Pad Kee Mao with Ground Turkey and Spinach

I hadn’t planned on writing up this recipe (and hence the lack of photos), but it was very good and came together quickly for a week night meal.

Pad Kee Mao (Drunken Noodles) with sliced beef is one of our favorite noodle dishes from the local thai restaurant.  Typically it is made with Thai basil and not baby spinach.  But since I didn’t have Thai basil on hand and I was overstocked on spinach and planning a one pot meal, the substitution was made.  I also dialed way back on the heat factor due to a family plea for mild.  C'est la vie.

In the end, this turned into more of a Pad thai meets pad kee mao with Pad see ew thrown in for good measure.  Next time, I will probably add another pack of noodled and cook in two batches, or dial back on the meat.  The bean sprouts gave the dish a nice crunch. 

 In the end this was a very good dish  and made for an enjoyable meal that will definitely be made again.  ( I am already recieving requests!)

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Pad Kee Mao with Ground Turkey and Spinach Recipe Serves : 4                                                 Prep Time:    15 min                          Cook Time:  15 min INGREDIENTS 1 7-ounce package wide rice noodles 1/8 cup oyster sauce 1/8 cup fish sauce freshly squeezed juice from one lime about 1/8  cup and ½ of zest 1 tablespoon sugar 3 tablespoons vegetable oil Couple of splashes of Toasted Sesame oil ½  medium onion peeled and thinly sliced 3 medium garlic cloves, peeled and minced 1 pound ground turkey 1 tablespoon oyster sauce ½ tablespoon fish sauce 1 medium orange bell peppers, thinly sliced 2 large eggs, lightly beaten 1 medium jalapeño peppers, thinly sliced --  up the heat as per your diner’s tastes 5 cups loosely packed baby spinach ½ pound fresh bean sprouts Sriachi or sambal as condiment to increase the heat DIRECTIONS Place noodles in a large bowl and cover with boiling water. Soak for about 15 minutes, until loose but not soft; drain and set aside. Meanwhile, combine oyster sauce, fish sauce,  sugar and lime juice in a medium bowl, mix well, and set aside Combine Ground turkey, with 1 tablespoon of oyster sauce and ½ tablespoon of fish sauce and let marinate as noodles soak. Get all the ingredients chopped, sliced and ready to go. Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in pan or wok along with splash of sesame oil.  Get pan as hot as possible and add noodles and toss to coat with oil.  Add a tablespoon or so of the sauce that you prepared.  Toss the whole thing again quickly to evenly distribute the sauce.  Spread the noodles around the pan a bit to maximize the contact with the heat.  Add more oil if the noodles stuck to the pan.  When the noodles are done, cooked through and nicely browned in parts, transfer them to a plate and set aside. Add remaining oil with another splash of sesame oil.  Once heated, add onion and garlic and cook for 2 minutes or until softened but not brown. Add ground turkey and break into small pieces. Cook until turkey is white and almost cooked through, about 3 minutes. Add bell peppers and stir-fry just until they begin to soften, about 5 minutes. Add remaining sauce, jalapeños and spinach, ½ of bean sprouts, and toss to combine and cook until spinach is just wilted.  Add to noodles.  Add eggs to pan, scramble with a spatula until eggs are set and don’t run, about 1 minute. Add egg to noodles and turkey mixture along with remaining bean sprouts.  Toss to coat and combine. Serve with Sriachi, sambal or hot oil to allow for heat adjustments based on taste.