Baked Northern Pike

My husband went on a fishing trip to Canada a couple months ago, and brought back some walleye and northern pike filets so that I could vicariously experience a part of his trip. I have never had northern pike before, and had no idea how to cook them - and my usual dependable recipe websites did not have any recipes for them. So I took a gamble and Googled for recipes. I decided to go with something simple - I figured that if this fish tasted as good as my husband says it does, then it shouldn't need much to dress it up. I found this simple recipe for baked pike on a fishing in Canada website. There are several recipes on the page I have linked to - I used the last one. I guess soaking the filets in milk helps make the fish less oily, or so I've read.

This was very easy, and the results were great. The simplicity of the ingredients allowed the flavor of the pike to shine through (I don't really like battered, fried fish much for that reason - the coating and the oil usually make it so that you can't really tell what the fish really tastes like) (not that I don't like the taste, but I can't tell walleye from cod or perch when it's cooked like that). I served this with white rice and fresh green beans. A nice, quick meal with simple, delicious flavors. We still have four pike filets in the freezer, and I think I know how I will make them the next time....

Phyllo-Wrapped Salmon with Leeks and Red Bell Pepper

Would you believe that I had all the ingredients for this in my kitchen? I guess that marks me as a total foodie. I have had some salmon filets sitting in my freezer for a while. I also got leeks in my CSA basket, and a search on Epicurious came up with this fabulous recipe. This could easily be served at a fancy romantic restaurant for much more than the ingredients cost. The flavors and textures melded beautifully, and the phyllo packets make for a classy presentation.

I was just making this for the two of us for dinner, so I halved the red pepper and leek mixture. Since I have baked with phyllo before, it wasn't nearly as intimidating to work with those thin sheets as it used to be. I served this with wild rice, and corn on the cob because that's what we had. I think this would go well with asparagus or a salad of field greens instead. This is now one of my favorite ways to prepare salmon.

Penne With Zucchini and Basil

If there's one vegetable that we almost always have in our refrigerator in the summer, it's zucchini. We get zucchini or yellow squash in our CSA basket most weeks now, and we also got a few zucchini from a friend who has an abundance of them growing in her garden. I found this recipe for a quick weeknight dinner this week. I used penne because that's what I had on hand. I used three medium sized zucchini, but really should have used four. I also only used one cup of fresh basil, since that's all I had in my garden (my basil plants are still teeny). We just used Parmesan cheese in a bottle - cheap, and yes, not as good as the freshly grated stuff, but I am not that picky about the type of cheese we use and don't want to spend a lot of money on cheese.

This was a great, easy weeknight dinner. The fresh basil really makes this dish - it would have been nice to use more of it if I could!

Unstuffed Cabbage Roll Casserole

I'm taking the next step in learning how to cook - limiting myself to cooking with only what I have on hand in my kitchen. This is born partially out of my desire to simplify my cooking and my life, and partially out of gas being $4 a gallon and not wanting to make special trips to the grocery store.

We got a head of cabbage in our CSA basket a couple weeks ago. I have never cooked with plain cabbage (I have used Napa cabbage before though), so this also sat in my fridge for a while as I tried to figure out what to do with it. I found this recipe and it fit the bill. I do like cabbage rolls - my parents used to make them when I was younger - so the fact that this was a "lazy man's version" was very appealing. I had some ground turkey and ground beef leftover from recipes gone by in the freezer, so I mixed those together to brown. I doubled the vinegar and brown sugar to give it a little more flavor. I didn't have crushed tomatoes, so I used a can of whole tomatoes that I cut up, and a can of diced tomatoes. Instead of garlic powder I sauteed a clove of garlic and threw that in.

This was good, for cabbage. I wouldn't go out and buy a cabbage just to make this recipe, but if I found myself in possession of another cabbage, I would make this again. I think I overcooked the cabbage, and it was a little too wilted. I think if the cabbage was more firm I would have liked this more. The caraway seeds definitely give this that "cabbage roll" taste - the flavor took me back to my parent's kitchen. So - for those of you who like cabbage rolls, this is a nice way to enjoy the flavor with much less of the work.

Spaghetti with Sauteed Kale, Walnuts, and Garlic Scapes

In our last CSA basket we got two things I have never eaten or cooked before: kale and garlic scapes. I had never even heard of scapes before so I had no idea how to use them. Apparently they are the little green shoots that come up before the garlic bulb develops cloves, and you can chop them off and eat them. Kale is a dark leafy green vegetable (i.e., really really good for you). They all kind of sat in my fridge for a little while as I tried to find some recipe to try them in.

