Craving restaurant-quality pad Thai? Using easy-to-find ingredients and this simple recipe, you can make it at home!

Pad Thai is a popular stir-fried noodle dish that originated in Thailand, where it’s commonly enjoyed as a quick and easy street food. Today, it’s a popular Thai restaurant dish in many parts of the world. If you love this noodle dish as much as I do, you’ll be pleased to know that it’s surprisingly easy to make in your own kitchen. While traditional pad Thai calls for a daunting list of hard-to-find ingredients, from tamarind liquid and dried shrimp to pickled white radishes and garlic chives, a simplified “Westernized” version can be just as delicious with a few ingredient substitutions (yes, that’s why the recipe strangely calls for ketchup!).

Pad Thai is made with rice noodles, which can usually be found in the Asian or Thai food section of most large supermarkets. It’s important to note that the process of cooking rice noodles is different from cooking other types of pasta. To start, fill a pot with water and bring it to a boil. Once boiling, remove the pot from the heat and add the rice noodles. Allow them to soak in the hot water for 5 to 10 minutes, or until they become tender yet still chewy. Once done, drain the noodles in a colander and rinse them briefly under cold water to remove any excess starch. From there, it’s just a matter of stir-frying the noodles with the other pad Thai ingredients.

What you’ll need to make pad thai

Step-by-Step Instructions

Step 1: Soak the Rice Noodles

Bring a large pot or wide skillet of water to a boil.

Off the heat, add the noodles. Briefly swish them around to separate them, then let sit, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking, until the noodles are soft and pliable but still not tender, 5 to 10 minutes.

Drain and rinse well with cold water. Set aside.

Make the sauce: In a medium bowl, whisk together the water, fish sauce, soy sauce, vinegar, ketchup, sugar, and red pepper flakes. Set aside.

Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a large nonstick pan or wok over medium-high heat. Add the shrimp and season with ⅛ teaspoon salt. Cook, stirring often, for two minutes. Add the garlic and light green scallions and cook, stirring constantly, until softened and the shrimp are cooked through, about 1 minute more.

Transfer the shrimp, garlic, and scallions to a large plate, using a rubber spatula to scrape the pan clean.
To the pan, add 1 teaspoon of oil to the hot pan. Add the eggs and scramble until cooked through, 1 to 2 minutes. Transfer the eggs to the plate with the shrimp.

Add 2 tablespoons of oil to the hot pan. Place the drained noodles in the pan, along with the sauce mixture. Cook, tossing the noodles gently so as not to break them, until the liquid is absorbed by the noodles and the noodles are cooked through, a few minutes. If the noodles are still firm to the bite when the sauce is absorbed, add a few tablespoons of water and continue cooking.

Add the contents of the plate and the dark green scallions to the noodles and toss gently to combine, until everything is warmed through.

Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary. Transfer to a serving platter and top with peanuts, bean sprouts, and cilantro (if using). Serve with lime wedges, if desired.

Note: This recipe has been written by Jenn Segal and republished on MudMatter with Author’s Permission. Please find the original link here – Pad Thai.