Tofu Pad Thai
Jun 13, 2019One of the things I just love about living out in California vs Texas is my neighborhood! We can walk everywhere - to the kids school, to the post office, the local coffee shop and one of my favorite places, THAI food!
The first time I took the kids by myself and we ordered Pad Thai. That was it. They were sold and I was asked to make Pad Thai at home because "I love noodles mom! This is the best!".
One thing that's WAAAAAY easier to get is food vegetarian / vegan style. Not that I'm either - I enjoy all foods however I have noticed that I'm choosing less and less meat. I've already decreased my egg and dairy intake due to the higher hormones they contain. Moving from Texas to California hit me harder with stress than I thought and boom, just like that my face turned into a 13 year old going through puberty. #adultacne hit me hard. So I had to make some changes.
I'll write a post soon on how I've improved my acne tremendously in less than 2 months. One part is the food, another the stress, but the biggest difference was since I started using Beauty Counter face products and makeup. I'll go into the details about Beauty Counter not messing up my hormones either soon, but for now - check out their better beauty products here.
Dietitian Tip: If your body is in "Freak Out Mode" decrease hormone containing foods, so you don't have external influences on your hormones. Think about the eggs and dairy. Eggs are meant to grow up to be a chicken, duck etc.. So they're going to have naturally containing hormones. Same with dairy- it's suppose to help young grow to adults, so again, higher hormones that even meats have (yes, even the no added hormones)
Definition of freak out mode: When you feel out of whack. when you know your hormones are all over the place. When you're stressed or overwhelmed. When you're trying to lose weight and can't. When you have a new symptom.... etc... Not your normal. Not your happy place.
Let's talk TOFU for a bit before I share this delicious recipe!
1. Tofu is made from soy bean. Soy, a plant in the pea family, has been common in Asian diets for thousands of years (1). Research suggests that daily intake of soy protein may slightly lower levels of LDL (“bad”) cholesterol (1).
2. Multiple studies show that regular soy food intake at a level equal to traditional Korean consumption may be associated with a reduced risk of breast cancer, and this effect is more pronounced in premenopausal women (2).
I know many of y'all have heard that soy is bad for women or for men not to eat soy however I strongly disagree. When soy is done right (organic & non-gmo) it can be a part of an extremely healthy diet and is a tool I use in stabilizing hormones by replacing animal protein sources that contain naturally occurring hormones, to the soy that has minimal affect on our hormones.
The way we have enjoyed making tofu in this house has been to pat it dry with paper towels *I always get the extra firm and feel like I use half a roll of paper towel with them but soggy tofu is blah. Then I take the big rectangular block of tofu and cut in in half length wise so I have just two thinner rectangular tofu. Then I cut in angles to make triangles. I will pat the tofu with a dry paper towel each step to soak up excess moisture.
Next I add the secret weapon to making it crispier without frying - CORN STARTCH! Coat in corn starch (You can see on the sheet pan below that there is white on the pan. Yup, corn starch)
Once the corn starch is added, you'll be able to add your flavors to one side of the tofu (like ginger powder, garlic, soy sauce) and then I'll flip them after 10-15 minutes. Once flipped, you'll add the same flavors to the other side that's up now!
Once the tofu is in the oven initially, that's when you start the chopping of the veggies and then can add them to your saute pan. I saute the mushrooms first and typically add the bell peppers to the very last minute because I'm not a fan of them soggy. Then once it's time for the eggs (remember if you have hormonal issues, I'd opt out of the egg or at least make sure you get minimal amounts), you'll make a hole in the middle of the veggies to scramble the eggs.
Alrighty then (name that movie haha)
Let's get to the recipe, shall we!?!
Pad Thai (tofu)
1 Package Firm Tofu
8 oz Wide Rice Noodles
1 Red Bell Pepper, Julienne style
3 Green Onions
1 Large carrot, thinly sliced
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 eggs beaten
½ C ground peanuts (which I forgot, so add them in. I only had cashews so do what you gotta do!)
½ C Cilantro leaves, chopped (I like a lot, adjust based on your preference)
½ Lime juiced
Sauce
¼ C local honey
2 TBSP low Sodium Soy Sauce
2 TBSP lime juice
2 TBSP rice wine vinegar
2 TBSP peanut butter (just ground up peanuts)
½ tsp dried basil (fresh is best if you have some!)
½ tsp corriander powder
½ tsp ground ginger
¼ tsp pepper
*add your own heat of preference. Chili paste, red pepper flakes, special sauce etc Most my recipes are kid friendly. So add your heat at the plate.
Directions
- Preheat oven to 400*F and drain tofu.
- Dry tofu off with towels. Try to get it as dry as you can and be careful not to push to hard or you’ll burst it open (don’t ask me how I know this ;) )
- Once tofu is dried. Cut in half (so it’s not so bulky and can cook faster).
- Add onto sheet pan and then drizzle with soy sauce & honey. How much? … a drizzle (up to your taste buds). Then place in oven for about 10-15 before they need to be flipped.
- Make your sauce by just going down the ingredient list. Plop them all in there and mix them together. The honey should dissolve fairly fast with all that acidity in there!
- Make sure all your veggies are chopped up. With this meal, thinner is better.
- Turn saute pan on medium to medium high heat. Add in mushrooms first and keep an eye on them. Around this time you’ll need to flip the tofu if you haven’t already done so (use your nose a little. It will start to burn, so you’ll want to catch it right before that. I promise if you use your sense of smell you’ll be able to do this)
- Get a large pot ready to boil your noodles. (this is my subtle way of saying boil the water so you can add your noodles once it’s ready.) You’ll want to keep an eye on them. I stir them occasionally in between moving my shrooms around.
- Around this time add your green onions and garlic. Let them mix with the shrooms for a bit and then add your red bell peppers in.
- Make a hole in the middle of the saute pan and crack your 2 eggs into the middle. Reduce heat to low and scramble your eggs in the middle. Then mix into the veggies.
- Add in your noodles and sauce. Increase your heat a little and toss until evenly combined.
- Add your toppings: Tofu, cilantro, green onions, peanuts, even more lime if you like
Serves 4
If you're loving how to use food in a way to help your health issues, then check out my website! I have TONS a FREE tools in there and other items / courses / and I've opened up 4 spots for the summer for working one on one with me for 3 months. Set up a free 20 minute discovery call with me here if you're wanting to claim one of these spots!
References:
(1) https://nccih.nih.gov/health/soy
(2) https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18791919
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