I just love the Web. I did a search on scapes to figure out how to use them, and not only did this recipe call for scapes, but wouldn't you know it, calls for kale too. Now, cooking a recipe off of a random blog is a little out of my comfort zone (no ratings, no comments by seasoned cooks... a little more of a gamble than cooking off of Epicurious or Food Network. Kind of like cooking from a cookbook.) (Did I just give away what generation I am from?). But sometimes you just have to throw caution to the wind.

To my delight, this was actually quite delicious. I found the recipe a little hard to follow (starting on low heat, then going to medium, then going to low again seemed a little unnecessary). I ended up sauteing the scapes and garlic on medium heat, then I added the kale and left it on medium for a few minutes. When the kale started getting a little tender I decreased the heat to medium-low. I wasn't really sure when the kale was officially done, so I just let it get tender and tasted it. I would have never thought of adding toasted walnuts and leafy green vegetables to spaghetti, but the mix of flavors in this recipe complemented one another. I would happily make this again (and my husband would happily eat it). You could probably substitute shallots, garlic or scallions for the scapes if they are not available.

Spaghetti with Broccoli and Garlic

Sometimes you just want a simple meal. I lack simple meals in my culinary repertoire. I usually like a challenge in the kitchen and learning new things - but there are some nights when you just want something easy that is healthy and tastes good. There are also some nights when you have a head of broccoli in your fridge from your CSA and need to figure out some way to use it. Well, if you are in similar straits, I have just the thing for you - Spaghetti with Broccoli and Garlic. (Doesn't it seem fancier than it really is when you capitalize the nouns? I think so.)

I've never had broccoli rabe which is what the recipe calls for, but I think you can reasonably substitute regular broccoli (you will just have a milder flavor and more florets than leaves). Well even if you can't, we did, and it turned out just fine. I only used 1/4 teaspoon of red pepper flakes, because our tastebuds are wimpy. Next time I would use a 1/2 teaspoon. I also used less olive oil, as 1/2 cup just seemed excessive. This was a great, easy one-pot meal. My husband helped me, so it was on the table in about 20 minutes. (He boiled the water and put the spaghetti in the pot. I know that does not seem like a great amount of help, but I am terrible at measuring out spaghetti and never make enough - so I prefer to let him do that step and that way I don't get scolded when we don't have enough spaghetti.) I'll make this again when I don't have time to cook something more elaborate. I like having pasta recipes that don't require a tomato sauce - it's nice to have a little variety.

Panfried Tofu with Asian Caramel Sauce

I am always looking for new ways to cook tofu - we like the taste and are both vegetarian sympathizers (we prefer eating vegetarian meals, but I will never turn a good steak down). I found this recipe and was intrigued by the prospect of making caramel sauce. I have only made caramel once - when I made praline for Thanksgiving and kind of burned it - but I was armed with experience this time and knew to watch the sugar more closely.

If you have never had Vietnamese-style caramel sauce, here is your chance. It is not anything like candy caramel, if you are concerned about that. It is a nice mix of sweet and savory. I didn't have shallots so I substituted the white parts of scallions, which turned out just fine. I skipped the fried shallots/scallions and didn't miss them. I also skipped the fresh basil and mint - I usually have those growing out on my patio, but I got lazy this year. I steamed the bok choy for about five minutes. I have always wanted a steamer but have never gotten around to buying one - then I read a tip online to just use a metal strainer over a pot of water - why didn't I think of that? Well, whoever did - genius! Thanks for saving me money.

We both really enjoyed the flavor of this dish. The bok choy goes wonderfully with the tofu and sauce - I have never made bok choy but I love the flavor. I would make this again, but unfortunately the recipe failed the dishes test. There were too many pots and pans that my husband had to clean, and he was not that thrilled with that. One pot for the sauce, one pot for the bok choy, and two skillets for the tofu (I don't have one that's big enough for all the slices). And of course a chopping board or two. So - when we live overseas and have a househelper to clean our dishes, yes, I would make this one again. Until then I think my hubby would prefer my one-pot meals.

