Ginger Pad Thai With Chicken & Veggies

I just love Thai food.  Well, let's be honest here - I love all food lol!  But in all seriousness, I really do love Thai cuisine.  I was thrilled when I saw a recipe on Pinterest a couple months ago for light chicken pad thai as I tend to favor light & fresh Thai cuisine over other heavier sauce laden dishes.  

Besides making the occasional stir fry, I really have no experience whatsoever in preparing Asian cuisine at home so the idea of this recipe was a little daunting at first.  Boy was I wrong!  This couldn't have been any easier to whip up in my kitchen.  I've made this dish several times since, and have adjusted the recipe to make the nutritional content a little bit healthier.  

This dish is so good - like there will be no leftovers good.  The light flavors all blend together so perfectly; fresh ginger & cilantro, savory shiitake mushrooms, crunchy carrots, and just a hint of spicy red pepper blended together with lean chicken & healthy brown rice noodles.  If you really like a bit of a kick, serve it with a little drizzle of sriracha sauce on top!  So, so scrumptious! 

Hope you enjoy!

Ingredients

1/2 lb. skinless, boneless chicken breast halves, cut crosswise into slices 1/4-1/3-inch thick
2 Tbsp. minced fresh ginger
1 Tbsp. plus 2 tsp. tamari (I used Braggs liquid aminos)
1 Tbsp plus 2 tsp. sweet red chili sauce {found in the Asian section of most grocery stores}
3 tsp. sesame oil
1 Tbsp. plus 1 tsp. rice vinegar
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
8 oz. brown rice Pad Thai noodles
2 Tbsp. coconut oil
1 shallot; thinly sliced
1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes
3 1/2 cups savoy or napa cabbage, thinly sliced
1 cup shredded carrots
3/4 cup shiitake mushrooms, stemmed & sliced
1/4 cup low sodium chicken broth
4 large green onions, thinly sliced
1/4 cup coarsely chopped fresh cilantro



Directions

In a medium bowl, mix the chicken with 1 tbsp of the ginger, 2 tsp of the tamari, 1 tsp of the sesame oil, 2 tsp of the sweet red chili sauce and 1 tsp of the rice vinegar.  Season lightly with salt and pepper, and set aside.
 
Boil the noodles in a large pot of salted water, stirring frequently, until just tender {about 5 minutes}.  Drain the noodles, rinse with cold water, and drain again.  Transfer to a medium sized bowl, add the remaining 2 teaspoons of sesame oil, and gently toss to coat.

In a 12-inch wok or nonstick frying pan over medium-high heat, warm the coconut oil.  Add the remaining 1 tbsp ginger, the shallots & red pepper flakes and stir until fragrant, about 30 seconds.

Add the chicken and stir until no longer raw on the outside, about 2 minutes.  Add in the carrots, cabbage and mushrooms and continuously stir until the chicken is cooked throughout and the cabbage is wilted, about 3-4 more minutes.  

Next, add the noodles, the chicken broth, green onions, remaining 1 tbsp tamari, 1 tbsp sweet red chili sauce & 1 tbsp vinegar.  Using tongs, toss until the noodles are thoroughly heated and ingredients are well blended, about 1-2 minutes. 

Season to taste with salt and pepper.  Garnish with cilantro and serve immediately.

Serves 4.

 

original recipe source



Happy Monday! xx

P.S. I added a couple new items to the 'Shop' section of my blog, and will be adding more throughout the week!