If you’ve been following us on Instagram @vanfoodietours, you’ll know that a couple of the VFT members took a little roadtrip to the Okanagan this last week. Although we were sure to get our fill of BC wine (especially those that we feature on our Granville Island Market Tour and Guilty Pleasures Gourmet Tour), we somehow managed to consume exclusively North-American cuisine on our adventures! With a plentiful bounty of local ingredients to enjoy, I’m hardly complaining, but there’s only so long a Chinese/Malaysian foodie can go without some Asian cuisine!
Needless to say, when we returned to Vancouver, I was hungering for some of my favourite comfort foods. Comfort foods are dishes that you grow up with. You know the ones. They give you a warm, fuzzy feeling of happiness and nostalgia. For me, comfort food is the food of my family – Southeast Asian cuisine. Inspired by my recent Asian-food binge and the impending rainy weather, let’s define this Fall as the “Season of Comfort Food.” To kick things off, here’s a recipe for one of my dearest household staples: Pad Thai!
The Season of Comfort Food: Pad Thai Recipe – Serves 2
Once upon a time, I used to think homemade Pad Thai could only be achieved with a “Pad Thai Paste” found at the grocery store. (This was before Vancouver Foodie Tours, don’t worry). Last November, I took a trip to Thailand and discovered that the secret to making this comfort food authentic was no really secret at all. What makes all the difference? Fish Sauce and Oyster Sauce. A squeeze of lime. The end.
Ingredients:
- 2 tablespoon Oyster Sauce
- 1 tablespoon Fish Sauce
- 1/2 package of Rice Noodles (Medium Size)
***These 3 items can be purchased at South China Seas Trading Company at the Granville Island Public Market***
- Protein – chicken, beef, shrimp, or firm tofu
- 1 egg, beaten
- 1 tsp chopped garlic
- 1 tablespoon cooking oil
- 1 tsp sugar
- A handful of bean sprouts
- Green onions to garnish
- Crushed peanuts to garnish
- A squeeze of lime
7 Steps to Pad Thai:
- Grab a big pan or wok.
- Heat oil over low heat. Add garlic and fry until fragrant.
- Add chicken & beaten egg and fry until cooked.
- Push all the ingredients to one side. Tilt the pan and add 1 cup of water such that you are able to immerse the rice noodles to cook. (Alternatively, you can cook the noodles in a separate pot. Be sure to removed the noodle just before they are “al dente;” they should still be slightly hard)
- Season the noodle/chicken/egg mixture with fish sauce, oyster sauce and sugar.
- Turn off the heat and add the bean sprouts.
- Garnish with green onions, peanuts, and lime, to taste!
Feeling lazy? Great places to eat in Vancouver for Pad Thai – Maenam (W4th Avenue), Sawasdee Thai (Main St), Simply Thai (Yaletown)
We’ll be celebrating the Season of Comfort Food by releasing new recipes on our Vancouver food blog throughout the Fall/Winter. We’ll always keep it simple, and oh so satisfying!
Stay hungry, foodies! Here’s to the long season ahead!