One-Step Lasagna with Basil

Last week was "Use Up All The Ingredients In The Kitchen Week". One such an ingredient was ground beef. I had a couple pounds of ground beef in my freezer from when I made sloppy joe's for a work potluck, which was many moons ago. I found this recipe for lasagna and thought this was a perfect way to use up that brick of ground beef that was taking up room in my little freezer. I skipped the Italian sausage and just used all ground beef, and used Walmart brand spaghetti sauce, which we like just fine. I also threw in some oregano, marjoram, salt and pepper while I sauteed the beef. I thought this was pretty good, but a little too meaty for us. Maybe if I had used Italian sausage I would have liked it more. For ease of preparation, though, this recipe cannot be beat. This was a lot simpler to make than my usual butternut squash lasagna (which is delicious but very labor intensive).

I would use this recipe again, but maybe cut back on the meat (this is just personal preference since we are not big meat eaters). I would also try adding spinach or some other veggies just for variety.

Lentil Stew With Spinach and Potatoes

I am trying to expand my vegetarian repertoire. I found this one while searching for vegetarian main courses on Epicurious. We really like lentils, and they are a great source of protein. I didn't have vegetable broth, so I substituted chicken Better than Boullion - otherwise I followed the recipe. This was pretty good, a very hearty stew for being meatless. I thought it was a little too minty - mint was definitely the dominant flavor, and I would have liked to taste the lentils a little bit more. I will probably make this again sometime when I feel like I need some protein but don't want meat.

Arroz Caldo

Part two in reclaiming my Filipino culinary roots. I was home for the holidays and my dad made arroz caldo one night. I had not had my dad's arroz caldo in a long time, and it was so delicious and comforting. Arroz caldo is the ultimate Filipino comfort food - it is basically a thick, creamy chicken and rice soup. My dad gave me a Filipino cookbook while I was home, so I used its arroz caldo recipe tonight. I used chicken thighs and just cut them up into smaller pieces. My dad adds chicken bouillon, so I used that tonight too.

Arroz Caldo

1 1/2 pounds chicken, cut up into serving pieces
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 medium onion, sliced
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp fresh ginger, sliced thin
2 tbsp fish sauce (patis) - I use the Three Crabs brand
1 to 1 1/2 cups rice
6-7 cups water
2 tsp chicken boullion (or 2 cubes)
Chopped green onions (optional)
Salt and pepper

Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat, and saute the garlic until lightly browned. Add the onion and ginger and saute for another 3-4 minutes. Add the chicken and fish sauce and cook for a few minutes. Add the rice, water, and bouillon. Season with little salt and pepper. Simmer over medium-low heat for about 40 minutes, stirring occasionally. Continue cooking until the rice is cooked through and has reached the desired consistency (we like it thick). Adjust salt, pepper, and fish sauce to your liking. Garnish with green onions if desired.

Chicken Adobo

You probably cannot tell from my blog that I am Filipino, because I never make Filipino food. My excuse through the years has always been that Filipino food takes too long to cook - which is true. But then I realized, well, there are a lot of things that I make that take a long time to prepare, but I make them anyway - so that excuse doesn't really hold water anymore. I've also been inspired by Marvin at Burnt Lumpia to start reconnecting with my Filipino culinary roots. By the time I have children, I want them to appreciate at least some parts of our Filipino heritage. And what better dish to start with than chicken adobo?

Every Filipino family has their own recipe for adobo, depending on what part of the Philippines they are from. It's one of those Filipino dishes that you can count on being on the table at a Filipino party (along with pancit and lumpia). I copied down a recipe from my dad years ago for adobo (my dad is an awesome cook), but had never attempted to make it. It was kind of unnerving trying to learn how to make adobo from my dad, because he doesn't measure anything. Our conversation over a pot of pork adobo went something like this:

Dad: Ok, now you add some salt.
Me: Ok. How much salt?
Dad: (holds out his hand, cups his palm and pours some salt into it) This much.
Me: What is that, a teaspoon? Two teaspoons?
Dad: (incredulous) I don't know. (holds out his palm again) This much!

This week I finally pulled the recipe out of my recipe box and made it. In honor of my dad, I did not pull out the measuring spoons and just poured the salt into my palm. And oh, was it delicious. I felt like I was home. My house even smelled like my parents house for that hour or two (oh, the sweet smell of vinegar and garlic!).

Here is my dad's recipe for adobo. You can substitute 2 pounds of cubed pork (~1 inch cubes) for the chicken if you prefer.

