Chicken and Shrimp Pad Thai...

Why spend extra money on take-out when you can create the same flavours of this restaurant-inspired Thai favourite at home and in less than 30 minutes? A tasty chicken and shrimp Pad Thai which showcases it's harmony of flavours with sweet, sour, spice and salt! Adjust the flavours to suit your family's taste buds. I use tamarind paste for the true Pad Thai flavour however, using it alone may be too tart for my kids, so I add another sweet and sour element with ketchup and it works really well without compromising too much on authenticity. kŏr hâi jà-rern aa-hăan!

Pad Thai

Makes 4 to 6 servings

227 g (1/2 of 454g pkg.) rice stick noodles

1/4 cup ketchup

2 Tbsp. tamarind paste
1/2 cup water

2 eggs, beaten
1/2 lb. (225 g) boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut into bite-size pieces
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 Tbsp. minced gingerroot
1/2 lb. (225 g) thawed frozen shrimps, shelled, deveined and cleaned
2 cups bean sprouts

2 Tbsp. fish sauce

garnish with finely chopped fresh cilantro, sliced green onions and seeded, finely chopped Thai chilies

Cook noodles in boiling water five minutes or until tender; drain. Make the sauce by stirring tamarind paste, ketchup and water in a bowl. Cook the eggs into a scramble and set aside. Stir-fry chicken, garlic and ginger in a large skillet on high heat five minutes or until chicken is done. Add shrimps and stir-fry a few minutes and toss with bean sprouts until cooked through.

Look for tamarind paste in the Asian supermarket spice aisle.
In this form, you will have to remove the seeds,

Add noodles and cooked eggs to skillet; toss well with tamarind sauce mixture and fish sauce and cook two minutes or until heated through, stirring frequently.

Serve with lime wedges and sambal oelek chili garlic sauce at the table.

And there we have it... a gorgeous Thai spread of soup and noodles for dinner on a rainy Friday night!