This deliciously balanced easy healthy chicken pad Thai recipe is loaded with beansprouts and umami flavor that will become your next favorite comfort takeout food recipe. This authentic pad Thai recipe is one of the easiest and most delicious recipes to make in under 30 minutes!
This deliciously balanced easy healthy chicken pad Thai recipe is loaded with beansprouts and umami flavor that will become your next favorite comfort takeout food recipe. This authentic pad Thai recipe is one of the easiest and most delicious recipes to make in under 30 minutes!
Authentic pad thai is known for its perfect balance of salty, sweet, and sour flavor experience.
If you love easy weeknight meals and comfort food this healthy chicken pad Thai recipe was made for you. This authentic chicken pad Thai stir fry is made with rice noodles, chicken, dried shrimp, tofu, peanuts, scrambled eggs, bean sprouts, and garlic chives. The sauce is made with brown sugar tamarind paste, fish sauce, and oyster sauce for a perfect balance of salty, sweet, and sour flavors that will make you do a happy dance in your dining chair.
For this healthy chicken pad Thai recipe, I did my best to keep it as authentic as possible while also making sure that it tastes absolutely incredible. I wanted to make sure that I got the perfect blend of salty, sweet, and sour for this delicious umami-blasted noodle dish. Fun fact: the red coloring normally found in restaurants is not actually authentic to Thailand and has been colored to make the dish seem more appealing to customers! If you love Thai food, check out my Thai basil, PineappleFried Rice, Thai Iced tea, and Mango Sticky Rice!
Served with bean sprouts, limes, and crushed peanuts, this dish has an unbeatable flavor and texture experience.
Kitchen Equipment
Large Skillet or Wok: When it comes to cooking Asian food, I always prefer using my stone wok. It is deep, heats evenly, and is incredibly easy to toss and stir-fry food. It will really come in handy when you toss the meat in this recipe.
Mixing Bowls: this is for mixing the sauce, and prepping all the vegetables and protein before tossing it together. I love using my Duralex glass mixing bowls for all of my cooking/baking needs because it comes in so many different sizes.
Who can resist a delicious, umami-packed noodle pull?
Ingredients
The ingredients for this healthy chicken pad Thai recipe can be found at your local Thai or Vietnamese or Chinese grocery store.
Sauce
Tamarind Pulp + boiling water: the key ingredient to the sauce is the tamarind. It is what gives pad thai that subtly sour distinct flavor. Make sure to buy tamarind pulp that is from Thailand or Vietnam. You can find tamarind pulp online or at your local Asian grocery store.
Tamarind pulp is essential for traditional pad thai flavors, order some on Amazon here.
Brown sugar: the brown sugar sweetens the sour tamarind and brings balance to the dish. You can adjust the brown sugar level depending on how sour the tamarind is.
Fish Sauce: the fish sauce adds a depth of umami flavor to the sauce. Make sure to use quality fish sauce! I prefer to use Red Boat Fish Sauce or Three Crabs brand.
Oyster Sauce: is a mixture of caramelized oyster juices, salt, sugar, and soy sauce. It adds an extra umami flavoring to the pad thai. You can find oyster sauce online or at your local Asian grocery store.
Pad Thai Noodles
Pad Thai Noodles: You want to use dry medium sized pad thai noodles. I used Lotus Food Pad Thai noodles for this recipe but you can also use any other trusted brand as well.
Garlic and Shallots: the garlic and shallots are the base of the aromatics in this dish. Remember to saute them until they are golden brown before adding the next ingredients.
Firm Tofu: you will need firm tofu that will hold when you stir-fry the noodles.
Dried Shrimp: dried shrimp adds a bit of umami flavor to the dish. You can find dried shrimp in the refrigerated section at your local Asian grocery market. You can omit this if you’d like.
A few of the basic ingredients in chicken pad thai.
Protein Marinade
Chicken Thigh or Breast: you can use any form of protein that you’d like such as shrimp, beef, pork or more tofu.
Thai Light Soy Sauce: Light soy sauce is thinner and lighter in color and adds a gentle saltiness to the dish. For the most authentic flavor, I recommend using Golden Mountain brand soy sauce you can find this soy sauce online or at your local Asian grocery store.
Fish sauce: fish sauce adds an extra layer of umami flavor to the marinade.
Cornstarch: cornstarch allows the marinade to hold onto the chicken when cooked.
Eggs: the eggs are scrambled to add extra flavor and protein to the dish.
Garnish
Bean Sprouts: bean sprouts add a layer of crunch to pad thai. They are tossed in the stir fry and served raw on the side as well.
Garlic Chives: are more subtle and mild than green onions.
Roasted Peanuts: used for garnish and adds a bit of crunch.
Limes: used for garnish and to brighten up the noodles.
Dried Chili Flakes: used for garnish and to add a little spice
How To Make Chicken Pad Thai
This healthy chicken pad Thai recipe is so satisfying and simple to make from scratch. Let’s get started.
Sauce
Separate the tamarind pulp. In a small bowl, take the tamarind pulp and mix it with 1/4 cup boiling water. Break up the pulp in the hot water. If needed add 1-2 more tablespoons if it is too thick. Press the mixture through a fine-meshed strainer. Discard the solids. It should yield about 1/4 cup of tamarind puree.
Break down the pulp with hot water then strain the solids out for a smooth tamarind puree.
Mix the sauce. In a small mixing bowl, mix the diluted tamarind paste with brown sugar, fish sauce and oyster sauce and mix until combined. Set aside.
Noodles
Cook the pad Thai noodles. In a medium pot, bring water to a boil. Cook the noodles in boiling water according to the instructions on the package until al-dente or slightly under done. Drain and set aside.
