Weeknight Chicken Pad Thai

In college, there was a cool Thai place named Sala Thai just down the road from our dorm (on U Street) -- let's just say, it served its date night purpose many a nights. The food wasn't that fantastic, but being college students, we didn't know any better at the time -- it was different. Being Thai "newbies" we fell for the chicken pad thai, which, if you are not familiar, is a classic chicken noodle dish, similar to chicken lo mein at a Chinese restaurant with a little different flavor, and is probably the most-ordered dish at any Thai place in America. we've since moved on to better and more adventurous Thai (such as Sawatdee in Arlington and Mai Thai in Georgetown) -- but I still actually judge a place (not sure if it's appropriate) by a bite of its Chicken PT.

Last night, I had the biggest kitchen urge to make this happen. Scouring the internet for recipe inspiration, I soon realized that there are ALOT of published/blogged ways to make this dish -- and it's confusing! One blogger I found said to use "coconut aminos" and another said to use "tamarind nectar." Umm, what?? As you guys know, I don't publish a recipe unless it's (1) approachable and (2) made with easy-to-find ingredients. (I've had tamarind candies before, but sheesh! Nectar?) I'm sure those other pad thai recipes taste great, however, I don't want to send you all to an Asian store across town to make it happen. That's not realistic. Hence, the "weeknight" title of this recipe post. And because we loaded it up with extra veggies -- this made literally a pot-full of noodles so it'll last Austin & I all week, just like our leftovers had to in college =)

I hope you enjoy.

Servings: 6-8 (about 1 1/2 cups)

What You'll Need:

• 1 lb raw chicken breast, sliced thinly (or beef, or whole shrimp, or just veggies, your choice!)
• 1 eight-ounce pack of noodles
• Any type will do -- spaghetti, linguine, fettuccine, or Asian types like soba or udon!
• Look at the nutrition facts to get the ounces -- it'll probably say 4 servings of 2 oz.
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 lime
• 1 tbsp peanut butter
• 3 cloves fresh garlic (or 2 tbsp of the garlic puree you can find in a jar at the grocery store)
• About 5 cups of your favorite assorted veggies, chopped (think mushrooms, shredded carrots, broccoli, onions, sugar snap peas, bean sprouts, red bell pepper)
• Easy (and cheaper) way -- Trader Joe's Asian Stir Fry Mix $3.99 or a pack of Giant's Frozen Stir-Fry Vegetables $2.99
• 3 eggs (or egg-whites!)
• 1 tsp red pepper flakes (at the minimum)
• 1/4 cup of low-sodium soy sauce
• 1/4 cup of oyster sauce (can find this on the international aisle)
• 1/4 cup + 2 tbsp seasoned rice vinegar (can find this on the international aisle)
• 2 bowls/1 large pan/1 large pot

The Step-by-Step:

1. Place the slices of chicken in a Ziploc bag. Cutting the lime in 2, squeeze half of the lime's juices into the bag. Add the peanut butter. Zip it up and shake well to distribute the flavor. Set aside.
2. Heat a big pot of water on the stove.
3. In the meantime, chop up one garlic clove. In a small bowl, mix together with the soy sauce, oyster sauce, rice vinegar, and red pepper. Set aside.
4. When the water begins to boil, cook the noodles according to the package directions. Drain and rinse with cold water to stop the cooking.
5. Making sure the vegetables are chopped nicely, add 1 tbsp of olive oil to a very large pan and heat. Add the vegetables, and let cook for about 5 minutes, stirring every now and then. Set aside the vegetables in a bowl
6. Add another tbsp of oil to the pan, then add in the chicken. Let cook for about 5 minutes (until cooked through) then push to the side. Add in eggs, and let cook for about 3 minutes. Stir into the chicken, then add back in the veggies. Stir them all together and let cook for another 5 minutes. 
7. Add in the cooked noodles (if you don't have space, do the opposite -- add the chicken mixture into the noodle pot.) Toss everything together and add the sauce, making sure everything is well combined.
8. Turn off heat and serve. Slice the remaining lime half as a garnish.

xoxo n