Spicy Chicken Pad Thai

One of my favorite dishes of all time is Pad Thai. It is not just a dish that reminds me of great flavor but also of good times. My favorite set of twins(Joe & Pat), their wonderful mother(Momma E(Lauri Eversole)), and I are always pursuing restaurants that serve excellent Thai food. While Joe and Momma E stick with the mild dishes, it is usually a battle between Pat and I over the hot sauce to try and make our dishes spicier. Ever since I moved from Illinois, I have been missing those dinner dates. So, I decided to try and make one of my favorite dishes, keeping them in mind.

While I was cooking, I could just picture Joe in my head staring at his watch and asking, “It has been 11 minutes and 46 seconds since we ordered… WHY ISN’T IT DONE YET?”

…And when I added the extra Sriracha to the sauce, Momma E shaking her head and saying, “You are crazy!”

…And when I thought I thought I had too many peppers, Pat whispering sassily, “Is that all you got, Latina?”

So without further ado, I made a spicier Chicken Pad Thai with fresh red chili, jalapenos, anaheim, and poblano peppers from my sister’s garden. I also was lazy with the sauce and bought premade Pad Thai sauce at the store.

Start by boiling water for your rice noodles.

Turn off the heat and add your noodles.

Let them sit for 10 minutes or until they are firm.

Once they have turned firm, immediately drain the noodles. I was extra cautious that they would cook more, so I rinsed them in cold water to play it safe. Keep them aside for later to finish cooking.

Meanwhile, cut up your chicken into small bite sized pieces. Add garlic salt, pepper, and cayenne to your chicken. I always like seasoning early on so the seasoning has a chance to soak into the chicken.

(At the beginning of the summer I planted some peppers in my sister’s garden and I was so excited to take a full bag of them home with me.  This is a perfect dish that I get to add them.)  So cut up your peppers, if you decide to add some, and throw them in a pan.

I added some rice water and covered the pan so they could steam for a bit also.

Either in the microwave or in your wok, scramble one egg and set aside. (I used egg beaters and it tasted fine.)

After your eggs are cooked, start to heat a tablespoon of oil in your wok.

Dump in your chicken and let it cook.

After your chicken has fried, add your noodles and Pad Thai sauce.

Because I am not crazy about the Pad Thai sauce, I added Sriracha to give it more kick and flavor.

Once you notice the noodles have softened, add your eggs and whatever you decide to garnish it with. Because I did not have peanuts or lime which I usually like in mine, I added fresh peppers to give it a fuller flavor to the overall dish. Finally, give it a good mix and serve.

Recipe:

Ingredients

2 to 3 chicken breasts

8 ounces of wide rice noodles

1 egg, scrambled

1 cup of Pad Thai sauce

Several peppers of your choice

1 teaspoon of garlic salt

1 teaspoon of pepper

1 teaspoon of cayenne pepper

¼ cup of chopped peanuts (Missing in my dish)

1 lime, cut into wedges (Missing in my dish)

Sriracha (optional)

Directions

1. Boil water in a medium saucepan.
2. Turn off heat and add your noodles. Let noodles sit for 10 minutes or until firm. Drain noodles and keep aside.
3. Scramble your egg and keep aside.
4. Cut up your peppers and brown them in a pan. (If you like, use a bit of water to let them steam and then brown.)
5. Cut your chicken into bite-sized pieces and season with garlic salt, pepper, and cayenne. Heat the oil in the wok and add your chicken. Let fry for several minutes.
6. Add the noodles and sauce. Mix everything up and continue to let the noodles cook until softened.
7. Finish by mixing in your egg, peppers, and whatever garnishes you decide to add.