Authentic Pad Thai

A classic Thai dish with stir-fried rice noodles, egg, peanuts, and a tangy tamarind sauce.

By Cressio Rinaldi

Pad Thai is the most famous street food in Thailand, and it is an exercise in balance: sweet, sour, salty and a little spicy, with the texture of chewy noodles against crunchy bean sprouts and peanuts. The traditional sauce is made from tamarind, fish sauce and palm sugar. This version simplifies that by using a good store-bought or tamarind-based Pad Thai sauce, so you can get the dish on the table fast.

The most important thing is how you handle the noodles. They are soaked in warm water, not boiled, until pliable but still firm. They finish cooking in the wok, absorbing the sauce, and that is what gives them their chew. Boiling them is the fastest way to a gluey, broken mess.

It serves two, and the cooking takes only about ten minutes, so everything must be chopped and ready before the wok gets hot.

Read this first

1. Soak the noodles in warm water. Don’t boil them.
2. Prepare everything before you start. The wok cooking takes minutes.
3. Don’t double the recipe in one wok. Cook in batches.

Prep time: 15 mins · Cook time: 10 mins · Serves 2

Ingredients

• 8 oz Rice noodles (medium width)
• 1/2 lb Shrimp, peeled, or chicken breast, sliced
• 2 Eggs
• 1 cup Bean sprouts
• 3 Green onions, sliced
• 1/4 cup Peanuts, roasted and roughly crushed
• 1/4 cup Pad Thai sauce (store-bought or tamarind-based)
• 2 tbsp Vegetable oil
• for serving Lime wedges

Instructions

1. Soak the rice noodles in warm water for 20-30 minutes until pliable but not fully soft. Drain and set aside. Look for: Noodles that bend without breaking, but still have a firm center.
2. Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a wok or large skillet over high heat. Add the shrimp or chicken and cook until done, about 2-3 minutes. Push to one side of the wok. Look for: Shrimp that are pink and curled, or chicken that is white with no pink.
3. Add the remaining oil. Crack the eggs into the empty side of the wok and scramble them quickly, breaking them into small pieces. Look for: Small, soft pieces of egg in the wok.
4. Add the drained noodles to the wok and pour the Pad Thai sauce over everything. Toss everything together with tongs for 1-2 minutes. Look for: Noodles that are glossy, coated in dark sauce and chewy, with no clumps.
5. Stir in the bean sprouts and most of the green onions. Cook for 30 seconds more until sprouts are just softened. Look for: Bean sprouts that are still crisp, with a little translucence.
6. Serve topped with crushed peanuts, remaining green onions, and lime wedges on the side. Look for: A tangle of glossy noodles with peanuts, green onions and a lime wedge.

Nutrition

Amount per serving. Nutritional values are estimates calculated from the ingredients above and can vary.

• Calories: 760
• Fat: 35g
• Saturated Fat: 6g
• Carbohydrates: 60g
• Fiber: 10g
• Sugar: 15g
• Protein: 54g
• Sodium: 550mg
• Cholesterol: 280mg

Notes

• Storage: Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 2 days; the noodles soften somewhat on reheating.
• Noodle Prep: Soaking the noodles until pliable but not fully soft, as directed, matters — they finish cooking in the wok, and pre-softened noodles turn mushy.
• Best Fresh: Best enjoyed right out of the wok while the noodles and bean sprouts still have some bite.

Cook It With Me

Soak the noodles

Put the 8 oz of rice noodles in a large bowl and cover them with warm tap water. Let them soak for 20 to 30 minutes, until they are pliable and bendy but still firm in the center. They should not be fully soft. Drain well.

Cook the protein

Heat 1 tablespoon of the vegetable oil in a wok or large skillet over high heat. Add the 1/2 lb of shrimp or sliced chicken breast and cook until done, about 2 to 3 minutes. Push it to one side of the wok.

Scramble the egg

Add the remaining tablespoon of oil to the empty side. Crack in the 2 eggs and scramble them quickly, breaking them into small pieces.

Add the noodles and sauce

Add the drained noodles to the wok and pour the 1/4 cup of Pad Thai sauce over everything. Toss with tongs for 1 to 2 minutes, until the noodles are soft and coated. If they seem dry or stiff, add a splash of water.

Add the sprouts and onions

Stir in the 1 cup of bean sprouts and most of the 3 sliced green onions. Cook for 30 seconds more, just until the sprouts are slightly softened.

Serve

Serve at once, topped with the crushed peanuts, the remaining green onions and lime wedges on the side.

The Ingredients, One by One

Rice noodles

Medium-width dried rice noodles, about 1/4 inch wide, are the standard. Look for ones labeled for Pad Thai. Soak them, don’t boil.

Shrimp or chicken

Half a pound is plenty for two. Cut chicken thin so it cooks in 2 to 3 minutes.

Eggs

Two eggs, scrambled in the wok, add richness.

Bean sprouts

They add crunch and freshness. Add them last, so they stay crisp.

Green onions and peanuts

Green onions add a sharp bite, and roasted peanuts add crunch and richness.

Pad Thai sauce

Check the label. A good one lists tamarind, fish sauce and sugar. A sauce based on ketchup will taste different.

Lime wedges

The lime juice at the end is what makes the dish taste fresh.

The Technique Behind It

Why soak, not boil

Dried rice noodles continue to cook in the hot wok, absorbing the sauce. If they start fully cooked, they turn to mush.

Why high heat

A very hot wok sears quickly and gives the dish a smoky edge. A cooler pan makes the noodles steam and stick.

Why work in small batches

A crowded wok drops in temperature. Two servings at a time is the limit for a home wok.

Mistakes That Cost You the Dish

• Boiling the noodles They turn gluey.
• Oversoaking They fall apart in the wok.
• Doubling in one wok They steam and clump.
• Adding sprouts early They go limp.
• Skipping the lime The dish tastes flat.

Fix It: If This Happens, Do This

Problem	Likely cause	Fix
Noodles are clumpy	Not drained or the wok was too cool	Toss with a splash of water and keep stirring.
Noodles are hard	Not soaked enough	Add a splash of water and cook another minute.
Noodles are mushy	Oversoaked	Soak for less time next time.
Dish is too sweet	Sauce	Add lime juice and a splash of fish sauce.
Dish is bland	Sauce is weak	Add fish sauce, lime and chili flakes.

What Each Ingredient Does (and What You Can Swap)

Ingredient	Its job	Swap, and what changes
Shrimp or chicken	Protein	Tofu works for a vegetarian version.
Pad Thai sauce	Flavor	Mix tamarind paste, fish sauce and sugar.
Bean sprouts	Crunch	Shredded cabbage works.
Peanuts	Crunch	Cashews work.
Rice noodles	Base	Other flat rice noodles work.

Plan Ahead

• Prep ahead: Soak the noodles and chop everything ahead.
• Fridge: Up to 3 days.
• Reheat: In a hot pan with a splash of water.
• Freezer: Not recommended.

What to Serve With It

Serve with lime wedges, extra crushed peanuts, chili flakes and a little sugar on the side, as is done in Thailand, so everyone can adjust.

Questions People Ask

About the Author

Cressio Rinaldi

Cressio Rinaldi is the recipe developer behind Cressio Recipes. He cooks, tests, and writes every recipe on the site himself — refining each one until it's simple enough for a weeknight and good enough to make again. He's not a trained chef, just someone who cooks constantly and pays close attention to what actually makes a recipe work.