Prepare the chicken. Pat the chicken down to dry, slice the chicken into thin strips, and marinate with light soy sauce, fish sauce, cornstarch and water.
Cook the chicken. In a wok or large non-stick skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil until hot. Add the chicken and sear until golden and just cooked through about 2-3 minutes. Remove and set aside.
Cook shallot and garlic. In a wok or large non-stick skillet, heat the vegetable oil on medium high heat until hot. Saute the shallot until translucent. Then add in the garlic and continue cooking until lightly browned.
Add the tofu and dried shrimp. Gently sauté for a 2-3 minutes.
Add noodles and sauce. Next, add the noodles and sauce and gently toss together until the sauce is incorporated.
Scramble the eggs. Push everything to one side of the pan. Add a little extra oil to the empty space and pour in the beaten eggs. Quickly scramble the eggs for about 30 seconds. Then toss to mix eggs into noodles.
Add the chicken, bean sprouts, garlic chives and 1/2 the peanuts. Turn off the heat and the chicken, bean sprouts, chopped garlic chives and 1/2 of the crushed peanuts and gently toss to combine.
Serve. Serve immediately with chopped peanuts, bean sprouts, lime wedges, and a sprinkle of chili flakes.
Always serve with fresh lime wedges, crushed peanuts, and bean sprouts for a true chicken pad thai.
Tips For The Best Healthy Chicken Pad Thai
Marinate the meat for at least 20 minutes. You will need to marinate your protein for at least 20 minutes so that the flavor can soak into the meat.
If you use tamarind pulp, loosen it with hot water and strain. You will need to mix the slightly hard and sticky tamarind pulp with boiling water to turn it into a usable paste. Remember to strain the paste to remove all the remaining bits.
Prepare all the ingredients before tossing. You should make the sauce and chop up all the ingredients before tossing it together on the wok. This will make cooking 1000% easier and more streamlined.
Frequent Q’s and A’s
What type of Tamarind do I use?
Choose tamarind pulp that is from Thailand or Vietnam. Avoid any tamarind pulp from India. The one from India is entirely different and is much more concentrated.
Why are my pad Thai noodles clumpy and hard to mix?
The noodles will vary depending on the brand that you use. I used Lotus Food pad thai noodles and cooked them according to the instructions or until the noodles were al dente. However, before I added the noodles back into the stir fry I added 1-2 tablespoons of water and separated the noodles with my hands for easier mixing.
If you use Erawan Brand rice noodles, instead of cooking the noodles I recommend soaking the dry noodles in room temperature water for about 1 hour.
Why is my pad Thai not orange in the restaurant?
Pad Thai is not supposed to be orange. Most restaurants will add ketchup and paprika to boost the color to make it more appetizing but this is not the traditional appearance of pad thai.
Can I use other proteins?
Of course! This is your pad Thai recipe, you can substitute the chicken out for shrimp, beef, pork or add in more tofu.
Storage Instructions
You can store this easy pad Thai in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
This deliciously balanced easy healthy chicken pad Thai recipe is loaded with beansprouts and umami flavor that will become your next favorite comfort takeout food recipe. This authentic pad Thai recipe is one of the easiest and most delicious recipes to make in under 30 minutes!
Separate the tamarind pulp. In a small bowl, take the tamarind pulp and mix it with 1/4 cup boiling water. Break up the pulp in the hot water. If needed add 1-2 more tablespoons if it is too thick. Press the mixture through a fine-meshed strainer. Discard the solids. It should yield about 1/4 cup of tamarind puree.
Mix the sauce. In a small mixing bowl, mix the diluted tamarind paste with brown sugar, fish sauce and oyster sauce and mix until combined. Set aside.
The Noodles
Cook the Noodles. In a medium pot, bring water to a boil. Cook the noodles in boiling water according to the instructions on the package until al-dente or slightly under done. Drain and set aside.
Prepare the chicken. Pat the chicken down to dry, slice the chicken into thin strips, and marinate with light soy sauce, fish sauce, cornstarch and water.
Cook the Chicken. In a wok or large non-stick skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil until hot. Add the chicken and sear until golden and just cooked through about 2-3 minutes. Remove and set aside.
Cook shallot and garlic. In a wok or large non-stick skillet, heat the vegetable oil on medium high heat until hot. Saute the shallot until translucent. Then add in the garlic and continue cooking until lightly browned.
Add the tofu and dried shrimp. Next, add the diced tofu and shrimp and sauté for 2-3 minutes.
Add noodles and sauce. Next, add the noodles and sauce and gently toss together until the sauce is incorporated.
Scramble the eggs. Push everything to one side of the pan. Add a little extra oil to the empty space and pour in the beaten eggs. Quickly scramble the eggs for about 30 seconds. Then toss to mix eggs into noodles.
Add the chicken, bean sprouts, garlic chives, and peanuts. Turn off the heat and the chicken, bean sprouts, chopped garlic chives and 1/2 of the crushed peanuts and gently toss to combine.
Serve. Serve immediately with chopped peanuts, bean sprouts, lime wedges, and a sprinkle of chili flakes.
Notes
Marinate the meat for at least 20 minutes. You will need to marinate your protein for at least 20 minutes so that the flavor can soak into the meat.
If you use tamarind pulp, loosen it with hot water and strain. You will need to mix the slightly hard and sticky tamarind pulp with boiling water in order to turn it into a usable paste. Remember to strain the paste to remove all the remaining bits.
Prepare all the ingredients before tossing. You should make the sauce and chop up all the ingredients before tossing it together on the wok. This will make cooking 100% easier and more streamlined.
You can store this pad thai in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
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