Dad's Chicken Adobo

4 chicken thighs, skins removed
1 cup vinegar (I used apple cider vinegar)
1 cup water
6 cloves garlic, crushed
12 peppercorns
2 bay leaves
1 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1-2 tbsp soy sauce

Add everything except the soy sauce into a large saucepan. Bring to a boil for 15 minutes, covered. Lower the heat and simmer for an additional 20 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes, until desired doneness and the sauce is reduced to your liking. Add the soy sauce and stir until mixed in. Remove the bay leaves and serve over white rice.

Fettucine with Brussels Sprouts and Pine Nuts

I have only eaten Brussels sprouts a few times, but enough times to know that I did not like them. Naturally, my husband was a little surprised that I picked this one for dinner tonight. Well, I had just happened upon it on Epicurious, and it had gotten so many positive reviews... so I thought I'd give the old sprouts another shot. It had been a while since I had tried them, maybe I would love them now that I'm an adult.

Well, before tonight I hated Brussels sprouts, now I am more neutral. My husband and I thought this was good, but not enough to make us Brussels sprouts lovers. I am just not a fan of bitter greens. I guess they get bitter if you overcook them, so maybe I overcooked them... I sauteed them for 5 or 6 minutes when the recipe said 4 minutes, but the recipe said to saute them until they were lightly browned and they weren't lightly browned yet - so who knows if I overcooked them or not. I don't know if I would make this again, but I would eat Brussels sprouts again if offered.

Thai Chicken Curry

I'm getting back to my Asian roots and learning how to make some Asian cuisine now. I will confess that I am not Thai, but I really like the flavors of Thai cuisine. I found this recipe and made this for dinner this week. It was SO GOOD. It reminded me of the chicken curry at my favorite Thai restaurant, Mama Thai in Oak Park, Illinois. I doubled the green curry paste (bought the Thai Kitchen brand) - I started out with what the recipe called for and just added more to taste. The Thai Kitchen brand is not spicy at all, which is good because we are not spicy food people. I used green pepper instead of red, and threw in a few stalks of lemongrass when I added the chicken. I omitted the tomatoes, since that flavor combination just didn't seem right to me. I also just used chicken breasts instead of tenders and cut them into strips. This was excellent and I will definitely make this one again.

Thanksgiving Dinner

Here's my Thanksgiving recap. There were eight of us this year - me and my husband, my parents (who drove down from Chicago), and four international students from the local university whom we have become friends with. So naturally, I felt compelled to make more food this year. I mean, last year there were only five of us, so I had to make more so that we didn't, uh, run out. Truth be told, we were never in danger of running out of food. We probably had two-thirds of the food leftover even after all of us had stuffed ourselves to the point of discomfort. My main goal actually was to not cook for the rest of the long weekend for the four of us, and so far so good. Well without further ado, here's the recap on what I made this year:

The bird



I made the same turkey as I did last year - Alton Brown's brined turkey. I bought an 18 pounder, since we had a 15 pounder last year for the five of us. This year I knew better and started defrosting it on Sunday rather than Monday, and I did not forget to take out the neck bag from the inside of the turkey like I did last year. I was a little disappointed with the turkey this year. I overcooked it probably by half an hour. The recipe says cook until the breast was 161 degrees, and it kept staying in the 150s even though I was well past the estimated cooking time. I don't know if I just bought a bad meat thermometer or what. It took about 4 hours total to cook the turkey. I just remember it being so moist last year... although I think that I have romanticized my Thanksgiving dinner experience from last year since it was my first Thanksgiving dinner that I have ever made. Everything turned out so much better than I had expected last year, since my expectations were fairly low. So in my head, I think, the turkey I made had reached mythic proportions... it was so moist, so delicious, so flavorful! I think I just had such high expectations this year, since I have had a whole year to become better at cooking so I just assumed that this year's would be even better. Oh well. I think next time I will make a different turkey, just for variety's sake.

Wild Rice, Apple, and Dried Cranberry Stuffing


I made this one last year too. It was very good (a stick of butter certainly helps). I used Gala apples. I made two pans of it - we only ate 2/3rds of one pan on Thanksgiving, but then we had plenty of stuffing for four more meals over the weekend.

