About this recipe
A stir-fry of thin rice noodles with a tamarind-based sauce, egg, tofu and shrimp, finished with peanuts, bean sprouts and lime. Pad Thai rose to national prominence in the mid-20th century as part of a government promotion of a Thai national dish; the details of that history are logged for verification rather than embellished here.
Recipe facts
- Yield
- 2–3
- Prep
- 25 minutes (plus noodle soaking)
- Cook
- 15 minutes
- Total
- 40 minutes
- Difficulty
- Moderate
- Spice
- Mild (heat added at the table)
Allergens Contains shellfish (shrimp, dried shrimp), fish (fish sauce), egg, peanuts. Often contains gluten via preserved radish/sauces — check labels. Vegetarian if shrimp/egg swapped and fish sauce replaced.
Development draft. This is an untested development recipe from the cookbook project. It has not been kitchen-tested, and the quantities and timings are the author’s working draft rather than a verified result.
Ingredients
For the sauce
- 3 tbsp (45 ml) tamarind concentrate
- 3 tbsp (45 g) palm sugar
- 3 tbsp (45 ml) fish sauce
For the stir-fry
- 8 oz (225 g) dried flat rice stick noodles (sen lek, ~3 mm)
- 8 oz (225 g) shrimp, peeled
- 3 oz (85 g) firm/pressed tofu, diced
- 2 large eggs
- 1 tbsp (8 g) dried shrimp, chopped (optional)
- 2 tbsp (20 g) sweet preserved radish (chai po), chopped (optional)
- 3 cloves garlic, minced; 2 shallots, sliced
- 3 tbsp (45 ml) neutral oil
To serve
- 1.5 cups (120 g) bean sprouts
- 3 garlic chives, cut into 2-in (5 cm) lengths
- 1/4 cup (35 g) roasted peanuts, coarsely crushed
- Lime wedges, chili flakes, sugar and fish sauce (the four-condiment caddy)
Equipment
- Wok or wide heavy skillet
- Wok spatula
- Bowl for soaking noodles
Method
- Heat the wok until very hot; add oil, then garlic, shallots and tofu. Fry until the tofu is golden.
- Add the shrimp (and dried shrimp and preserved radish, if using); stir-fry until the shrimp is nearly cooked.
- Add the drained noodles and the sauce. Toss constantly, letting the noodles absorb the sauce; add splashes of water if they seize.
- Push everything to one side, crack in the eggs, scramble lightly, then fold through the noodles.
- When the noodles are tender and glossy, toss in most of the bean sprouts, the garlic chives and half the peanuts.
- Plate and top with the remaining peanuts and raw bean sprouts.
- Serve with lime wedges and the four-condiment caddy so each diner seasons to taste.
Uses from this chapter
- Nam Pla Prik (Fish Sauce with Chilies) (Condiments — C04) — Part of the table caddy (with sugar, chili flakes and lime) so each diner adjusts salt and heat.
From the foundations
The book pairs this recipe with the following, from the sauces, sambals and pastes that open the collection.
The Complete Edition
Pad Thai sits in the Thailand chapter
The book carries this recipe in full alongside the rest of the Thailand chapter, the pastes and dips it is built on, and the twenty-seven pantry studies that open the collection.
In review with Amazon KDP
Both editions have been submitted to Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing and are currently in review. Submitted prices are $9.99 for the kindle edition and $49.99 for the paperback. Neither is on sale yet, and prices are as submitted rather than final.