This is a pretty darn tasty recipe for Pad Thai that is thrown together with a little bit of everything. It is a great meal option for when you look into the pantry and all you see are odds and ends. This dish is also perfect for all those hungry college students who are tired of eating cereal for every meal, but can’t afford takeout.
You know what I hate? Hate is a strong word, I know. But I hate this one thing. I really hate when you are so hungry that you are like starving, and you can’t find anything to eat. Um, Karlie, starving is also a strong word…
Okay, sorry. So I’m not really ever starving. But you know those times when you are like really, reallllly hungry and it’s like so hungry that you don’t want to go out and buy food and you just want to eat something from home because you’re THAT hungry…but you can’t come up with anything to make so it is making you angry? Yeah, that is what I hate. I hate being hangry. Anybody know if they’ve put hangry into the dictionary yet…? It kinda seems like it should be since “selfie” is officially a word. Selfies…bleh. That’s another thing I hate. Okay, [end rant].
On to the good stuff!
So, yeah. This Pantry Pad Thai is flavorful, fast, and really easy to throw together. You can make it using whatever noodles you’ve got at home, a few dashes of this and that, and some peanut butter. The peanut butter is the game-changer here. I think peanut butter is just about the only thing that is absolutely necessary to make this recipe work. I added shrimp because it packs a little protein and because I am not in college anymore, so I can afford it 😉 
Before you do anything, you’ll want to whisk together the sauce and let those flavors hang out and mingle for a little while. After you get the sauce party started, you want to cook the noodles. If you are adding shrimp or veggies, boil the noodles first and then right before the noodles are done, throw in the shrimp (and/or veggies). After that, you just mix it all together and eat! 
Pantry Pad Thai
Ingredients:
- 1/4 cup peanut butter of choice
- 2 tablespoons of soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon of ginger
- 2 tablespoons of lemon or lime juice
- 1 teaspoon of honey
- 1/4 teaspoon of garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon red pepper or a squeeze of Sriracha
- 1/2 lb of noodles of choice (spaghetti, linguine, or even ramen would work)
- 20 frozen shrimp (optional)
- frozen vegetable mix (optional)
- 1 egg (optional)
- red onion (optional)
- 1/4 cup of coconut (optional)
- 1/4 cup of fresh cilantro (optional)
What to do:
- Fill a medium-sized pot with water and place on stovetop set to HIGH. Boil water.
- While waiting for water to boil- In a small bowl, whisk together peanut butter, ginger, honey, lemon juice, garlic powder, and red pepper. Set aside.
- Once water is boiling, add noodles. Cook noodles for about 7 minutes.
- **If adding frozen shrimp and/or vegetables, add to pot with noodles and cook an additional 2 minutes or until shrimp is slightly pink. Remove pot from heat.
- Drain water from pot of noodles/shrimp/vegetables.
- Pour sauce mixture over noodles and shrimp and combine.
Optional steps (to continue from step 6):
- Crack one egg into hot pan on stove, as if making scrambled eggs. Break yolk.
- Add some chopped red onion and coconut to frying pan, stirring together. Cook just for a minute or two until egg is cooked and you can smell the onion.
- Add egg mixture to noodle dish.
- Top with chopped cilantro for added flavor.
- Serve immediately and enjoy!
Notes: This dish is best served warm and immediately after prepared. If refrigerated, warm in microwave for a few minutes the next day. I hope you like it!
Karlie and Oats 