I warmed it on the stovetop (not microwave) and found it lacking, but acceptable.
After adding:
- tamarind paste,
- onions,
- bell peppers,
- a thai hot pepper,
and then topping with:
- cilantro,
- fresh lime, and
- some chopped up roasted peanuts,
… the additions (standard ingredients) made it much better.
Still, it was missing the contrast of bean sprouts. It isn;t the same without them and if I’d had bean sprouts, I would have added, but at that point I might have opted to just make my own pad thai – which would have tasted better for almost the same amount of cook/prep time.
It is easy insta-food, so just look at it as a day without needing to plan or cook. That said, if you have roasted peanuts and/or cilantro to use as garnish, I think both will improve the meal.
I’ll have to pick up some cilantro the next time I go to the grocery store. I have lime juice I can add, and we’re peanut free at home, so I’m not going to add those.
My son is excited to try it because he has a peanut allergy and any pad Thai we’ve found anywhere always has peanuts, and this one doesn’t.
I should also look on the bright side, it will still be better than the nonexistent pad Thai near where I live.