Raw pad thai with kelp noodles and tamarind sauce

Here is a raw reading of the great Thai classic: sea bean noodles (also called sea spaghetti) and a whole rainbow of julienned vegetables, coated in a tangy tamarind sauce, then finished with cashews sharpened with lime. The key to the dish lies in the marinade: letting the vegetables soak for at least an hour in the refrigerator is what gives them depth without any of them ever meeting a pan. Tamarind pulp, dissolved in hot water and worked with a fork to remove the seeds, brings the fruity acidity that makes the whole character of this dish and that no lemon really replaces. Sea bean, for its part, only needs a brief desalting: it keeps its crunch even once coated in sauce, which stops the dish collapsing the way rice noodles would. The recipe deliberately makes more sauce than needed, enough to keep in the refrigerator for a salad or some crunchy vegetables over the following days. Serve generously, with an extra squeeze of lime and a handful of coriander just before sitting down.

Ingredients

Pad thai sauce

• 1/2 cup soaked and strained tamarind pulp
• 1 cup hot water
• 1 medium tomato
• 1/2 Thai chilli, or to taste
• 1 medium garlic clove
• 1 small shallot
• 1/4 cup shoyu
• 1 tablespoon lime juice
• 1/4 cup sesame oil
• 1 tablespoon agave

Vegetables

• 1 head baby bok choy, roughly chopped
• 1 medium carrot, diced or julienned
• 1 medium courgette, diced or julienned
• 1 medium orange or red bell pepper, julienned
• 1 large king oyster mushroom, sliced (or a handful of sliced shiitake or other mushrooms)
• 1 cup snow peas, thinly sliced on the diagonal
• 3 spring onions, sliced, the white plus about 8 cm of green

Vegetable marinade

• 1/4 cup shoyu
• 1 tablespoon lime juice
• A drizzle of olive oil
• 2 tablespoons of the pad thai sauce (from above)

Noodles

• Two 340 g packages of fresh sea bean seaweed, cut into 8-10 cm lengths

To finish

• 1/2 cup chopped cashews
• A drizzle of sesame oil
• A pinch of sea salt (the equivalent of 1 tablespoon - 15 ml - of seawater)
• A handful of coriander
• Extra lime juice, for drizzling

Preparation

1. Take the sea bean seaweed out of its packet and soak it briefly in water for a first desalting. Rinse, discard the water, then soak it for two to three minutes in clean water. Rinse again (a third time if it still tastes salty), drain and cut into 8-10 cm lengths. Set aside.
2. Cut a block of tamarind pulp about 5 cm square and dissolve it in the hot water, working it with a fork to remove the seeds and form a smooth paste; let it soak for about fifteen minutes.
3. In a high-speed blender, blend the tomato, chilli, garlic, shallot, shoyu, lime juice, sesame oil and agave, then add the tamarind paste and blend again until smooth. Set the extra sauce aside for later.
4. Toss all the cut vegetables together in a large bowl.
5. Whisk the marinade ingredients together, pour them over the vegetables and mix until everything is coated. Refrigerate for at least an hour.
6. Add the desalted, cut sea bean seaweed to the marinated vegetables along with about half the remaining sauce, and toss with tongs until well distributed.
7. Toss the chopped cashews with a little salt and sesame oil, then scatter them over the dish. Drizzle with lime juice and crown with coriander before serving.

Tip

Don't skip desalting the sea bean before cutting it: a rinse that's too quick leaves a briny taste that stands out even more under the tamarind sauce. If preparing the dish ahead, keep the sea bean and marinated vegetables on one side and the sauce on the other, and bring everything together only at serving time so nothing releases water.

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