Chicken Pad Thai
Create a healthier version of your favourite takeaway dish at home with The Fitness Chef's lighter take on the Thai classic, chicken pad Thai.
From the book
The Fitness Chef: Still Tasty
The Fitness Chef uses nutritional science to bust dieting myths
Empowering readers to eat the foods they love and lose weight
Packed with over 100 recipes for lighter versions of popular dishes
Introduction
This Thai favourite is packed full of flavour. Unfortunately, restaurant versions are usually full of calories, too. But by reducing the sesame oil from 20ml to 5ml and the peanuts from 30g to 10g, you can still enjoy the classic textures and taste of pad Thai while saving 238 calories.
Ingredients
| 50g | fresh rice noodles |
| 5ml | olive oil |
| 5g | brown sugar |
| 150g | skinless chicken breast, cut into 4cm pieces |
| 1 tsp | garlic powder |
| 50g | fresh bean sprouts |
| 2 | spring onions, finely sliced |
| Juice of ½ lime, plus a wedge to serve | |
| 10ml | light soy sauce |
| 10ml | fish sauce |
| 1 | red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped |
| 1 | medium egg |
| 10g | unsalted peanuts, crushed |
| Small handful of | freshly chopped coriander |
| black pepper |
Method
1. Half-fill a medium saucepan with water and bring to the boil. Add the noodles and simmer for 4–6 minutes until tender. Drain and set aside.
2. While the noodles are cooking, put a medium frying pan over a medium heat, then add the oil, brown sugar, chicken and garlic powder. Cook for 5 minutes.
3. Reduce the heat, then add the bean sprouts, spring onions, lime juice, soy sauce, fish sauce and red chilli, then season with pepper and cook for a further 5 minutes.
4. Crack in the egg and stir thoroughly for 3–4 minutes.
5. Plate up the noodles, followed by the chicken mixture, garnishing with the crushed peanuts, lime wedge and chopped coriander.
