Recipe: Pad Thai

I've always wanted an easy Pad Thai recipe, so when I made this one in class and it was not only simple but delicious I was ecstatic. The only ingredient I've found difficult to track down is the palm sugar. Palm sugar is healthier but if you can't find it experiment with a mix of brown sugar and white sugar or sucanat. I made a very quick cucumber salad as a side with chopped english cucumber in seasoned rice vinegar and a touch of agave syrup.

Ingredients
1 package Pad Thai rice noodles
½ cup tamarind juice (if you buy paste, mix it with warm water to reconstitute)
¼ cup palm sugar
½ cup fish sauce
1 tsp chili powder
2 Tbs coconut oil
2 shallots, minced
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 eggs, beaten
2 cups bean sprouts
3 scallions, thinly sliced
¼ cup peanuts, chopped
1 small bunch cilantro, chopped
2 limes, sliced

Procedure
1 Soak the dry noodles in lukewarm water for 15-20 minutes, until flexible but not soft. Drain and set aside. In the meantime, prepare the rest of the ingredients.
2 In a small saucepan on medium heat, add the tamarind juice, palm sugar, fish sauce, and chili powder. Bring to a simmer until the palm sugar dissolves. Turn off heat and set aside.
3 Have all of your ingredients organized next to the stove. Heat a wok on medium-high heat until hot. Add the coconut oil and immediately add the shallot and garlic stir until they start to brown but make sure they don't burn. Add the noodles to
the wok. Stir quickly to keep things from sticking. Add tamarind mixture and stir until the liquid evaporates. If it still seems a little dry, add some water. Make room for the egg by pushing all noodles to the side of the wok. Pour the egg into
the wok and scramble it until it is almost all cooked. Fold the egg into the noodles. Add the bean sprouts and scallions. Stir a few more times. The noodles should be soft and tangled at this point.
4 Pour onto the serving plate and sprinkle with peanuts and cilantro. Garnish with sliced lime.
(source: Bauman College Staff)