Another Way to Make Vegetable Tofu Pad Thai

I love Thai food.

But sometimes I find it really hard to justify paying $10 for a meal full of rice noodles that I can technically make at home for the same price and even more of!  This whole dish probably costs me….between $15-20 (depending on if I already have some of the ingredients like tamarind concentrate, or soy sauce) and it will feed Tim and I all week .  The recipe I am using today I found and altered from this youtube video.  I’ve made another Pad Thai recipe that has the traditional bean sprouts and some healthy carrots added in, but was made with Worcestershire sauce (so that’s one more thing to buy), does not have broccoli as the main vegetable (Broccoli is Tims fav) and has tofu that is fried instead of baked (so a little less healthy lol).  Neither recipes are right or wrong, it is just your personal preference which one you choose to follow:)  Do note! This is a high salt recipe because of the soy sauce, so if you are watching your blood pressure, you might want to consider buying low sodium soy sauce for your dish.  Also, if you are gluten free, make sure the soy sauce does not contain gluten in it.  I always get organic soy sauce anyways, because I don’t want to be eating GMO soy.

This recipe is a really simple recipe, you don’t even have to cook the noodles, which is like the coolest thing!! They just soften up in warm water after a few minutes, how awesome!  Whenever I make this, I feel like a real chief in the kitchen, making what smells and tastes like authentic thai food right in the comfort of my own home.

A hot one.

On another note, this is going to be a very hot week in NY.  Yesterday got up to 90F, and I was feeling it.  With my heat intolerance, I was already feeling dizzy and exhausted in the 80F weather on Saturday as we went to the Botanical Gardens.  Yesterday was hotter, and I felt like I was burning up in the sun, but interestingly enough I think I tolerated it better than Saturday? I’m guessing it is because the humidity dropped a bit yesterday.  It seems that when the humidity is high, and the temps are high, its a recipe for disaster in my world.  Surprisingly, Ashka, my husky dog, wanted to lay in the sun midday, and had the choice to come inside but chose instead to stay out in the heat!  But they say fur coats protect them from the harsh sun rays and traps cool air closer to their skin, so it must be true if she could tolerate 90F in the midday sun.  Today is going to be 95F, and as much as Ashka might think she wants to go out for a long walk, we might not be able to do that on days as hot as today.  So I’ll probably give her a bone tonight to occupy her time indoors instead, and we will attempt to go out this week while it is in the 80s again.  I use to enjoy 100F days, but now it is too much for me to handle.  I’ve delayed installing our AC’s so I could theoretically acclimate to the warmer temperature, so far I think the exposure is helping.  Hoping this summer remains on the cooler side though, because I still have so many places I want to hike and see covered in greenery before it cools down to winter again!!

Anyways, Happy Belated Fathers Day to all the good dads out there!

Another Way to Make Vegetable Tofu Pad Thai

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Serves: 6 Prep Time: 20 Minutes Cooking Time: 30 Minutes 30 Minutes

Nutrition facts: 200 calories 20 grams fat

Rating: 5.0/5

( 1 voted )

Ingredients

• 1 8oz Package - Rice Noodles
• 1 16oz Package - Extra Firm Tofu (organic!)
• 1 Head - Broccoli
• 1 Shallot
• 4 Green Onions
• 3 Tbsp - Coconut Oil
• 8 Tbsp - Soy Sauce (organic and gluten free! Use to your liking)
• 2 Tbsp - Coconut Sugar (or sugar of your choice)
• 1 Tbsp - Tamarind Concentrate
• 1-2 Lemons - Juiced
• 1/2 Cup - Cold Water (optional only if you think your dish is too dry)
• 1 Tbsp - Thai Chili (if you like heat)
• 1/2 Cup - Crushed Peanuts to garnish

Instructions

1. Preheat your oven 350F (175C).
2. Fill a large bowl with warm water and place your dried rice noodles inside, making sure their is enough water to cover the noodles completely.  Let this sit for 20 minutes, or as long as the package tells you to.  Remove from the water when they soften up enough to eat 🙂
3. Rinse and drain your tofu with a paper towel or clean towel as best as you can without crumbling it.  You can let it sit covered in a towel for a few minutes with a heavy book on top of it to help drain too.
4. Chop your tofu into little bite sized blocks, and put into a bowl or zip-lock baggy with 3 Tbsp Soy Sauce. Let it marinade for 5 minutes, then place on an oiled down baking tray (sauce and all) and put into oven for 30 minutes, flipping halfway.
5. Chop your Broccoli into bite sized pieces.  Slice your shallot and green onions even smaller.
6. Using a pan over medium heat, place your coconut oil and add in your shallots.  Two minutes later, add in your green onions and broccoli.  Let it cook until it gets almost soft enough for your liking.
7. Next add your drained noodles to the mix, throw in the rest of your soy sauce, sugar, tamarind concentrate and lemon juice.  Stir and let this cook for 4-5 minutes or so, making sure your noodles get coated in soy sauce all around!  Tip: If the noodles are sticking to the pan, you can add in the optional water (I don't believe I did for my dish but if you feel yours is dry and don't want to overload it with soy sauce, you can do that).
8. When your tofu is finished cooking, remove from the oven (and turn off your oven!) and scrape them into your pan.  They should be slightly crispy and brownish on the edges.  Just be careful, they are hot ;D
9. Add in your optional chili paste and/or crushed peanuts.
10. Serve, and try eating with chop sticks:)

Notes

When you want to heat them up for leftovers, throw them into a pan with some oil, and heat it back up on the stove to maintain the rich flavor!