In Pursuit of Phat Thai

    Pad Thai, Phad Thai, Phat Thai… however you spell it.. I LOVE it! However you cook it…. well, that depends! For several years, I have been in love with the Pad Thai served at Red Snapper on Ward Parkway. The Thai fried rice noodles are just the right combination of spices for my pallet and it is one of the few foods I crave.

    I have tried Pad Thai at many restaurants across the metro and LuLu’S Noodle Shop on Southwest Blvd. Serves my second favorite variation of the dish. Meanwhile, many Kansas City restaurants serve a bland, boring, uninteresting, and frankly… ewwww yuck… variety of the dish. I have to say, if you haven’t had EXCELLENT Pad Thai, you can’t accurately judge the dish and the difference is DRASTIC. 

    With my love for the dish and my love for cooking, I have spent many years pursuing a recipe that met my standards of excellence. I have tried countless cookbook and online variations. I’ve experimented with brands of Fish Sauce (don’t knock it till you try it) and Tamarind. I’ve played with Thai Curries. I even took a class at St. Joseph Medical Center to learn the best recipe and was delighted with ALL the Thai recipes I learned that evening… except Pad Thai. 

    And so, my quest continued… until this week when I took Zoe LaGrece’s Flavors of Thailand cooking class at the Raytown Library (for free no less), and went in hopes that maybe, just maybe, she knew the secret! 

    I love to cook and I love to read about cooking and learn more on the subject. I have now taken three classes with Zoe (Thai, Mediterranean, and Ginger Fried Rice) and each time I am amazed at her knowledge of nutrition (in depth for each ingredient), preparation techniques, where to buy the best quality and best priced ingredients (often exotic with her cuisine) and her great sense of humor. Zoe owned Zoe’s Café in Kansas City for over 10 years and her love of food and everything culinary is downright contagious. 

    Having loved the two classes I took with her in the past, I was optimistic this time. Zoe did not disappoint! The Phat Thai (her chosen recipe spelling) was FANTASTIC! Note, it did not taste quite like Red Snapper’s but, I loved it nearly as much. 

    Zoe was gracious enough to give me permission to share her recipe with you here. Below you will also find her upcoming cooking class schedule (library classes are FREE), so try the recipe and give her classes a chance… you’ll be glad you did!

Phat Thai (Thai Fried Noodles)  

This classic noodle dish is found on almost every street corner in Bangkok. It is one of the best tasting dishes in the world. Filled with the hot, sour, salty, and sweet tastes that are the building point for so many Thai recipes, it is surprisingly easy to prepare. This dish is served right out of the wok or the noodles start losing their texture and become mushy so make other dishes first, have all ingredients ready and throw this one together right before your guest’s eyes!

Ingredients:

• ¼ lb. Rice noodles

• 1 tbs. Thai fish sauce (nam pla)

• 1 tbs. Soy sauce

• 1 tbs. Tamarind juice

• 1 tbs. Sucanat

• ¼ c. peanut oil, divided

• 2/3 c. matchsticked firm tofu (optional – can use chicken)

• 4 minced garlic cloves

• 2 minced shallots (or red onion minced)

• 12 medium chopped cooked shrimp (optional)

• 2 tbs. Dried shrimp (optional)

• 2 tbs. Chopped pickled radish

• 4 Thai bird chiles or Serrano chiles (or to taste)

• 1 well beaten egg

• 1 c. mung bean sprouts

• ½ c. shredded or julienne carrots

• ¼- ½ c. scallions – thinly sliced

• Lime wedges

Instructions:

For firm noodles, soak the noodles in room temperature water for 40 minutes to soften. Drain well and set aside. For soft noodles, cook in boiling water according to the package directions, drain well, and set aside. Mix together the fish sauce, soy sauce, tamarind juice, and sugar (sucanat) until the sugar is dissolved. Taste and adjust seasonings if needed. Set the sauce aside. Heat the wok and 2 tbs. Peanut oil until very hot. Add the tofu (or chicken) and stir fry until golden brown. Add the garlic and shallots and sauté for 30 seconds. Add the cooked shrimp, dried shrimp, pickled radish, and chile peppers and heat through. Add the noodles and toss well to coat with the sauce. Move the mixture to the sides of the wok and clear a space in the center. Add the remaining oil and heat until very hot. Add the egg and scramble until softly set. Break the cooked egg into small slivers and then toss with the noodle mixture in the center of the wok. Add the fish sauce mixture and toss well to coat. Add the bean sprouts, carrots, and scallions and cook for 30 seconds. Spoon onto a serving dish or individual plates and serve with the lime wedges. Makes 4 servings.

Phat Thai Recipe ©Zoe LaGrece, 2009. Used with permission.

Classes taught by Zoe LaGrece Summer 2009

Free Classes through the Mid-Continent Public Libraries (pre-registration required): www.mcpl.lib.mo.us  

• Bulgarian Cooking (Monday, July 20th, 7pm at Smithville Library)

• Salmon, Salmon, Salmon (Thursday, July 16, 6:30pm at Weston Library)

• Ancient Food for Modern Times (Tuesday, May 12th, 7pm at North Oak Library)

• Others not scheduled at this time: Fabulous French, Mediterranean Cooking, Ginger Fried Rice, and Flavors of Thailand

Or, learn the art of Sushi through Communiversity http://www.umkc.edu/commu/Catalog%20index.asp  ($24/ea on Wednesday, July 15th, 6pm at Tony Aguirre Community Center).