I crave noodles 24/7. It's my comfort food. Whether I'm having a good day, a bad day, or simply just a Wednesday, noodles pick up my mood. My husband also learned over the years we've been together that a piping hot bowl of noodles makes an excellent peace offering. Who can be mad when they're eating noodles?
While most people may be very familiar with pad Thai, pad see ew is in my opinion, the underrated Thai noodle dish. It's sweet and salty in all the right ways. If you've never tried it, I strongly recommend that you head to your favorite Thai restaurant and order a bowlful. Then come back and try to make it yourself!
The ingredients are a bit tricky to find so you will need to head to an Asian specialty market for some of them. It will be worth the trip! While you're there, also stock up on Asian pantry must haves (I always have sweet soy sauce, sambal, kewpie mayo, 15 kinds of noodles, fish cakes, fish roe, sake, white pepper, and of course, Asian snacks on hand!). You will need sweet soy sauce for this recipe, which has a molasses-like taste and gooey texture. It gives the pad see ew most of its sweet flavor. You also need thick rice noodles, dried or fresh. In a pinch, I've used pad Thai rice noodles but pad see ew is normally made with wider rice noodles. Chinese broccoli (gai lan) can be substituted with broccoli rabe or broccolini. If you can't find white pepper powder, feel free to use black pepper. I personally like white pepper better since you won't see black flecks in the food and it's more fragrant. I did a combination of beef and shrimp but the protein can be whatever you like (chicken, pork, fried tofu, get creative).
Ingredients
16 oz wide rice noodles
4 tbsp vegetable oil (divided)
2 eggs
Pinch of salt and pepper
4 tbsp dark soy sauce (divided)
4 tbsp soy sauce (divided)
2 tbsp oyster sauce
1/4 tsp white pepper powder
8 oz beef cut of your choice (cut to bite sized pieces, against the grain)
8 oz raw shrimp, peeled and deveined
8 oz whole mushrooms (cleaned and quartered)
Small bunch of Chinese broccoli (ends trimmed)
Directions
Marinade beef and shrimp in 2 tbsp sweet soy sauce and 2 tbsp soy sauce for at least 30 minutes before cooking.
Whisk 2 eggs along with a pinch of salt and pepper. Heat 1 tbsp of oil in a frying pan and add egg mixture. Spread mixture around to make a thin omelet. When done, place omelet on a cutting board and roll into a tight tube. Slice omelet into ribbons and set aside.
Boil Chinese broccoli for 2 minutes, rinse under cold water and set aside.
If using dried rice noodles, boil for 3 minutes and rinse under cold water. You will need to rinse periodically since they have a tendency to stick together. Just before frying, separate the noodles using your fingers.
In a small bowl, mix together 2 tbsp sweet soy sauce, 2 tbsp soy sauce, oyster sauce, and white pepper powder. This will be the sauce for the pad see ew.
In a large wok over high heat, add 2 tbsp of oil until sizzling. Add in beef and shrimp and cook until caramelized and fully cooked. Add in mushrooms and Chinese broccoli and stir fry for another 2-3 minutes.
Add 1 tbsp of oil and the prepared rice noodles. Stir fry for a few minutes until noodles are slightly charred. Drizzle the sauce on top of the noodles and add egg ribbons. Mix well and stir fry for another 2 minutes until all ingredients are coated in sauce.
Serve immediately.
Recipe adapted from: What To Cook Today
Comments