Pad Thai sauce is very easy to make, and this simple recipe will tell you how to do it. Pad Thai noodles are becoming very popular around the world, and can easily be made at home if you have the right ingredients. The key to good pad thai sauce is tamarind. Tamarind is a kind of tropical fruit that comes in pods. The best way to buy tamarind is as a prepared paste (available by the jar or bottle at Asian or Indian food stores).
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 0 minutes
Ingredients:
- MAKES 2/3 cup Pad Thai Sauce (enough for 2 batches of pad thai)
- 1/2 cup hot water
- 1+1/2 Tbsp. tamarind paste (available by the jar at Asian/Indian food stores)
- 5 Tbsp. fish sauce (available in tall bottles at Asian stores) - substitute 6 Tbsp. soy sauce if vegetarian
- 1 fresh red chili, minced, OR 1/2 to 1 tsp. cayenne pepper, OR 2-4 tsp. chili sauce
- 5-6 Tbsp. brown sugar
Preparation:
- Pour the hot water into a small mixing bowl or glass measuring cup. Add the tamarind paste and stir well to dissolve.
- Add the other ingredients and stir to dissolve. (Note that you will need all the sugar to balance out the intense sourness of the tamarind.)
- The sauce should taste tangy - a balance of sour, sweet, spicy, and salty. If it's still too sour for your taste, add a little more sugar. Remember that once it's distributed throughout the noodles, the sauce will no longer be so spicy or strong-tasting.
- Your pad thai sauce is now ready to be used, or store it in the refrigerator until you're ready to made pad thai noodles. The sauce will keep in a covered jar for several weeks.
- Pad Thai Tips: For authentic-tasting pad thai, be sure to soak your rice noodles (instead of boiling them) until they are softened but still firm and little bit "crunchy", then fry them up with the sauce.
- For complete instructions on how to make pad thai using this sauce, see: Easy Pad Thai with Shrimp, OR Easy Chicken Pad Thai, OR Vegetarian Pad Thai Recipe.
