Ever crave something a little different?

I’ll admit I’m somewhat of a picky eater (OK, very picky), but I love ethnic dishes. I’m talking about entrees beyond burritos and pasta.

My favorite is Thai food. These are two of the best recipes I have. Both are easy to make, but are time consuming and can be tricky.

Each requires patience and some practice. Both are real crowd pleasers — very impressive at dinner parties.

A few hints … Be sure and leave the Pad Thai noodle a little hard after soaking. They’ll continue to cook in the wok. If they are too soft, you’ll end up with a mushy ball. It still tastes good, but the noodles should actually be separated from each other. And roll those spring rolls very gently. That rice paper is fragile. It’s unlikely any two will look alike. That’s OK.

Have any ethnic dishes to share? I'll whip them up and post the results online and in the Reporter-News.

E-mail me your recipes by CLICKING HERE

Pad Thai
Ingredients:
Pad Thai noodles
2-3 eggs
chopped green onion
2 Tablespoons Fish Sauce
1 Cup chopped dry roasted peanuts (unsalted)
1 bag bean sprouts
1/2 Cup sugar
2 Tablespoons vegetable oil
fried tofu/chicken cubes/shrimp
Garnish:
Limes
Crushed red chili peppers
Directions:
Soak noodles in warm water until barely hard; don’t cook completely. Heat oil in a wok or large pan. Add noodles a little at a time with onions. Add eggs and Fish Sauce. Stir until noodles soften. Add tofu/chicken/shrimp, sugar, sprouts and about half the peanuts. Stir.
Garnish individual servings with peanuts and crushed peppers. Squeeze fresh lime juice on top.

Spring rolls
Ingredients:
Rice paper
Rice noodles
Baby shrimp (salad sized)
Red leaf lettuce
Cucumber
Rice noodles
Directions:
Immerse rice paper in water. (Using a jelly roll pan with just enough water to cover the bottom works best.) Lay the rice paper flat. Fill will above ingredients and fold like a tortilla.
For dipping, make a side of peanut sauce:
Boil:
Hoisin sauce
Peanut sauce
a little water
1 teaspoon sugar
a little garlic
a little hot sauce