Summer And The Weather Is Happy

Thursdays are often overlooked.

On Thursdays people long for Fridays.

Fridays signal the start of a weekend. 

The start of a break and a rest from the hum drum of a five day working week. Songs are written about Fridays, restaurants are named after Fridays and events are planned for Friday nights. 

But what about Thursdays?

Thursdays can be special too. 

Kind of like the quiet before the storm. 

A nice dinner at home with just the family or a loved one. 

Maybe try that new recipe you've been meaning to attempt.

Or finish that velvet red scarf which has been lying half finished in that basket in your room for nearly 3 years. 

A night for some casual shopping or an at home blockbuster screening.

Thursdays are full of possibilities.

Which is why I now declare... New blog post every Thursday!

On a side note, summer has most definitely been decidedly strange this year. Made a trip to the Suzuki Night Market last night and it was freezing! 

The rain came down on us too but we got to eat amazing food. 

Paella, chicken burrito, pork crackling, a spicy kangaroo burger, potato tornadoes as Tony calls them, calamari, and red bean Taiyaki, a sweet, waffle like, fish shaped, Japanese dessert filled with red bean or custard. Ash and I got one of each! But Theresa preferred her Dutch Poffertjes with maple syrup.

Most memorable quote of the night came from two strangers behind us while we were waiting for our Taiyaki.

Girl 1: What are those? Are they fishy?

Girl 2: Yeah they look like fish. They have fish in them!

Girl 3: Oh okay, I don't want any then.

Unfortunately they walked away before I could enlighten them. Hopefully one day someone will explain what taiyaki are to them so they don't miss out on how amazing it is!

This recipe came from a craving for Pad Thai, obviously. And an extra hand in the kitchen from Ash. The first time we made it took quite a long time just to prepare all the ingredients. But the second time I made it on my lonesome and it was much faster. So maybe we just didn't know what we were doing. Anyway, the effort is definitely worth the final product.

Pad Thai

Adapted from Kitchen by Australian Women's Weekly

Serves up to 6

Ingredients

500g uncooked medium king prawns

1/4 cup (85g) tamarind concentrate

1/3 cup (80ml) sweet chilli sauce

3 tablespoons fish sauce

1 bunch coriander leaves, chopped roughly, stems finely chopped

2 cups (160g) bean sprouts

4 spring onions, sliced

275g dried rice stick noodles, the thin kind

1 tablespoon peanut oil or any other vegetable oil

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

4cm piece (20g) fresh ginger, finely chopped

1 small birds eye chilli, optional or to taste, finely chopped

500g pork mince

2 eggs, beaten lightly

1/4 (20g) cup fried shallots

1/4 cup (35g) roasted unsalted peanuts, roughly chopped

2 limes, quartered

Method

Prepare all ingredients as specified above. 

Shell and devein prawns, slice in half lengthways.

Combine tamarind and sauces in a small jug.

Reserve some coriander leaves for garnishing at the end.

Place noodles in a heatproof bowl and cover with boiling water. Let them soak, stirring occasionally, until just softened. They should still be slightly hard as they will cook again later.

Heat oil in wok, cook the egg as you would cook an omelette, working quickly, remove and cut into small strips.

Stir fry garlic, ginger, coriander stems and chili until everything smells awesome. Add the pork and mix it around until it is cooked and then add the egg back into the pan. Here is where things get interesting. 

Add the prawns, bean sprouts, spring onion, noodles, coriander, and cook until everything is combined. Add the tamarind mixture, stir so that everything is mixed together and season with extra fish sauce or sugar or tamarind concentrate to taste.

Divide mixture among bowls and garnish with with fried shallots, peanuts, lime and reserved coriander.