Pad Thai is an easy and authentic Thai noodles dish filled with a sweet and savory flavor. This dish is prepared with rice noodles, chicken, tofu, egg, shrimp, crushed peanut, bean sprouts, garlic chives that are tossed in an authentic Pad Thai Sauce. The recipe I have shared here shows you how to make Pad Thai and Pad Thai Sauce at home with easy step-by-step instructions with video. This Pad Thai noodle is an absolute stir fry treat to enjoy for lunch and dinner and it tastes similar to your favorite restaurant take-outs.
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What is Pad Thai?
Pad Thai is a popular Thai stir fry noodle prepared with rice noodles made with chicken breast, shrimp, tofu, egg, bean sprouts, garlic chives, and peanuts. More importantly the authentic Pad Thai Sauce used to toss the ingredients delivers unique sweet, tangy, and spicy flavors.
This Pad Thai Noodles is one of the famous street food in Thailand and also the top signature dishes in Thai restaurants across the globe. Even though the authentic recipe calls for chicken, shrimp, and eggs, it is vegan and adaptable as well.
Serve this ultimate stir fry dish for lunch, dinner, party, or when you crave Thai dishes. It comes altogether under 30 minutes and makes a lip-smacking dish that you will love to enjoy every time.
Ingredients
I have shared the ingredients to make this Pad Thai below and it should be easily available in most Asian Grocery stores. Let's see what we need to make this super flavorful dish.
To make Pad Thai Sauce
- Tamarind Paste or Puree - This is one of the main ingredients that give the signature tangy flavor to your dish. I have used ½ tsp of tamarind concentrate that is diluted in 2 tbsp of water
- Fish Sauce - The authentic recipe requires this super smelly fish sauce which may not be tolerable for some people. Even though the sauce is very pungent, it gives a traditional and unique taste to this dish. But if you really don't like the fragrance, feel free to skip it but you will be missing that traditional flavor from this dish
- Oyster Sauce - This is a thick dark sauce that gives perfect flavor and taste to the noodles
- Chilli Sauce - It is an optional ingredient and I have used 1 tsp to give mild heat to my stir fry noodles
- Brown Sugar - Usually Thai palm sugar is used in the traditional dish but I used brown sugar here
To make Pad Thai
- Rice Noodles - I have used rice noodle cubes here which turned out good for me. But in the authentic recipe flat rice noodles are usually used
- Peanuts - Crushed peanuts give nice flavor and a crunchiness in every bite
- Garlic Chives - Gives a special aroma with garlicky notes to the dish. But you can also use regular chives and a lot of garlic instead
- Proteins - I have used chicken breast, egg, and extra firm tofu here and you can also add in shrimps/prawns
- Paprika - I have marinated the chicken with paprika here but you can also use Kashmiri chili powder to achieve the similar result
- Ginger Garlic Paste - It helps to remove the raw aroma from the chicken
- Lemon Juice - Finally squeeze in some lemon juice to achieve an extra zesty flavor to your dish
How to make Pad Thai Sauce?
Pad Thai Sauce is the star of this recipe and it makes the dish so unique and flavorsome. The tamarind, oyster, chili, and fish sauce with brown sugar give a balanced sweet and savory flavor to the dish. To make this authentic sauce,
- In a bowl, add the tamarind, fish, oyster, chili sauce, and brown sugar. Mix everything well to combine. And now Pad Thai Sauce is ready to use for our stir fry. Keep this sauce for later use
- Here I have used ½ tsp tamarind concentrate that is diluted with 2 tbsp water and you can also use tamarind puree to achieve the similar results
- Even though we use fish sauce for this dish, the final dish will not smell fishy or taste fishy instead it delivers a unique taste and aroma. But the fish smell is naturally kind of funky which may not be tolerable for some people. Guess what, it will give a delicious flavor to the Pad Thai Noodles
More Sauce Recipes:
How to make Pad Thai?
Pad Thai is a quick dish that comes together in under 30 minutes. The recipe involves stir-frying and it should be done super fast in a wok. So prepping the ingredients ahead will make the process quick.
Following are the high-level instructions to make this dish. But for simple and easy instructions with step-by-step photos with video, please check out the recipe card below.
- Marinate Chicken - Add in the sliced chicken breast, ginger garlic paste, salt, and paprika. Mix well and keep it aside. This is an optional step, as we love chicken usually marinated with ginger garlic paste, I have adapted it accordingly. You can also add in the chicken directly while stir-frying without any marination
- Cooking Noodles - In a pan with medium heat, cook the rice noodles as per package instructions and keep them ready
- Stir-Frying - Now in a wok with high medium heat, pour oil, and saute onion and garlic. Add in the chicken and stir fry until it is cooked. Scramble the eggs and add noodles, Pad Thai Sauce(that we prepared in the above section), crushed peanuts, beans sprouts, chives and toss well
- Serve - Now the delicious Pad Thai is ready to taste and enjoy
Variations
- Shrimp - Shrimp is also one of the main proteins added to this Thai Noodles and people also prefer to use dried shrimp flakes to enhance its taste and flavor
- Vegan Pad Thai - For a vegan-friendly recipe skip the chicken, egg, fish sauce, and oyster sauce and replace them with tofu and vegetarian oyster sauce
- Vegetables - You can also add mushrooms, carrots, and cabbage for a vegetarian version of this dish
Tips
- For Deep Flavors and Taste - The Pad Thai sauce is the main ingredient that gives the deep aromatic flavor and taste to the dish, so I suggest following the process to enjoy the same
- Proteins - I have chicken, egg, and tofu but you can also use shrimp/prawns for more flavors
- Vegan Options - To enjoy the vegan-friendly Pad Thai, feel free to use Tofu and vegetables and skip the fish sauce, egg, and chicken
- Crunchiness - Crushed Peanuts give perfect crunchiness in every bite and give a lot of flavor to the dish too
- Serving - Serve this lip-smacking dish topped with bean sprouts, crushed peanuts, and chili flakes to enjoy a delicious meal
Calories in Pad Thai
The Pad Thai that I have shared here has 654 calories which is an estimation by the nutrition calculator. And it may vary if the ingredients are altered or swapped. You can also find detailed nutritional information in the recipe card below.
