Crispy Tofu Pad Thai

DIFFICULTY
Easy Easy
PREP TIME
Under 30 Min. Under 30 Min.
COOK TIME
Under 30 Min. Under 30 Min.
SERVES
2-4 2-4
Anna Jones
Crispy Tofu Pad Thai
“I am a sucker for a pad Thai. I know it’s predictable, but I can’t seem to bypass it on a menu. This version brings together all the things I love about it; crispy tofu, lots of greens, a tamarind heavy-sauce, roasted peanuts, and crispy onion, as in my mind, a pad Thai is pointless without them.” – Anna Jones
Main INGREDIENTS
  • Vegetables
Ingredients
Method

Ingredients

FOR THE TOFU AND BROCCOLI
  • 250g flat wide rice noodles
  • 250g block of firm tofu
  • 250g purple-sprouting broccoli and a neutral oil for frying
  • 2 tablespoons soy or tamari sauce
  • 3 cloves of garlic, peeled and finely chopped
  • 2cm piece of ginger, peeled and grated
  • 6 spring onions, thinly sliced
  • 2 organic large eggs (optional)
  • 100g beansprouts
FOR THE SAUCE
  • 4 tablespoons tamarind paste
  • 1 tablespoon vegetarian fish sauce
  • 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
  • 3 tablespoons maple syrup
  • 4 tablespoons light soy sauce
TO SERVE
  • 100g roasted unsalted peanuts, roughly chopped
  • 2 red chillies, finely chopped
  • 1 small handful of Thai basil leaves, shredded
  • 1 small handful of mint leaves, shredded
  • 2 unwaxed limes
  • a handful of crispy shallots

  • Method

  • 1
    Soak the rice noodles in cold water for at least 10 minutes until softened.
  • 2
    Lay the tofu between 2 sheets of kitchen paper on a plate or clean surface. Place a small plate over the top and a jar or weight on the plate to press down. Leave the tofu like this to dry out for half an hour.
  • 3
    Mix all the sauce ingredients in a small bowl with 4 tablespoons of cold water. Set aside.
  • 4
    Cut the broccoli into florets and thinly slice the stalks, keeping them separate.
  • 5
    Slice the tofu into 1cm-thick pieces about half the length of your little finger. In a large non-stick frying pan or wok, heat 3 tablespoons of oil over a medium-high heat, then fry the pieces of tofu for 6–8 minutes, turning them every minute, until golden all over.
  • 6
    Add the soy sauce and stir for another 30 seconds (be careful here, as the sauce may spit). Lift the tofu out of the pan with a slotted spoon onto a plate. Keep warm in a low heat oven.
  • 7
    When cool enough, wipe the pan out with kitchen paper and add a couple more tablespoons of oil. Heat over a medium heat. Add the garlic and ginger to the pan and cook for 2 minutes.
  • 8
    Then add the broccoli stalks, drained noodles and 6 tablespoons of water and cook for 3–4 minutes until the broccoli stems are tender and the noodles are beginning to cook and crisp up.
  • 9
    Add the broccoli florets, sauce, and most of the spring onions along with 2 more tablespoons of water. Stir and cook for another 3–4 minutes until the noodles are soft enough to eat.
  • 10
    If you are using eggs, push the noodles to the side of the wok and add a little more oil, then the eggs. Pierce the yolks and when they start to set on the bottom, scramble, then mix into the noodles.
  • 11
    Take the pan off the heat and fold through the beansprouts, then spoon the noodles between four warm Le Creuset pasta bowls.
  • 12
    Sprinkle over the peanuts and the rest of the spring onions. Scatter over the chillies, herbs, crispy onions and shallots.
  • 13
    Squeeze over the juice of a lime, and serve immediately, with the rest of the lime for squeezing over.
 
Recipe by Anna Jones
 
 
Le Creuset