Shrimp pad thai, this is a Thai classic rice noodle stir fry! Let’s make a silky and sugary sweet and zippy shrimp pad thai tonight for dinner!
Pad thai, you surely must have heard of it before!
It is probably the most popular Thai dish in the world.
And I can see why.
Silky soft rice noodles in a sweet and sour sauce. Bits of scrambled egg, crunchy peanuts, spring onion, crispy bean sprouts.
Thai Noodle Dinner
Who could say no to a meal like that!
So let’s make a silky and sugary pad thai tonight for dinner!
The pad thai sauce is more or less based on the pad thai recipe of my Thai friend Rose.
And she knows best what goes into it.
Palm Sugar
Don’t let the amount of sugar in this shrimp pad thai recipe put you off though.
The palm sugar is the most important ingredient that goes into this dish here. It is what keeps this dish together. Leave it out and you will end up with a bland stir fry. It is the combination of the sugar and tamarind that gives pad thai its particular flavor.
Have you ever been to Thailand before?
Easy Homemade Shrimp Pad Thai Recipe
Then you certainly must have tasted this dish there!
It is a very popular noodle stir fry over there. And we love it. What I love so much about it is the texture of the flat noodles. They are so good and have a lovely bite to them.
However I tasted another noodle stir fry in Thailand called pad see ew. The noodles in that dish are so silky smooth, my absolute favorite!
Tamarind
If you cannot find any tamarind juice, then you can replace it by a tablespoon of molasses and 2 teaspoons of lemon or lime juice.
Do you love cooking Thai food?
Then you should also check out my creamy chicken panang curry!
And how about my green papaya salad?
Enjoy!
For the shrimp pad thai marinade
Shrimp pad thai recipe, a Thai classic noodle dish!
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 small onion chopped
- 2 large garlic cloves chopped
- 2 tbsp fish sauce
- 2,5 oz palm sugar (70 g), or brown sugar
- 1 tbsp hot chili sauce
- 2 tbsp tamarind juice
- 2 tsp oyster sauce
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Pour the vegetable oil in a small saucepan and add the chopped onion and garlic. Place this over medium-high heat.
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Cook the garlic and onion for 3 to 4 minutes until the onion starts to soften. Then add the palm sugar (or brown sugar), the fish sauce, the tamarind juice, the oyster sauce and the hot chili sauce. Pour in the half a cup of water.
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Stir and bring the sauce to a good boil. Let it reduce by half until you get a fairly runny and sugary thick and sticky mixture. This is your pad thai sauce. Take the sauce off the heat and put it aside until needed later.
Easy shrimp pad thai noodles
Shrimp pad thai recipe, a Thai classic noodle dish!
- 12 cooked shrimp
- 7,5 oz rice noodles (200 g), dry
- 3,5 oz bean sprouts (100 g)
- 1 large egg
- 4 fresh spring onions chopped
- a handful fresh cilantro chopped
- a handful salted peanuts crushed
- ½ cup water (120 ml)
- 1 fresh lime
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
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Soak the dry rice noodles. See the specific package instructions.
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Pour the the vegetable oil in a large non-stick pan and place it over medium heat until hot. Then add the egg.
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Scramble the egg quickly and take the pan off the heat for now. Drain the soaked rice noodles and add them to the scrambled egg.
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Stir a little. Then pour in the freshly made pad thai sauce and add 3 tablespoons of water.
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Stir the noodles. Cover the pan and put it back over medium heat. Cook for 4 minutes until the noodles are tender. Stir regularly. Then add the cooked prawns and the chopped spring onions.
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Stir the noodles again. Cook for another 4 minutes. Add extra water if the noodles are too dry. Then stir in the freshly chopped cilantro and the bean sprouts.
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Stir the pad thai well to combine. Check the seasoning and add extra fish sauce or hot chili sauce to taste if necessary. Then divide the pad thai noodles and shrimp over warm and deep plates. Sprinkle with the crushed salted peanuts and serve with a wedge of lime on the side. Serve hot.
Where in Thailand in pad thai from?
Pad thai, also known as phat thai or phad thai, is a popular stir-fried rice noodle dish commonly served as street food in Thailand.
Its origins can be traced back to the Ayutthaya period in Thai history, around the 17th century.
Although stir-fried rice noodles were introduced to Thailand from China centuries ago, the dish pad thai was actually invented in the mid-20th century. It was created using rice noodles and was called pad thai as a way to galvanize nationalism during that time.
Today, it has become one of Thailand’s national dishes and is enjoyed by people all over the world!
Who invented pad thai?
During World War II, Thailand faced a rice shortage due to the war and floods.
To reduce domestic rice consumption, the Thai government, led by Prime Minister Plaek Phibunsongkhram, promoted the consumption of noodles instead. As a result, a new noodle dish called sen chan pad thai (named after Chanthaburi Province) was created.
This dish, made with rice noodles, shrimp, peanuts, scrambled egg and bean sprouts, eventually became known simply as pad thai.
There’s also a debate about whether pad thai was truly of native Thai origin. Some argue that it was invented by Chinese immigrants themselves, given that noodle cookery was introduced by waves of immigrants from southern China settling in the region.
What is a good substitute for palm sugar in this shrimp pad thai?
There are a few options you can consider:
- Light Brown Sugar: Light brown sugar is an excellent substitute for palm sugar. It provides a similar level of sweetness without altering the flavor profile too much. Use it in the same quantity as you would palm sugar.
- Dark Brown Sugar: If you don’t have light brown sugar, dark brown sugar can work as well. However, keep in mind that it has a deeper molasses flavor, which might slightly affect the taste of your Pad Thai.
- Coconut Sugar: Coconut sugar is another alternative. It shares some similarities with palm sugar, including a natural sweetness and a hint of caramel flavor. Use it as a 1:1 replacement for palm sugar.