Crab and Shrimp Pad Thai with Chilli Oil

10 minutes, plus soaking time prep, 10 minutes cook

Serves 3

Ingredients

100g palm sugar

100ml thick tamarind water

30ml vegetable oil

10 Thai shallots, peeled and thickly sliced (or banana shallots)

6 prawns, shells removed and deveined

1 tsp dried shrimp

2 tbsps brown crab meat

2 medium eggs, beaten

150g flat vermicelli rice noodles, soaked for at least 2 hours in cold water

2-3 tbsps fish sauce

10g Chinese chives (or other chives), chopped

2 tsps smoked chilli powder

20g fresh tofu, fried in a little vegetable oil until golden brown and crispy on the outside and soft on the inside

10g toasted peanuts, lightly crushed

1 tbsp pickled garlic, thinly sliced (optional)

10g beansprouts

10g coriander, chopped, to ganish

50ml chilli oil

1 lime, cut into wedges, to serve

Method

The trick with a pad Thai is to have all the ingredients with arm’s reach of a hot wok. The only thing that needs preparing in advance is the tamarind sugar: in a small saucepan on a medium heat, gently melt the palm sugar in the tamarind water, stirring constantly until there are no lumps left. Set aside with all the other ingredients.

Heat the oil in a large wok on a high heat and add the Thai shallots, prawns and dried shrimp. Toss until the prawns are almost cooked and the shallots begin to turn golden brown. Add the brown crab meat and toss a few times; it should mostly melt into the sizzling oil and coat the prawns.

Add the eggs and scramble for 30 seconds. Immediately after this, add the noodles, making sure not to add too much of the soaking water to the wok. Stir-fry the noodles by stirring them constantly so that they don’t stick to the bottom of the wok. Spread them across the surface of the wok as much as possible to ensure even cooking. They are ready for the next stage when they begin to turn translucent.

Add two-thirds of the tamarind sugar to the wok and pour it around the sides; this ensures that it comes into direct contact with the heat from the wok and caramelises as it dribbles down into the noodles. Toss the noodles in the sauce; the noodles should be dark brown, with no black bits. If they look too light, then add the rest of the tamarind sugar in the same way.

Reduce the heat and add 2 tablespoons of the fish sauce, the Chinese chives, 1 teaspoon of the chilli powder, the tofu, half the peanuts, the pickled garlic and beansprouts, and toss all the ingredients through to warm. Check for seasoning: the dish should be sweet, fishy and savoury, with a smoky chilli kick. If it’s too sweet, add the remaining tablespoon of fish sauce. Sprinkle the noodles with the coriander and serve on a large plate with the remaining peanuts and chilli powder, the chilli oil and lime wedges on the side.