Peanut and Sweet Ginger Pad Thai

Who doesn’t love noodles? Nobody. That’s who. I don’t know what it is about noodles that is just so satisfying but here is a recipe for some delicious noods from a few of my favorite twins, the Happy Pear.
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INGREDIENTS

• 5 cups whole wheat or brown rice noodles (4 nests)
• 1/2 thumb-sized piece of ginger 15g
• 1 red chilli, medium heat
• 1 bunch of scallions/spring onions
• 1 carrot
• 1.74 cups oyster mushrooms or mushroom of choice
• 1 head of pak choi/100g baby spinach
• 1.5 tbsp oil
  
  

For the dressing:

• 1.06 cups coconut milk
• 2 tbsp peanut butter
• juice of 2 limes
• 4 tbsp tamari
• 1 tbsp maple syrup
  
  

To garnish:

• a small bunch of fresh coriander/basil 10g
• 3 tbsp salted roasted peanuts
• pickled ginger
• wedges of lime

DIRECTIONS

• Put the noodles in a pot of boiling water and cook as per instructions on the back of the packet (usually takes 4-5 minutes). Remove from heat, drain and rinse with cold water in a colander over the sink.
• It’s best to prep all the veg first, as this is a fast-cooking dish cooked on a high heat in about 5 minutes. Peel and finely chop the ginger. Remove the end off the chilli and finely slice (leave the seeds in only if you like it hot). Finely slice the scallions/spring onions, remove any limp outer leaves and finely chop the green parts. Grate the carrot. Finely chop the mushrooms. Remove the nub at the end of the pak choi and finely chop.
• Put 1.5 tablespoons of oil into a non-stick large-bottomed pan (ideally a wok) on a high heat. Once the pan is hot, add the ginger and chilli, and cook for 1 minute, stirring regularly.
• Add the mushrooms, scallions and the grated carrot with 1 tsp salt. Cook for further 5 minutes, stirring as it cooks.
• In a cup, mix together the dressing ingredients, using a fork (do not worry if it stays a bit lumpy and the coconut milk does not break up completely, it will once it’s added to the pan).
• Add the dressing in to the pan and stir through thoroughly, so that it coats all the veg well. Cook for another 5 minutes.
• Next, add the cooked noodles and the chopped pak choi and cook for another few minutes.
• Remove from the heat. Roughly chop the fresh coriander or basil and use them as garnish for each serving together with sprinkles of roasted peanuts.
• It’s nice served with some pickled ginger and a wedge of lime on each serving.

Recipe and Photo Credit: thehappypear.ie/

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