Roasted Carrots
Made this one last year, too, but this year I added the dill that the recipe calls for. I didn't read the recipe fully though, and added the dill before I roasted them rather than adding it at the end, which changed the flavor. My hubby and parents liked them this way though. I like carrots so much better roasted than raw or cooked on the stove - they become sweet, and I have read that they are better for you when they are roasted rather than raw. (I can't remember where I read this, but it was somewhere reputable. Trust me - I'm a doctor!).

Roasted Asparagus
This was a new one. Simple and good. I had to cook these probably about four minutes longer than the recipe called for. I made two bunches of asparagus but should have made three.

Basil Mashed Potatoes
This was loosely based on a Joy of Cooking recipe. I chopped up some fresh basil and threw it in there - makes it a little different. We used Yukon Gold potatoes.

Mashed Sweet Potatoes
Another JOC recipe. Same as last year, I used a little bit of fresh lemon juice and just a couple tablespoons of butter.

Pan Gravy
Same recipe as last year. It calls for three tablespoons of cornstarch - I needed four. It also calls for four cups of stock but I only used three - should have used four.

Cranberry Chutney and Cranberry Sauce
I made the cranberry sauce last year, but the cranberry chutney was new. I thought I'd try a non-sweet one so people could have a choice. I thought the vinegar was too strong of a flavor, but otherwise this was pretty good. My parents actually preferred this one over the sweet sauce, probably because Filipino food tends to be more savory than sweet. Maybe I would used one less shallot also.

Apple Pie
Apple pies are harder to make than you would think. I was disappointed with my apple pie last year, so I tried a different recipe this year for a more traditional apple pie. I used Pillsbury refrigerated crusts, and used Granny Smiths instead of McIntosh. I guess Granny Smiths release a lot of water when they cook, because a few hours later when I cut into the pie, I had apple soup at the bottom of it! But the taste and the texture was very good. I think if I make this one again, I will either use McIntosh apples, use more flour, or fewer apples. Sigh. I will keep trying.

Spiced Pumpkin Pie
I also tried a new pumpkin pie recipe, just to toss it up a little. My husband really liked this pie, but I thought the molasses flavor was too strong. I could not find light molasses, so I used about 3/4 tablespoon of full molasses instead. I think I would prefer it without molasses entirely. I doubled the spices, which was just right.

Vermont Maple Bread Pudding with Walnut Praline
This was really, really good. The bread pudding is pretty rich though - eight eggs, one quart of cream, one cup of sugar, one cup of maple syrup... My Dad asked if I could give them the recipe, and I told him no, because I love my father and I want him to live for a long time. Once a year eating this is probably plenty. I thought the praline was good, but not really necessary. I cooked the sugar a little too long, so it had a faint burnt flavor (I think I toasted the walnuts one minute too long too). Next time I would only cook the sugar just long enough for it to turn brown. I had decreased the temperature on the stove when the sugar started boiling, but I needed to keep it at high until it melted. The praline was really tasty mixed in with vanilla ice cream.

Vanilla Ice Cream, Philadelphia-Style
This was my first egg-less ice cream that I have made at home. I, of course, used David Lebovitz's book The Perfect Scoop for this one. This was good - tasty, but not too rich since there were no eggs in it. I used 2 cups cream and 1 cup milk. I think it would be better if I had a really good vanilla extract - I used McCormick's which I think is just so-so. We used to have a big bottle of vanilla from Mexico that smelled and tasted awesome, but then I found out that most cheap Mexican vanilla is fake and contains rat poison, I poured it down the drain. I would like to get a bottle of Penzey's vanilla but it's so darn expensive.

Overall, the meal was a success. Everything was good, and everyone left with an overstuffed belly.

Orzo with Shrimp, Feta Cheese, and White Wine

I made this one for dinner this week. We had chicken and tofu other nights this week, and I was just feeling like shrimp. I had all the ingredients for this one on hand except white wine. We don't drink wine, so I had to go to my friendly neighborhood liquor store and pick up some. It was actually a fairly classy liquor store, right next to Kroger; lots of frou-frou wines with names that I had never heard of. I picked up a four pack of little single serving wine bottles (Sutter Home Sauvignon Blanc) - got that tip from the Chowhound forums. Apparently, opened wine goes bad, some say after three days. Now, I don't even like the taste of wine, so I probably wouldn't be able to tell a good wine from a rancid one. But the little four pack cost six dollars, and that way I don't waste a whole bottle of wine for one dish, when all I need is half a cup. Now I have three more little bottles for the next time I need white wine to cook with. So that's my tip for the day.

