Sometimes eaten as lunch and sometimes as a snack, phad Thai is probably the most well-known dish in Thailand after tom yam goong. This dish looks deceptively simple, but believe me, it isn’t easy to do well. Newbies are very likely to fail. Well, this is my first attempt at phad Thai goong sot. Let’s see how it works out and what are some of the lessons learned.

Garlic and shallots. The standard for most stir-fry dishes. Just dice them up nicely.

Rice stick noodles. Kway teow sen lek. This is the Vietnamese version. Soak it for about an hour. Don’t expect it to turn soft as bee hoon.

The bulk of the other ingredients are here. I have tau kwa or pressed tofu cut into small cubes, some preserved radish, prawns, eggs, bean sprouts, chives, ground peanuts.

Heat up the wok, fry the shallots and garlic till they begin to brown.

Add the tofu and radish first. Stir fry for a few minutes, then add the prawns, followed by the noodles. To the noodles, I would add 2 tablespoons of tamarind juice and the same amount of sugar dissolved in 1 cup of water. Adding some oil at the side, I would cook the eggs, then mix them with the rest of the noodles.

Finally, ban sprouts and chives. Toss everything nicely around until the vegetables are cooked.

And here’s my phad Thai goong sot. Do try this at home. Your kids may like it.

Chan Joon Yee is the author of Spellbound in Chiangmai, a collection of short stories based on sheltered and simple Singaporeans’ misadventures in the Land of Smiles.