Pho is to Vietnam as Pad Thai is to Thailand. It’s a common street food in Thailand and one of the most popular dishes ordered in many Thai restaurants here in the United States.
What is Pad Thai?
Pad Thai is a stir-fry noodle dish made your choice of protein (shrimp, pork chicken, or fried tofu), dried shrimp, scrambled eggs, bean sprouts and garlic chives.
It’s topped with crunchy peanuts, a squeeze of lime/lemon and some chili peppers for those who like it spicy.
The ingredients are sautéed in a wok and tossed in a delicious sweet and sour sauce made from tamarind juice, fish sauce and sugar.
It is a well-balanced meal-in-bowl of many textures and Southeastern flavors.
Pad Thai recipes are easy and customizable. Don’t like an ingredient? Simply leave it out. Missing an ingredient? Substitute with whatever you have on hand. I didn’t have garlic chives so I used green onions instead. Recipe below. Enjoy!
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Pad Thai (Hủ Tiếu/Phở Xào Thái Lan)
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 4 1x
Description
Pho is to Vietnam what Pad Thai is to Thailand—a popular street food and restaurant favorite. This stir-fried noodle dish, tossed in tangy tamarind sauce, delivers the perfect mix of sweet, savory, and sour, offering a flavorful taste of Thai cuisine.
Ingredients
- 1 package dried flat rice noodles (soak in warm water for 30 minutes, drain and rinse)
- 12 oz bean sprouts
- 4 stems garlic chives (cut into 1 inch segments)
- 2 eggs (beaten)
- 1 lb protein (chicken, pork, shrimp, fried and/or fried tofu)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 3 garlic cloves (peel and mince finely)
- 4 tablespoons vegetable oil (divided)
- 1/3 cup roasted unsalted peanuts (coarsely chopped)
- 1 lime (cut into wedges)
Pad Thai Sauce
- 2 oz tamarind seedless tamarind pulp
- 1 cup hot water
- 1/4 cup fish sauce
- 1/3 cup brown sugar or palm sugar
Instructions
- Make the sauce: In a small bowl, combine hot water and tamarind pulp for 15 minutes. Strain mixture through a sieve and discard pulp. To the tamarind liquid, season with fish sauce and sugar. Set aside.
- Prepare the proteins: Season your desired protein with salt and pepper. In a large wok or skillet, heat 2 tablespoons vegetable oil and pan fry the chicken, shrimp or tofu until golden brown on all sides. Remove proteins from the wok and set aside.
- Prepare the noodles: To the now empty wok, heat up another 2 tablespoons vegetable oil. Add garlic and sauté until fragrant. Add in noodles and tamarind sauce. Toss noodles until evenly coated and and al dente.
- Add eggs: Push noodles to the side or make an empty area in the middle of the wok, add eggs and scrambled. Toss eggs with the noodles.
- Add vegetables and proteins back to the pan: Add bean sprouts, chives and cooked proteins. Toss until evenly coated.
- Finish: Transfer to a serving platter, garnish with toasted peanuts and lime wedges.
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 5 minutes
- Category: entree
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: asian, thai
