This recipe for vegan pad thai has become a regular in our weeknight dinner rotation and I’ve been meaning to share. I found this recipe after checking out The Vegan Table from the library and getting a recommendation from Steph to try the pad thai. Such good advice!

There’s a bit of chopping involved and some staged cooking and whisking of the sauce but once you’ve made this Pad Thai a couple of times it comes together really fast. We use whatever veggies we have on hand, sometimes it’s just broccoli but I also love the meatiness of sauteed mushrooms and the crunch of snow peas. We use rice noodles (from Trader Joe’s of course!) but next time we want to try whole wheat spaghetti to up the protein and fiber. 

Weeknight (Vegan) Pad Thai
adapted slightly from The Vegan Table

For the sauce:
1/4 c. peanut butter (I prefer natural, smooth or crunchy is fine)
1/4 c. brown sugar
1/3 c. low sodium soy sauce
juice of one lime
1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes
2-3 garlic cloves, minced

Additional ingredients:
8 oz rice noodles or whole wheat spaghetti
1 pkg extra firm tofu (our favorite is the high protein tofu at Trader Joe’s)
chopped veggies such as broccoli, mushrooms, or bell peppers
other veggies as desired such as: shredded carrots, snow peas, scallions
crushed peanuts and cilantro for garnish, if desired

Directions: Whisk together the peanut butter, brown sugar, soy sauce, lime juice, red pepper flakes, and minced garlic. I prefer to do this in a liquid measuring cup so that it’s easy to pour later. Set aside.

Saute tofu until golden brown, remove from pan and set aside. Saute vegetables in a large pan until cooked to desired tenderness. I usually start off with the broccoli and mushrooms together with a glug of olive oil and then add the carrots and snow peas towards the end, probably a total of about 20 minutes.

Towards the end of cooking the vegetables, cook noodles according to package directions. Rice noodles only need to be cooked for a brief minute so take note! No one likes gummy rice noodles.

Finally, combine tofu, cooked veggies and noodles in the large pan, pour in the sauce and toss until thoroughly combined. Serve immediately and top with crushed peanuts, chopped cilantro and a lime wedge, if desired.