Prawn / Shrimp Pad Thai (Spice I Am Restaurant) Recipe

That is an genuine Prawn/Shrimp Pad Thai recipe from Spice I Am, a critically acclaimed Thai restaurant. To say it tastes unimaginable is an understatement!

Additionally, right here is my on a regular basis Pad Thai recipe which is the model I make most frequently, no journey to the Asian retailer required. 🙂

The restaurant model I’m sharing is an absolute ripper of a Pad Thai. I can go on and on about how unimaginable it’s as a result of it isn’t mine, so I don’t have to fret about sounding boastful! It’s the Pad Thai recipe of one among Sydney’s hottest Thai eating places – Spice I Am.

The primary time I went, I used to be blown away by the flavours. Severely intense Thai, in contrast to the standard Thai eating places. It’s phenomenal. And it’s genuine. That’s what I really like essentially the most. Spice I Am is unapologetically actual. They don’t tone down the spiciness of curries. They don’t “westernise” dishes. They’re modernised within the presentation however on the core of it, each dish is cooked the normal method which is why it’s so completely different.

It was maybe a decade in the past after I first went and Spice I Am stays as one among my all time favorite Thai eating places. So I used to be past excited after I spied a Spice I Am cookbook at my brothers’ home. I went to swipe it however he caught me and wouldn’t even let me borrow it. Hmph! So I wrangled my very own copy.

I get such a kick out of getting restaurant recipes for signature dishes!! There are such a lot of I wish to strive however in my pleasure to share one with you, I made a decision to begin with Pad Thai.

As you may think about, after describing how genuine the Spice I Am dishes are, the Pad Thai recipe has extra steps than my on a regular basis model. And it has one ingredient that requires a visit to the Asian grocery retailer – dried tiny child shrimp. It’s the magic ingredient that makes this an actual Thai restaurant type model. Sure it’s well worth the journey and the additional steps to make it! However you will get every little thing else you want from the grocery store.

It most likely appears like I used to be employed to speak about this cookbook, however I’m not! That is genuinely a cookbook I’m obsessive about. Sujet Saenkham, the genius behind Spice I Am, is a local Thai and his recipes are precise household recipes he learnt from his mom and grandmother. These are the sort of recipes that actually get me excited!! You may get a replica of his cookbook from Bookworld or Booktopia (these are not affiliate hyperlinks).

Yummy….Pad Thai….I might eat this day-after-day. I swear!

Prawn / Shrimp Pad Thai (Spice I Am Restaurant) Recipe

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Serves: 3 Prep Time: 10 minutes Cooking Time: 10 minutes 10 minutes

Nutrition facts: 592 calories 20 grams fat

Rating: 5.0/5

( 1 voted )

Ingredients

• 5 oz / 150 g dried Pad Thai rice noodles (Note 1)
• 4 tbsp vegetable oil
• 12 raw shrimp (prawns), shelled and deveined (Note 2)
• 1 small red shallot , finely sliced (Note 3)
• 3 oz / 80 g firm tofu , cut into small matchsticks
• 1.75 oz / 50 g dried shrimp (Note 4)
• 1/4 cup fish sauce
• 2 tbsp palm sugar (or brown sugar)
• 2 tbsp tamarind puree (Note 5)
• 1 tsp white vinegar
• 1/2 tsp + chili powder , to taste (Note 6)
• 2 eggs , lightly beaten
• 1.5 oz / 45 g roasted unsalted peanuts , finely ground
• 5 oz / 150 g bean sprouts
• 2 tbsp garlic chives , cut into 3/4" / 2cm lengths
• 1 tsp white sugar
• Lime wedges , to serve

Instructions

1. Place the rice noodles in a bowl and cover with lukewarm water and set aside for 1 hour. (Note 7) Drain then set aside.
2. Heat 2 tbsp of the oil in a wok or large heavy based fry pan over medium heat. Add the prawns and cook until they just change colour. (Note 8) Remove from the wok and set aside.
3. Add the shallot and stir fry for 2 minutes. Then add the tofu, dried shrimp, fish sauce, palm sugar and tamarind puree and cook for 1 minute until the sugar has dissolved.
4. Add the rice noodles, vinegar and 2 tsp chili powder and stir fry for 2 minutes.
5. Turn the heat down to low and push the noodles to one side. Add the remaining 2 tbsp of oil into the wok then the egg.
6. Push the noodles over the egg and stir, scraping the base of the wok so the egg scrambles and mixes in with the noodles.
7. Remove from heat. Add half the peanuts, most of the bean sprouts, garlic chives, prawns and toss gently.
8. Transfer to serving platter. Sprinkle with white sugar and remaining peanuts. Serve immediately with lime wedges on the side and sprinkled with extra chili powder, if desired.

Notes

1. The original recipe called for thin rice stick noodles that looks more like vermicelli. I chose to make it with Pad Thai noodles.
2. Original recipe called for 6 large prawns. I could only find medium size ones so I used 12.
3. Red shallots are like baby red spanish onions. The flavour is sweeter and milder than onions. If you can't find them, just substitute with 1/4 finely sliced red onion.
4. Dried shrimp is the key ingredient in this restaurant style version. They are tiny shrimp / prawns that are dried. They cost around $4 for a packet at Asian grocery stores (you'll only need half).
5. Tamarind is a fruit and the puree is like a smooth paste and is sour. In Australia, you can find it in supermarkets (Coles, Woolworths, Harris Farms) in the Asian section.
6. Real Pad Thai is supposed to be spicy! Adjust to taste - you can sprinkle on the finished dish at the end as well (common way to serve). Chili powder used in this recipe is pure ground dried chilies. Not American chili powder which has other seasonings and is not that spicy. If you are unsure, use cayenne pepper. The chilli powder is to add heat to the dish, not additional seasonings. 
7. This is a key tip - rehydrating the noodles using lukewarm water instead of boiling. This stops the noodles from breaking when you are stir frying because the noodles don't overcook which can happen in a flash if you boil them.
If you're really in a rush, soak them in hot water or follow the packet instructions, but reduce the cooking time by 1 minute, and be extra careful when tossing the noodles.
8. How to tell a prawn is perfectly cooked: raw prawns hang straight. Perfectly cooked prawns form a "c" and overcooked prawns curl into an "o" shape.
9. Nutrition assuming 3 servings.