Pad Thai (From The Complete Cooking for Two Cookbook by America’s Test Kitchen)

As you know me by now, I love a good Asian inspired dish. I enjoyed this recipe for pad thai, but I did think something was missing. I did use fish sauce substitute rather than fish sauce, so I was wondering if that made a difference in the taste.

This dish came together very quickly. I started by preparing the rice noodles by soaking them in hot tap water for about 20 minutes. During that time, I prepped the sauce and the garnishes. The sauce consists of lime juice, brown sugar, fish sauce, oil, rice vinegar, cayenne pepper. I prepared scallions, cilantro, and chopped peanuts as well. I started cooking the dish by sauteing the shrimp in some oil in a non-stick pan. I removed the shrimp from the pan once they were cooked. I added more oil to the pan, shallot, ginger, and salt to the skillet. I added in the eggs and let them cook for about 30 seconds. I followed that with the rice noodles and sauce. Then, I added the shrimp, scallions, cilantro, and chopped peanuts.

I loved how quickly this dish came together, but I thought it was missing a little something. Maybe a dash of soy sauce? I added some sriracha and additional cilantro. I liked the additional bits of flavor! I would make this again, but I would also be interested in trying peanut butter in the sauce. I do love a good peanut sauce!

Taste: 9/10-This had a nice base, but I think it was missing something.

Level of difficulty: 1/5--This comes together quickly.

Notes for next time: I liked the addition of sriracha and extra cilantro.