Storage Suggestions
I would suggest consuming this dish as soon as possible once fresh out of the wok to enjoy that authentic sweet-savory flavor. You could store the leftover in the refrigerator for a day but for me, it was not that enjoyable compared to the fresh ones.
Serving Suggestions
This Pad Thai tastes great on its own and you can also combine it with most chicken dishes.
You could also find similar recipes below and more at Thai Recipes.
Pad Thai Recipe video
I have shared a detailed video of this Pad Thai Recipe that I hope will help you to make an authentic restaurant-style dish at home. For a quick reference, you could also find this recipe in story format.
📖 Recipe
Pad Thai
Ingredients
Pad Thai Sauce
- ½ tsp Tamarind Paste, or concentrate, diluted in 2 tbsp water
- 2 tsp Brown Sugar
- 1 tbsp Oyster Sauce
- 1 tbsp Fish Sauce
- 1 tsp Chili Sauce
Other Ingredients
- ¼ lb Chicken Breast
- 8 oz Rice Noodles
- ½ cup Tofu, firm
- ½ cup Bean Sprouts
- 2 eggs
- ¼ cup Oil
- 1 tsp Ginger Garlic Paste, optional
- 1 tsp Paprika
- ½ tsp Salt
- 1 tsp Chili Flakes
- Water, to cook noodles
- 2 tbsp Peanuts, crushed
- 1 tbsp Lemon Juice
Instructions
To Marinate Chicken (Optional)
- In a bowl, add the boneless chicken pieces, ginger garlic paste, paprika, salt, and mix them well. Reserve the marinated chicken pieces for later use. It is not required and I have done this for my family needs
To Make Pad Thai Sauce
- In a bowl, add tamarind paste, oyster sauce, fish sauce, chili sauce, and brown sugar. Mix everything well and keep it aside
To Cook the Noodles
- In a pan with medium heat, cook the rice noodles in water as per the package instructions
- Drain the noodles using a fine mesh strainer and pour 1 cup of cold water over it to avoid further cooking of the noodles. Keep it aside as well
To Make Pad Thai
- In a wok with high heat, pour oil and add saute the garlic and onions until soft
- Add in the marinated chicken and stir fry them for 5 to 7 minutes
- Push the chicken to one side of the wok and add in the eggs. Scramble the eggs well and mix them with the chicken
- Now add in the rice noodles, pad thai sauce, bean sprouts, tofu, and give a good toss
- Finally add crushed peanuts, chives, and lemon juice and give a good mix
- Now the delicious Pad Thai is ready to taste and enjoy
To Serve
- Serve this sweet and savory Pad Thai topped with crushed peanuts, bean sprouts, chili flakes, and chives for lunch or dinner
Video
Notes
- For Deep Flavors and Taste - The Pad Thai sauce is the main ingredient that gives the deep aromatic flavor and taste to the dish, so I suggest following the process to enjoy the same
- Proteins - I have chicken, egg, and tofu but you can also use shrimp/prawns for more flavors
- Vegan Options - To enjoy the vegan-friendly Pad Thai, feel free to use Tofu and vegetables and skip the fish sauce, egg, and chicken
- Crunchiness - Crushed Peanuts gives perfect crunchiness in every bite and gives a lot of flavor to the dish too
- Serving - Serve this lip-smacking dish topped with bean sprouts, crushed peanuts, and chili flakes to enjoy a delicious meal
Nutrition
FAQ
It is an authentic Thai stir fry noodles dish filled with sweet and savory flavor. It is typically made with rice noodles, chicken, egg, shrimp, and tofu that are tossed in a unique Pad Thai sauce.
The ingredient used in the dish is high in fat, and sodium, hence consuming it regularly is not healthy. So always make sure to have them in moderation once in a while to have a healthy life.
The Pad Thai that I have shared here has 654 calories which is an estimation by the nutrition calculator. And it may vary if the ingredients are altered or swapped. You can also find detailed nutritional information in the recipe card above.
Even though the fish sauce is used in the dish, you will not feel any fishy taste instead it will deliver a well-balanced sweet, sour, and spicy delectable dish.
I hope you enjoyed the recipe that I have shared here and I would love to hear from you on how it turned out for you. Please let me know.
If you have any other questions, feel free to post them in the comment section below and I will try to get back to you as soon as possible.
Happy Cooking!
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