Vegan Week, Dish 7: Pad See Ew

This Thai dish, when translated literally, means "Stir-Fry Soy Sauce." The dish came out really good, but was lacking that traditional Pad See Ew flavor. After doing a bit of research, I discovered what I did wrong. It's not called "Stir-Fry Soy Sauce" for nothing. I used the soy sauce I had in my pantry, but the dish needs the right soy sauces in order to get the right flavors: sweet dark soy sauce and a light soy sauce. I used a regular dark soy sauce and my old favorite, Golden Mountain, which I guess you would probably categorize in the dark soy sauce family, too. Don't make my mistake if you want the same flavors that you'd get in the restaurants. Look for "Dark Sweet Soy Sauce" and a "Light Soy Sauce", not to be mistaken with "Low Sodium Soy Sauce." The word "light" does not refer to the sodium intake, or even the color, but the taste. Light soy sauce does not taste as salty as the darker soy sauce. If you don't already have the right soy sauces and don't care to go searching for them, then I recommend adding a couple more tablespoons of sugar (more or less to taste) to obtain that bit of sweetness that the dish is supposed to have.

Ingredients
14 oz package XL flat rice noodles
3 tbs dark sweet soy sauce
1 bunch Chinese broccoli, leaves and stems separated, stems cut at an angle (about 3 cups)
10 oz package extra firm tofu, cut into strips
10 oz package soft tofu, roughly cubed for scrambling
1 tbs minced garlic
1 tbs sugar
1 tbs light soy sauce
3 tbs mushroom sauce
2 tsp vinegar
2 fresh Thai chilies (optional)
1/4 cup vegetable oil

Directions
1 In a bowl, mix together the sugar, light soy sauce, mushroom sauce, vinegar and Thai chilies. Set aside.
2 Heat oil in wok on high heat and add garlic. Toss till fragrant.
3 Add extra firm tofu and dark sweet soy sauce. Stir-fry 2-3 minutes.

4 Add noodles and cook about 5 minutes, continuously folding in noodles to incorporate with the rest of the ingredients.

5 Push everything in wok to the side and add soft tofu cubes. Scramble, then toss with the rest of the ingredients.

6 Add Chinese broccoli and sauce mixture and stir fry for another 5-7 minutes, until noodles are cooked and broccoli is crisp-tender.
7 Serve immediately.