SIX VEGETABLE & CASHEW PAD THAI

What I love about Pad Thai is how many different ways there are to create it. You can go vegetarian and use tofu, egg and capsicum. One can fry up chicken or pork and add it to a Pad Thai overflowing with crushed peanuts and sprinkled with palm sugar. This dish can even be transformed to suit a strict vegan. It seems like whatever spin one puts on Pad Thai, they can’t go wrong with this iconic dish.

Personally, I like a little chicken for protein and a whole lot of vegetables, hence the name of the recipe. Not being a big fan of peanuts, I decided roughly chopped cashews would suit better as a topping. Get imaginative and create your very own Pad Thai! 

INGREDIENTS

Pad Thai 

• 400g chicken breast fillets, cut into even 4cm pieces
• 200g bean sprouts
• 2 cups red cabbage, finely chopped
• 1 broccoli head, cut into even sized florets
• 2 green onions, roughly chopped
• 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
• 2 medium carrots, cut into matchsticks
• 2 teaspoons sesame oil
• 200g flat rice-stick noodles 
• 2 tablespoons fried shallots
• a scant handful of unsalted cashews, roughly chopped 

Sauce

• 1/8 cup gluten-free sweet chilli sauce
• 1/8 cup gluten-free soy sauce or tamari
• 4 tablespoons lime juice
• 2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
• 1/4 teaspoon chilli flakes

COOKING 

1. Bring a large saucepan of water to the boil. Add rice noodles and cook, stirring occasionally, for 4-5 minutes or until noodles are tender but not mushy. Drain well with cold water and set aside. 

2. Meanwhile, make the sauce by combining all the ingredients in a small bowl and whisking well to combine. Set aside. 

3. Heat the garlic & 1 teaspoon sesame oil in a large wok over medium heat. Add chicken pieces and cook, stirring frequently, for 5-6 minutes or until chicken is white in colour and no pink flesh remains. Remove chicken from heat and keep warm. 

4. Add the rest of the sesame oil (1 teaspoon) to the wok and pour in carrot pieces and broccoli florets. Cook, stirring frequently, for 4 minutes or until vegetables are slightly tender. Add the cabbage, bean sprouts and green onions and cook for a further 3 minutes. Reduce the heat to low and add the cooked noodles and the sauce to the wok, stirring until well combined. Remove from heat and place in a large serving bowl. 

Serve warm with fried shallots and cashew pieces sprinkled on top if you wish. 

Serves / 4 

Total Preparation time / 20 minutes 

Total Cooking time / 30 minutes 

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