13002 Serves 8 Thu Jul 09 12:16:00 -0700 2009 Thu Jul 09 13:20:04 -0700 2009 Thai Licensed http://www.chow.com/recipes/13002 Thu, 09 Jul 2009 20:20:04 GMT Fried noodles are Chinese in origin. Thai cooks have transformed this dish by using a combination of seafood, meat, and poultry in a spicy sweet-and-sour sauce. The sauce should taste sweet, sour, and then salty, in that order. Care should be taken when frying the noodles to ensure that they puff up properly. They should be mixed with the sauce very gently to prevent the noodles from breaking up. Since the noodles begin to lose their crispness as soon as they are combined with the sauce, restaurants usually precook the noodles and hold them in a very low oven, then toss the noodles with the prepared sauce just before service. This dish provides balance to spicy curries, and the two are often served together during Thai meals.

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Separate the noodles in a large paper bag (this will keep the brittle noodles from scattering all across the kitchen).

Preheat the oven to 200°F [95°C].

Heat the oil to 365°F [185°C], reserving 5 tablespoons [75 mL] of the oil for later use.

Line 2 half-sheet pans with paper towels.

Slip the noodles into the hot oil in small batches. They will immediately puff up and expand. Cook for 2 seconds on 1 side, flip them over, and cook for 2 seconds more.

Remove the noodles from the oil, allowing the excess oil to drain off, then place on the paper towels. Repeat until all noodles are cooked, then place in the warm oven to hold until needed. (The noodles can be made several hours in advance.)

Dust the strips of tofu lightly in rice flour and deep-fry in some of the reserved oil, stirring to separate the tofu strips, until crisp and golden brown. Drain on paper towels and hold in the warm oven. (The tofu strips can be made several hours in advance.)

Place the beaten egg mixture in a plastic squeeze bottle. Heat 1 tablespoon [15 mL] of the reserved oil in a nonstick skillet and drizzle the eggs to form an overlapping lacy pattern.

Cook 2 minutes, or until set, then flip the omelet and cook 2 minutes. Drain on paper towels. When cool, coarsely chop the omelet and reserve. (The egg threads can be made several hours in advance.)

Heat all of the sauce ingredients in a small skillet and swirl to dissolve the sugar. Heat to a low boil and cook the sauce until it caramelizes and reduces slightly in volume. Reserve and keep warm. (The sauce can be made several hours in advance.)

Heat a wok or skillet to medium-high heat and swirl in the remaining 1/4 cup [60 mL] of reserved oil. Add the garlic and stir-fry until lightly golden. Add the shallots and saute 30 seconds. Add the sliced pork and chicken and saute 3 minutes. Add the mushrooms, chiles, and shrimp. Stir-fry until the shrimp just begin to turn opaque.

Add about 1/4 cup [60 mL] of the reserved sauce and toss well with the meat mixture to coat. Turn off the heat and add the sprouts, tossing just to soften slightly and coat with sauce. Reserve.

Put enough noodles for the number of servings to be prepared at one time in a large bowl. Up to 4 servings (half a recipe) can be safely tossed without breaking up the noodles).

Add a proportionate amount of sauce, tofu, egg, and meat mixture. Using 2 forks or oiled hands, toss gently to combine, being careful to not break the noodles. Serve immediately, garnished with scallions, cilantro, pickled garlic, and slivered red chiles.

]]> http://www.chow.com Arthur L. Meyer 84 Pasta/Noodles 8 ounces [225 g] thin rice vermicelli noodles

]]> 3 cups [720 mL] vegetable oil

]]> 8 ounces [225 g] firm tofu, pressed to remove excess water and sliced into thin strips

]]> Rice flour, for dusting

]]> 301 3 eggs, beaten with 1/2 teaspoon [3 mL] salt

]]> 2 tablespoons [30 mL] soy sauce

]]> 27 1 1/2 tablespoons [25 mL] tamarind liquid

]]> 44 Juice of 1 lime

]]> 2 tablespoons [30 mL] rice wine vinegar or cider vinegar

]]> 298 1/2 cup [120 mL] palm or light brown sugar, or to taste

]]> 593 3 tablespoons [45 mL] Thai fish sauce

]]> 74 5 garlic cloves, diced

]]> 94 4 shallots, diced

]]> 184 8 ounces [225 g] pork loin, cut into 1-inch [2.5-cm] slices

]]> 127 8 ounces [225 g] chicken breast, cut into 1-inch [2.5-cm] slices

]]> 30 6 dried shiitake mushrooms, soaked to soften and thinly sliced

]]> 58 4 fresh Thai chiles, thinly sliced

]]> 584 1/3 cup [80 mL] fresh shrimp, shelled, deveined, and diced

]]> 102 3/4 cup [180 mL] mung bean sprouts

]]> 54 4 scallions, sliced

]]> 153 1/2 cup [120 mL] cilantro leaves

]]> 54 1/4 cup [60 mL] sliced pickled garlic or cocktail onions

]]> 277 4 hot red chiles, seeded and thinly sliced lengthwise

]]> 30317 arthur l. meyer 30318 the appetizer atlas 22 shellfish 5097 seafoods 14511 secret ingredient 763 sexy 757 lunch 21 main 5029 main course