This dish tasted good, but was a little disappointing. One, because you could not really taste the feta. There were too many strong flavors in this recipe and they competed with one another. If I made it again, I would cut the amount of oregano and crushed red pepper in half, and cut down on the basil a little bit. Two, my husband took one bite and declared that it needed more tomato sauce. So he goes to the fridge and pulls out some Walmart spaghetti sauce and pours some onto his dinner! After I slaved over a hot stove to make a fresh, home-cooked meal - he puts Walmart sauce on top of it! He kind of sensed that I was not happy with his desecration of the dinner I cooked for us, and asked me if this was comparable to the time we had an acquaintance over for dinner (for Greek chicken kabobs over white rice) and she asked for salsa to put on the white rice. Now, if you want to insult an Asian person, an easy way to do this is put bottled salsa on top of white rice. My jaw may have dropped when she asked for salsa, I can't really remember.

Anyway, I will probably not make this again just because my husband didn't like it, even though overall I did. It's no fun cook things for dinner that are only enjoyed by half the people eating it. This did taste better the next day, though, after the flavors melded a little bit. Though I still really couldn't taste the feta.

Mediterranean Couscous Salad with Roasted Vegetables

Tried this one recently because I had some couscous that I needed to use. I skipped the eggplant, only had one zucchini, subbed onions for leeks, and used more bell peppers to make up for the lack of other veggies. I also did not use olives or capers. I do recognize that my omissions and substitutions basically change the whole recipe, so I cannot comment on the actual recipe. This was okay; I guess I am just not a huge fan of couscous. I like the quinoa salads I have made so much more. If I made this again I would definitely use more zucchini and perhaps an eggplant, although my husband is not a big fan of them. I would also use the capers, but my husband does not like olives so I would continue to omit those. Yes, my husband is somewhat picky.

Penne with Garlicky Butternut Squash

I usually make soup or lasagna with butternut squash, but I didn't feel like dirtying up the food processor tonight. I tried this penne recipe - skipped the parsley, used ground sage, and only used half the amount of penne that it called for as that was all I had. I probably used 3/4 cups of water too. This was good - not great like some of other ways I have tried butternut, but good. If I made this with a whole pound of penne, I would double the amount of squash to eight cups for sure.

Pesto and Shrimp Pizza

Made this one up last night. I made the crust using frozen bread dough like I described in this post. I made the pesto recipe in the Joy of Cooking, which is delicious. I've never made pesto before but it's really easy - just put fresh basil, pine nuts, Parmesan cheese, garlic, and olive oil in a food processor and blend the heck out of it. I spread that onto my pizza crust, then topped it with cooked shrimp, red onion, a sprinkling of dried red pepper flakes, and mozzarella cheese. It was pretty good for something that I made up.

Potato, Carrot, and Parsnip Soup

I've never cooked with parsnips before, but we got some in our CSA basket this past week, and I am almost always willing to try something once. I was a little wary, because I have never even eaten a parsnip, and "parsnip" just sounds too similar to "turnip", which I have already discovered to be a really, really nasty vegetable.

Good thing I'm a food risk-taker. I found this soup recipe and had most of the ingredients on hand, so I made this last night. I skipped the parsley, subbed a pinch of dried thyme for fresh, yellow potatoes for red, and white wine for sherry. This is a great fall soup - hearty from all the chunks of vegetables, yet with a smooth rich flavor. I was pleasantly surprised by the parsnips. If I ever get parsnips again I know what I'm going to make.

Pad Thai

There are no good, cheap Thai restaurants in the Tri-Cities, so I decided to take matters into my own hands and learn how to make pad thai. I've tried making it before but it just turned out bad. Then I found this recipe on how to make authentic, beginner level pad thai. I used white sugar instead of palm sugar, green onions instead of chives, and skipped the optional stuff because I knew my husband would not eat pickled turnips and dried shrimps. I used the fish sauce with the three crabs on it, which is a lot better than the other fish sauce I have tried. I bought a cheap wok from Walmart (it'll do) and cooked this up after seasoning the wok.

I was very happy with how this turned out. Since this was the first time I had cooked with a wok I didn't quite fry the tofu long enough - they started to look brown but they did not get crispy. But overall the flavor was very good, it was quick, and a lot less oily than I have had it at some Thai restaurants. Great pad thai and I will look no further for a recipe.