SUMMARY

Pad Thai is Thailand's most popular dish, and not surprisingly so.

Pad simply means "stir fry" in Thailand but a traditional Pad Thai always contains rice noodles, beansprouts, eggs, roasted peanuts, and of course that wonderful tamarind flavour in the sauce.

I'm using juicy king prawns in my recipe but variations might serve with tofu.

I'm fortunate to have a very large frying pan which I favour for cooking this dish as it allows me to move some ingredients to one side while I add others, but a wok is fine.

Click to watch video

METHOD

1. Soak the rice noodles with hot water (not boiling) from the kettle for 10 – 15 minutes.
   
   
2. Finely slice the shallots. Cut the spring onions into 3cm lengths. Cut the carrot into fine strips.
   
   
3. Crush the roasted peanuts.
   
   
4. Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in the pan and add the sliced shallots. Fry for 30 seconds.
   
   
5. Add the king prawns to the pan. Fry on a high heat for about a minute or so on each side until cooked, and then remove the prawns and keep to one side.
   
   
6. Drain the rice noodles and then add them to the pan. Pour 125ml of hot water, from the kettle, over the top and stir well for 1 minute.
   
   
7. Add the Pad Thai sauce and the chilli sauce and stir. Let the noodles cook for 2 minutes stirring occasionally. If the mix is on the dry side add a bit more water.
   
   
8. Push the noodles to one side of the pan and create a space for the eggs. Add the eggs and break the yolks. Add the strips of carrot to the top of the noodles.
   
   
9. After 1 minute give the eggs a rough stir (without whisking them into an omelette).
   
   
10. Add the beansprouts and three quarters of the spring onions to the top of the noodles and then mix everything with the eggs. Stir occasionally for 1 minute.
    
    
11. Return the king prawns to the pan. Mix all the ingredients together for 1 and a half minutes and then serve while hot.
    
    
12. Serve with the reserved spring onions on top, some crushed peanuts on the side, and a wedge of lime for your guests to squeeze (and drizzle some zing over their dish for themselves).