Vegan Pad See Ew
The best Pad See Ew recipe that just happens to be completely vegan! It's bursting with wide rice noodles, seared tofu, and hand-torn seitan in a symphony of garlic, shallots, and bird’s eye chilies. Chinese broccoli dripping with an easy aromatic stir fry sauce reminds you why you keep coming back to this quick, plant-based weeknight meal again and again!
Servings: 4
Calories: 703kcal
Cost: $7.50
Ingredients
- 500 grams fresh ho fun noodles or 200 g. wide, dried rice noodles, hydrated in warm water for 15-20 minutes.
- 14 oz. extra firm tofu pressed and cut into 1 cm. strips
- ⅔ cup canola oil vegetable oil, or peanut oil for frying
- 2 tablespoons sesame oil
- 1 ½ cups seitan torn into bite-size pieces
- ½ cup shallots thinly sliced
- 2 teaspoons garlic minced
- 3 bird’s eye chilies thinly sliced
- 3 makrut lime leaves thinly sliced (optional)
- 2 cups Chinese broccoli roughly chopped
- ½ teaspoon white pepper
- 1 cup Thai basil rough chopped
Stir-fry Sauce
- ¼ cup tamari
- 2 tablespoons vegan fish sauce or vegetarian oyster sauce
- 2 tablespoons palm sugar coconut sugar, or brown sugar
- ½ teaspoon white pepper
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon sriracha
- ¼ cup water
- 1 tablespoon glutinous rice flour
Garnishes
- Thai basil leaves
- lime wedges
- Thinly sliced scallions
Instructions
- If using dried rice noodles, soak them in warm water for 10-20 minutes until pliable, then drain and set aside.
- In a pan, heat canola, vegetable, or peanut oil over medium-high heat. Fry tofu strips until they are a golden brown color. Remove from the pan and set aside. Drain and filter the frying oil, and set it aside for future frying projects.
- Add sesame oil to the pan and after 90 seconds when it is hot, stir in hand-torn seitan, and sauté over medium-high heat for 6 minutes until lightly browned all over.
- Add the thinly sliced shallots, minced garlic, bird’s eye chilies, and lime leaves. Sauté for about 4 minutes until the ingredients become aromatic.
- Add the roughly chopped Chinese broccoli and continue stir-frying for a few minutes until the broccoli is tender, yet the stems retain a crisp texture.
- Prepare the stir-fry sauce by combining tamari, vegan fish sauce, palm sugar, white pepper rice vinegar, sriracha, water, and glutinous rice flour in a bowl. Ensure the flour dissolves completely by thoroughly mixing using the tines of a fork.
- Pour the sauce into the pan, adding the fried tofu, the hydrated (or fresh) noodles and the chopped Thai basil. Toss the ingredients together until thoroughly coated and heated through, and the basil has wilted.
- Serve the rice noodle dish in an attractive bowl garnished with Thai basil leaves, lime wedges, and thinly sliced scallions.
Notes
🧙♂️Seitan Strands Magic:
Embrace the illusion of meatiness by hand-ripping seitan, allowing its natural strands to create a more authentic appearance.
🍜Noodle Wisdom:
Achieve noodle perfection by not boiling rice noodles for stir-fry. Soak them until they are just pliable; over-soaking leads to mushiness. Find that sweet spot.
🥸 Foolproof Tofu Techniques:
Press and fry tofu for minimal oil splatter. I like giving the tofu a final firm press with a clean kitchen towel before cutting it to remove most excess water. That helps keep the frying neat and clean.
💨Air Fry Hack:
Air-fry tofu for a healthier twist and easy cleanup. Toss with a light oil coating, then air fry at 375°F for 14-16 minutes, ensuring golden perfection without excess oil.
Nutrition
Calories: 703kcal | Carbohydrates: 49g | Protein: 23g | Fat: 47g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 15g | Monounsaturated Fat: 27g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Sodium: 1235mg | Potassium: 426mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 10g | Vitamin A: 644IU | Vitamin C: 55mg | Calcium: 70mg | Iron: 3mg