Pad Thai us a stir-fried rice noodle dish that is commonly sold as street food in Thailand. It has an iconic flavour profile and is loved by those that have had it. It’s created with various ingredients but typically made with rice noodle, chicken, beef, tofu, shrimp, bean sprouts, peanuts, and egg. The ingredients are sautéed together in a wok, it is then tossed with the iconic Paid Thai sauce that features tamarind paste to give the iconic sourness to it. I’ve tested and tried many recipes and the recipe below is a combination of my trials and tribulations.
Pad Thai
Inspired by the famous iconic Thai street food- Pad Thai. Sautéed rice noodle with shrimp, chicken, bean sprouts, peanuts, scrambled egg, and the iconic tamarind sauce.
Equipment
- Wok
Ingredients
Pad Thai Sauce
- 1/4 cup water
- 1/3 cup brown sugar
- 1/3 cup vinegar
- 3 tbsp fish sauce adjust for taste
- 2 tbsp tamarind paste
Chicken
- 2 tbsp oil
- 2 chicken breast, sliced into strips
- 1 tsp cornstarch
- 1 tsp salt
Rest of the dish
- 16 oz Fresh Pad Thai Noodles You can use dry if needed, soak in warm water for 15 minutes
- 3 tbsp oil
- 1 shallot, sliced thinly
- 3-4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 carrot, peeled and cut into thin strips
- 4 eggs, beaten
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 1/4 cup salted peanuts, crushed
- 1 cup bean sprouts, washed
- 4 scallions, chopped
- 2 limes, cut into wedges
Instructions
Pad Thai Sauce
- Using a small sauce pan, heat up water, vinegar, brown sugar, tamarind paste, and fish sauce together. Simmer and whisk until all the tamarind paste has melted. Whisk the mixture to help break up the tamarind paste, this will take about 5 minutes. Set aside.
Noodles
- If you're using dry noodles instead of fresh, soak in hot water for 15 minutes prior to cooking. If you're using fresh noodles, soak in WARM water for 5 minutes before cooking.
Cooking chicken
- Marinate your sliced chicken with 1 tsp of salt and 1 tsp of cornstarch. Using a wok, heat up 2 tbsp of oil. Once heated, add in your chicken. Cook for 4-5 minutes until the chicken is cooked through. Remove from wok and set aside.
Cooking the rest of the ingredients
- Using the same wok, add in 2 tbsp of oil. Add in shallots and sauté for 2-3 minutes until fragrant. Add in garlic and cook for 1 minute.
- Add in carrots and sauté together for an additional 3-5 minutes.
- Add in the shrimp and cook for 1 minute. Once the shrimp is almost fully cooked (pink), push it to the side. Add in 1 tbsp of oil and carefully crack your egg in. Scramble your eggs until they are almost cooked through (70%). Add in the noodles and chicken back in.
- Mix in the Pad Thai sauce. Carefully lift the noodles with your spatula or chop stick to help distribute the sauce evenly. Continue to lift up the noodles and mix so that it doesn't stick on the bottom. If the noodles stick, add in more oil 1 tbsp at a time. Cook until the noodles are tender, 3-5 minutes.
- Add in beat sprouts, 1 tbsp of sugar, 1 tsp paprika, 1 tsp salt, and 1/2 tsp pepper (adjust the flavour as needed). Once the bean sprouts have softened slightly, remove from the wok.
- Top with crushed peanuts, scallion, and lime wedges!
Notes
For vegetarian options: substitute chicken and shrimp with firm tofu.
Let me know how you enjoy this recipe in the comments below! Stay tuned for more recipes!
xx, CWC
