sauce or soy sauce like I did.
  7. Add in your juiced lime and bean sprouts (or save the bean sprouts to the very end if you simply want them garnished and not mixed into the noodles). Stir everything together a few more times, being careful not to crush up your tofu or break apart your noodles. If the noodles are at the firmness/softness that you like, then turn off the stove.
  8. Taste now to adjust any last minute spices, garnish with chopped green onions, and crushed peanuts on top. If eating immediately, plate with a side of alfalfa sprouts and a lime wedge.
  9. Make a plate, grab some chop sticks and enjoy!

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