my comfort food : pad thai

It’s one of these days, ok. weeks, that I just crave comfort. I want to feel wrapped up in comfort inside and out. Food does that. It knows how to make you feel good, feel relaxed with a bowl of goodness right in front of you. I especially love when that bowl of goodness is a heaping serving of Pad Thai. I make mine with loads of veggies, organic firm tofu, topped with rich flavour and a little sprinkle of toasted ground peanuts.

Of course, traditional Pad Thai has a beaten egg in it ~ I skip the egg and veganize the sauce also by using sesame oil instead of fish oil, that is typically used. The best part is that it’s easy and quick to prepare in one giant wok pan – one pan to clean! Yes, just one! That’s not bad at all for a beautiful meal in literally minutes.

That’s what I need for dinner today, an easy and very quick dinner to prepare that doesn’t sacrifice taste and nutrition, and is still vegan and gluten-free with high protein. Let’s get to the recipe, shall we?

Tofu Pad Thai

{ vegan & gluten-free }

• 1 package of thai dried rice noodles
• 1 package of organic firm tofu, cut into cubes
• sesame seed oil
• 1 carrot, sliced on a mandoline
• 1/2 cup broccoli
• organic bean sprouts (some for the wok – and leave some as garnish if you want a little crunch)
• 1 med. onion, diced
• 2-4 cloves of garlic
• ginger (optional)
• a bit of cayenne pepper (optional)
• a dash of sea salt
• 4 tbsp tamarind paste
• 4 tbsp soy sauce
• green onions or cilantro for garnish
• toasted ground peanuts for garnish (optional)
• water

Directions: On a large wok pan, saute the onions and garlic until golden, add the tofu and fry until golden brown. Remove everything and set aside. Add in dried rice noodles with a little water and stir often so they don’t stick to the pan. Keep them on the heat for about 5 or until softened. Add all the vegetables: carrots, broccoli and sauces and spices. Add in also the tofu back to the wok. Stir and cover to cook for just about 2 minutes. Your vegetables should be softened just a little but not overcooked. Add a little extra water or sesame seed oil if the ingredients stick to the wok. Garnish with fresh green onions or cilantro. (Toasted ground peanuts go well but are entirely optional.) Enjoy!

My recipe is a little loosely-put. I have to be honest with you, I don’t really cook with a recipe in front of me. I gather up things that will go and just go for it. The secret ingredients here are really the Wok. the rice noodles. the sesame oil as that really gives you a great asian flavour, unless you have the fish oil and you don’t care for vegan, than that’s fine too. Tofu is a great protein in this dish. I do not care for pure vegetarian sans protein meals. (If you do eat meat, a little chicken would go well with this too. Also fry it at the beginning to brown slightly and remove from the wok before adding the noodles in). Bean sprouts are also a must, but some other veggies could be red peppers, snow peas, don’t over do it though so it doesn’t become just another stir fry. But give it a try and see what else you like in your Pad Thai.

I can’t wait to dig into this deliciousness! This is by far the one meal I crave the most ;)

What comfort food are you craving right now?

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ps. it’s a busy week for me as I work at a wholesale gift show, doing display design – a very active job but I love the change of scenery. So, sorry my blog friends that I can’t go visiting you at this time. xo

Shared at Diet, Dessert, N Dogs.