Lard Na

I am trying to expand my Thai cooking repertoire.  Since I can now make a pretty satisfying dish of Pad See-Ew (my favorite Thai dish), I've been thinking about trying to make Lard Na, which used to be my favorite Thai dish until it was usurped by Pad See-Ew.  The dishes are really cousins...they have similar ingredients, just that Lard Na has a gravy sauce over the noodles and Pad See-Ew is a dry noodle dish.  For any one who is wondering, Lard Na (also sometimes spelled as Lad Na) has nothing to do with lard or fat.  In thai, "lard" or "lad" means "to pour" and "Na" means "face." So the name of the dish means "to pour over the face" since the gravy is poured on top of the noodles.

I made this dish when our friends came over for lunch this past weekend.  I have to say it turned out pretty authentic and we ate all of it!  

I found a few recipes online but ultimately went with one at this blog.   I slightly modified the recipe. 

Lard Na

Ingredients:
16 oz. fresh wide rice noodles
2 tablespoons thick dark soy sauce
4 chicken breast tenderloins, sliced thinly
2 cups gai lan (chinese broccoli), chopped coarsely
4 cloves garlic, chopped finely
1/2 teaspoon bean sauce
2 cups chicken broth
1/2 cup water
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon fish sauce
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
3 tablespoons cornstarch

Directions:
1. Marinate the chicken in 1 tablespoon tapioca flour and 1 tablespoon water.

2. While the chicken is marinating, saute the garlic on medium heat until golden brown.  Then add the yellow bean sauce and saute for 1-2 more minutes.  Add the marinated chicken and cook until it's done.

3. Turn the heat up to high and add 2 cups chicken broth.  Let the mixture boil while you add the oyster sauce, sugar, fish sauce, and black pepper.  Adjust these seasonings to your taste. 

4.  Add the gai lan.  Then mix 2 tablespoons cornstarch with 1/2 cup of water.  Slowly add this mixture to the pot, stirring as you add.  The final sauce should be fairly thick and somewhat sticky.  Once it's done, turn the heat the low to keep warm while you prepare the noodles.

5. Saute noodles in a pan over high heat with a little olive oil and 2 tablespoons thick dark soy sauce until noodles are slightly charred.

6.  Pour the sauce on top of the noodles.