Tofu pad thai
Chewy rice noodles tossed with crispy tofu, bean sprouts and green onions in a tangy, sweet and salty sauce, finished with crushed peanuts and plenty of lime.
- 45 min total
- 35 min hands-on
- A little more hands-on
- Serves 2
- About $3.74 a serving
- 980 calories
- Vegan
- Gluten-free
- Dairy-free
Dolly says: Read the steps once before you start. Everything goes smoother after that.
Ingredients
For 2 servings.
- 6 oz rice noodles
- 1 package extra-firm tofu, drained
- 3 tbsp gluten-free tamari
- 2 limes, 1 juiced, 1 cut into wedges
- 1 tsp sriracha
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 4 stalks green onions, cut into 1-inch pieces, whites and greens apart
- 1 cup bean sprouts
- ¼ cup peanuts, chopped
- 2 tbsp cilantro, chopped (optional)
From your pantry
- 1 tbsp cornstarch
- 3 tbsp vegetable oil, divided
- 3 tbsp brown sugar
- 2 tbsp rice vinegar
Each serving has about 980 calories, 39 g protein, 117 g carbs and 43 g fat, and costs about $3.74 at typical US grocery prices. Both are estimates from what the recipe uses.
Missing something?
- No extra-firm tofu? Firm tofu works.
- No limes? Lemons work.
- No sriracha? Hot sauce works.
- No green onions? Chives work.
- No cilantro? Fresh parsley works.
Steps
Tap an underlined word for a quick explanation.
Put the noodles in a large bowl and cover with very hot tap water. Soak 8 to 10 minutes, until bendy but still firm in the center, then .
Drain. Draining means pouring off liquid, like tipping pasta into a colander or spooning extra fat out of the pan. Pour hot grease into a can or jar, not the sink, where it hardens and clogs the pipes.
How you’ll know: Only a few drips are left, and the food isn’t sitting in a puddle.
Timer: 9 min
Dolly’s tip: They finish cooking in the pan. Soaked until soft, they turn to mush.Meanwhile, the tofu very dry with paper towels, cut it into ¾-inch , and with the cornstarch.
Pat dry. Patting dry means pressing paper towels onto food to soak up the moisture on its surface. Wet food steams instead of browning, so this is how you get a good sear and crisp skin.
How you’ll know: The surface feels tacky, not wet, and the last paper towel comes away barely damp.
Cube. Cubing means cutting food into chunky, even squares, usually three quarters of an inch to an inch. Same-size cubes cook at the same speed and brown on every side.
How you’ll know: Your pieces look like a handful of sugar cubes, a little bigger than diced, all close to the same size.
Toss. Tossing means gently lifting and turning food so everything gets coated, like pasta in sauce or vegetables in oil. It coats every piece evenly without mashing anything.
How you’ll know: Every piece looks glossy or evenly coated, with no dry spots hiding underneath.
the tamari, brown sugar, vinegar, the juice of one lime and the sriracha in a small bowl until the sugar dissolves.
Whisk. Whisking means beating quickly with a whisk or a fork to blend things together. It smooths out lumps and mixes eggs, oil or sauces evenly.
How you’ll know: It all looks one even color and texture, with no streaks or lumps.
Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a large nonstick over medium-high heat.
Skillet. A skillet is a frying pan: wide and flat with low, sloped sides. The shape lets steam escape, so food browns instead of stewing.
How you’ll know: It’s the pan you’d fry an egg in, and a 10 or 12 inch one handles most recipes.
Medium-high heat
Fry the tofu, turning every few minutes, until and , about 10 minutes.
Golden brown. Golden brown is the color of good toast, somewhere between yellow and light brown. It means the outside is cooked and crisp but not burnt.
How you’ll know: It looks like toast and smells toasty; dark brown with a bitter smell means it went too far.
Crispy. Crispy means the outside is dry, firm and crunchy. It comes from high heat, a little oil and room in the pan, because crowded food steams and goes soft.
How you’ll know: It sounds crunchy when you tap or bite it, and it doesn’t flop when you lift it.
Medium-high heatTimer: 10 min
Food safety: Tofu is safe to eat straight from the package; cooking is only for texture and flavor.
Move it to a plate.
Add the last tablespoon of oil, the garlic and the white parts of the green onions, and stir 30 seconds, .
Fragrant. Fragrant means cooking until you can clearly smell it, usually garlic or spices, often in about 30 seconds. That’s the moment the flavor is ready, just before it can burn.
How you’ll know: You can smell it from a step back, and garlic is pale gold, not brown.
Medium-high heat
Add the drained noodles and the sauce and with tongs 2 to 3 minutes, until the noodles drink up the sauce and turn soft and chewy.
Toss. Tossing means gently lifting and turning food so everything gets coated, like pasta in sauce or vegetables in oil. It coats every piece evenly without mashing anything.
How you’ll know: Every piece looks glossy or evenly coated, with no dry spots hiding underneath.
Medium-high heatTimer: 2 min 30 sec
Dolly’s tip: If they’re still firm and the pan looks dry, add a splash of water and keep tossing.Add the tofu, bean sprouts and green onion tops and 1 minute more.
Toss. Tossing means gently lifting and turning food so everything gets coated, like pasta in sauce or vegetables in oil. It coats every piece evenly without mashing anything.
How you’ll know: Every piece looks glossy or evenly coated, with no dry spots hiding underneath.
Medium-high heatTimer: 1 min
Serve topped with the peanuts, cilantro and lime wedges for squeezing.
Plan this in Dollop, and get the grocery list
Dollop puts this dinner on a night that suits your week, lists only what you still need to buy, and walks you through each step while you cook.
