Although it is not always possible to travel wherever we want, whenever we want - it is still possible to get a taste of a different culture in the comfort of our own home.

How?

With food, of course!

Nowadays it is possible to get your hands on the most varied ingredients from all over the world, so you can experiment in cooking dishes from Asia, Europe, South America… What is also fun, I think, is mixing and matching the ingredients in order to create interesting and unique fusion recipes. This is how I came up with a super delicious Pad Thai twist, where I used egg tagliatelle and mushrooms instead of rice noodles and tofu - way to bring on that Italian style into the most famous Thai staple!

Yield: 2 portions

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cooking time: 15 minutes

What you’ll need for the sauce:

- ¼ cup fish sauce

- 1 tsp palm sugar (I used brown sugar)

- ¼ cup sriracha sauce

- 1 tsp tamarind sauce (I used a mix of grated ginger and 1 tsp of lemon juice)

What you’ll need for the Pad Tha-gliatelle:

- 1 tbsp sliced shallot

- ¼ cup chives

- ¼ cup mushrooms (instead of tofu)

- ½ package of egg tagliatelle (instead of stick rice noodles)

- 1 cup soy bean sprouts

- 1 egg

- roasted peanuts to taste

- sesame seeds to taste

If you are using dried mushrooms, soak them into water before cooking.

For the sauce, put the ingredients in a nonstick pan and cook until boiling, then turn off the heat.

In a bigger pan, put some olive oil and let the shallots stir-fry for a minute. Then add in the mushrooms and cook until they become softer. You can now add the bean sprouts and keep cooking at medium-low.

In the meantime, cook the egg tagliatelle as indicated on the package (usually less than 5 minutes), and once ready, incorporate them with the mushrooms and bean sprouts, and stir-fry together for a minute or two.

Push them on the side of the pan, and in the empty space, crack an egg open and cook it well to incorporate it with the rest.

Once everything is ready, add in the chives, the sauce, and top with roasted peanuts and sesame seeds.
This recipe is super quick and easy, and it is going to blow away your taste buds!

Enjoy!