It’s nearly impossible to deny that the ultimate comfort food is a generous combination of warm and savory noodles drowning in delicious sauce. Unfortunately, it’s also impossible to deny that most of these comfort foods are anything but comforting to our waistlines!
Take the oh-so-delicious Pad Thai dish for example: according to Livestrong.com, “when you eat at a restaurant, your plate will almost certainly hold more than 13 ounces of Pad Thai. A full restaurant serving may contain upwards of 1,000 calories and a hefty dose of fat and sodium” – and that’s before the chef adds the meat, peanuts and various side dishes and sauces! With a caloric load of that magnitude, the simple dish can quickly become a catastrophic day’s worth of calories in one meal!
If you’re like me or any other fitness-minded individual who loves their Pad Thai, you’ve probably hoped and dreamed for a more macro-friendly version of the classic Thai food staple. Fortunately for you, I decided to put my culinary skills to the test, and after many years of trial and error I have finally perfected what I am pleased to announce as a 100% healthy and macronutrient-friendly Pad Thai sauce!
Below you will find the recipe for said sauce (macros included for those who track), along with a recipe for a complete Chicken Pad Thai dish! Now, it’s time to get cooking and enjoy your ultimate comfort food, guilt-free!
Pad Thai Sauce
Ingredients For Sauce
? 1 tbsp. Soy Sauce
? 2 tbsp. (creamy) Almond Butter
? ½ cup Water
? Fresh Cilantro (roughly 5 strands,finely diced)
? 1/8 Minced Ginger
? 1/8 Minced Garlic
? 1/8 Onion Powder
? Stevia (granulated) or Raw Sugar (to taste / desired sweetness)
? Crushed Red Chili Flakes (to desired spiciness)
? Ground Cayenne Pepper (to desired spiciness)
Method
1. Whisk together the Soy Sauce and Almond Butter until a fine paste is formed
2. Add water, stirring into Soy/Almond paste until even distributed
3. Whisk together Cilantro, Ginger, Garlic and Onion into the Soy/Almond sauce
4. Add stevia/sugar, chili flakes & cayenne pepper to the sauce
5. Whisk together and taste (the sauce should taste just like a restaurant’s Pad Thai)
6. If adjustments are needed you can add more Stevia/Sugar, Chili Flakes or Cayenne Pepper
Your sauce is now complete! (makes 1 serving)
The Complete Healthy Pad Thai Entrée
Ingredients
? Water (for boiling)
? 4oz (dry measured) Rice Noodles
? PAM non-stick cooking spray
? 3oz cooked & shredded Chicken Breast
? 1 serving of Healthy Pad Thai Sauce (see attached recipe)
? 3 Green Onions (finely chopped)
? 2 tbsp. Crushed Peanuts
Method
1. Boil Water and add the noodles until slightly less than al dente - then drain
2. Spray PAM into a medium-sized cooking pan and heat the pan
3. Add noodles & chicken to the heated pan and stir
4. Add ¾ of the Healthy Pad Thai Sauce to the pan (you’ll want to save ¼ of the sauce for later)
5. Stir together the Noodles, Chicken and Healthy Pad Thai Sauce until fully heated and distributed (the sauce should be partially absorbed by the noodles – if not, continue to cook until this happens)
6. Transfer the Noodle Mixture into a personal serving bowl
7. Pour the remaining ¼ of your Healthy Pad Thai Sauce evenly atop your Noodle Mixture in the bowl
8. Garnish the Pad Thai Noodle Mixture with Green Onions and Crushed Peanuts
Your Healthy Pad Thai entrée is now complete… Enjoy! (makes 1 serving)
Masters, Jacob S. “Healthy Pad Thai (sauce).” Jacob Masters’ Recipes. MyFitnessPal.com, 08 Jan. 2017. Web. 16 Jan. 2017.
