~Amanda~
Pad Thai is a traditional street food dish in Thailand and it has become widely popular all over the world, and it’s by far one of my all time favorite meals. It’s packed with so many delicious ingredients, flavors, and textures and pretty much anyone who tries it, loves it. Pad Thai is basically a stir-fried dish that combines rice noodles with eggs, vegetables, some type of protein, and a Pad Thai Sauce. Not only does it taste incredibly good, but it’s super easy to make; it just takes a little chopping, prep work, and some stir-frying. It definitely is one of my favorite quick meals to make for dinners (and I always make extra for lunch the next day too). I’ll tell you now that I enjoy my own homemade Pad Thai so much more than any takeout; you can choose exactly what ingredients you want in it, what flavors you want your sauce to have, and with a prep time of under half an hour. It’s probably quicker than take out too!
One of the most important parts of any Pad Thai dish is the sauce. A traditional Pad Thai Sauce uses ingredients like tamarind paste (the fruit of a tamarind tree made into a paste that’s very sour), palm sugar, and fish sauce. However, most people don’t have these ingredients regularly stocked in their pantries, and depending on where you live, they made only be available in specialty food stores or Asian markets. Because of this, I decided to do my own spin on a traditional sauce using ingredients that are far more common and easily accessible so everyone can make this dish. To make the sauce you combine soy sauce, siracha or chili paste, lime juice, vegetable oil, brown sugar, and ginger in a bowl with a fork or whisk. It’s so simple and the ingredients should be easy to find. However, if you do want to make a traditional sauce I have included a recipe for one in the notes section of the recipe below.
Now, it’s time to make the Pad Thai. The cooking process is very quick as you are using a hot wok at high temperatures and the food only takes minutes to cook so you want to have all your prep work done ahead of time; mix the chicken with the cornstarch and soy sauce (this gives it great flavor and a nice little crust on the outside), have the rice noodles cooked and ready to go, the veggies chopped up, and toppings all set out. Now, heat up some coconut oil in the wok (or a large skillet if you don’t have a wok – but go get a wok, they’re awesome and you can even find super cheap ones…they sell them for $5 at IKEA!), then add in your garlic and chicken and cook until no longer pink, remove and set aside. Next scramble your eggs and remove. Finally, stir fry your veggies for a few minutes, then add everything back in with the rice noodles and sauce and toss until heated through. Serve with toppings like cilantro, scallions, peanuts, and fresh lime wedges and enjoy the most delicious dinner ever!
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce (low-sodium tamari)
- 1 tablespoon siracha or chili paste (or a combination of both)
- 2 tablespoons lime juice
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, minced or grated
- 1 8-ounce box rice noodles
- 1 pound chicken breast, cubed
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce (low-sodium tamari)
- 3 tablespoons coconut oil
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 eggs
- 2 carrots, julienned
- 1 red bell pepper, julienned
- 1 zucchini, cubed
- 1/4 cup cilantro, diced
- 1/4 cup scallions, diced
- 1/3 cup peanuts, chopped
- 2 limes, quartered
- bean sprouts
- Combine all ingredients in a small bowl with a fork or whisk. Set aside.
- Cook rice noodles according to package instructions. Rinse with cold water and set aside.
- In a medium bowl, toss the chicken cubes with the cornstarch to coat and then the soy sauce.
- Heat a wok (or large pan if you don't have a wok) over med-high heat. Add about 1-2 tablespoons coconut oil then add the minced garlic and cook for about 30 seconds. Add the chicken and cook for about 2-3 minutes until no longer pink. Remove from wok and set aside.
- Add the eggs to the wok and scramble. Remove from wok and set aside.
- Add another 1-2 tablespoons of coconut oil to the wok and then add the veggies (carrots, red bell pepper, and zucchini). Cook for a few minutes so they're slightly cooked, but still crisp.
- Add the chicken, eggs, rice noodles, and sauce to the wok with the veggies. Stir until everything is combined and heated through.
- Serve with your favorite pad thai toppings; cilantro, scallions, peanuts, fresh lime wedges, bean sprouts, and even some extra sriracha.
- *If you want to make a more traditional Pad Thai Sauce use this recipe: combine 1 cup tamarind juice, 1 cup plus 3 tablespoons palm sugar, 1 cup water, 1/2 cup fish sauce, 2 teaspoons salt. (this makes a very large batch that you can store in an airtight container in your fridge for future use).
