How to cook Street food shrimp Pad Thai | Quick and easy authentic Pad Thai recipe
If you’re still searching for the most reliable authentic pad Thai recipe, stop here because Thai chefs from street food stall make this. And, when I’ve discovered the formula from a Pad Thai chef in Bangkok neighborhood, it’s ridiculously simple!
Since I moved away from my hometown, I found out there is tons of Pad Thai recipes, and most Thai restaurants outside Thailand adapted the ingredients to meet customer preference.
The essential element in real Pad Thai is “dried shrimps” which makes a unique flavor and most recipes try to skip.
But, this is the secret ingredient!
If you have ever been to Thailand, you might know that you have to go to specific food vendors or specialty shophouse.
On the other hand, Some restaurants or recipes on the internet add tomato sauce, peanut sauce or even invent a new formula but they still write on the menu as authentic Pad Thai recipe.
I figure out that people have a wild imagination to create a fusion pasta and Thai noodle, and I like that!
Anyway, If you want to go back to the original, you can follow this recipe now in your kitchen, and I divide into three sections
- Making the sauce
- Stir-frying
- Garnishing and eating
Tools you need:
- Flat or deep frying pan
- Pestle and mortar or food processor
- Gas stove(fast), electric stove(slow)
#1 Making Pad Thai Sauce
Ingredients
- 2 tsp Dried Salted Shrimps
- 2 tsp Pickled Radish
- 2 Tbsp Tamarind Paste
- 2 Tbsp Fish Sauce
- 6 Tbsp Granulated Sugar
- 4 tsp White Vinegar
Directions
- Pound dried shrimps and pickled radish
- Add sugar, tamarind paste, fish sauce, and vinegar. Mix them well.
#2 Saute The Noodle
When it comes to stir-frying, I recommend you gather tools, sauces, ingredients ready to reach. It happened to me when I burned things while seeking them.
Ingredients
- 8 oz Fresh Pad Thai Noodle, 3 mm thin
- 1/4 cup Canola oil
- 6 pieces Freshwater Shrimps, Deveined
- 1/4 cup Fried Tofu, small diced
- 1 cup Bean Sprouts washed
- 1 cup Chives, 1″ cut
- 1 large Egg
Pad Thai noodle that I’m using here is from local Asian market and it’s FRESH (stored in the refrigerator). If you wish to use dry or dehydrated noodle sticks you can too by soaking for about 40 minutes.
Directions
- Turn on high heat, then add canola oil on the frying pan. Put Pad Thai noodle while the oil is NOT TOO hot. Use a spatula, a spoon, or tongs to help you separate the noodle while stirring
- Add fresh water shrimps, and turn them on both sides. While stir-frying, you add a splash of water.
- When the noodle is getting soft, add an egg, scramble it, and keep frying until both egg and noodle are cooked(limp and bright). Next, add sauce mixture and stir thoroughly
- After the noodle has sipped the sauce, add bean sprouts, chives, and diced fried tofu.
- After bean sprouts partially cooked, chives are wilted, transfer to your plate.
#3 Garnishing And Eating
Hurry up! You can’t wait too long to enjoy this. Pad Thai is best a few minutes after you’ve finished cooking.
You need to have 5 items to garnish:
- Crushed Peanut – I bought a jar of unsalted roast peanut, and grind it in a food processor.
- Chili Flakes – easy to find at a grocery store.
- Lime wedges – NO lemon, it’s not the same, trust me 😉
- Chive stalks or Green onion stalks – To fresh your mouth, try to bite it while enjoying the meal.
- Extra sugar – you might wonder if you need more sweetness. No, you don’t, but every time I have Pad Thai at local street food I always find a Tbsp of sugar on a side although I never use it, funny.
In conclusion,
there is a lot of Pad Thai recipe out there which might confuse you with a real authentic Pad Thai recipe.
But they are still amazing Pad Thais!
However, if you want to make it original, you can start now with recipe card below, and I wish it’ll meet your favor.
If you have tried the recipe, please comment how you like it and send me photos!
Happy Pad Thai day.
Authentic Shrimp Pad Thai
Quick and easy authentic shrimp Pad Thai you can find everywhere in Thailand but not outside Thailand. If you like real Thai street food, the recipe will bring you to the heart of Bangkok's food stall right into your home.
Ingredients
- 2 tsp Dried Salted Shrimps
- 2 tsp Pickled Radish
- 2 Tbsp Tamarind Paste
- 2 Tbsp Fish Sauce
- 6 Tbsp Granulated Sugar
- 4 tsp White Vinegar
- 8 oz Fresh Pad Thai Noodle 3 mm thin
- 1/4 cup Canola oil
- 6 pieces Freshwater Shrimps Deveined
- 1/4 cup Fried Tofu small diced
- 1 cup Bean Sprouts washed
- 1 cup Chives 1" cut
- 1 large Egg
- 1 Tbsp Peanut crushed
- 1 Tbsp Dry Chili Flakes
- 1 slice Lime Wedges
Water (while stir-frying)
Instructions
Making Pad Thai Sauce
Pound dried shrimps and pickled radish.
Add sugar, tamarind paste, fish sauce, and vinegar. Mix them well.
Saute The Noodle
Turn on high heat, then add canola oil on the frying pan. Put Pad Thai noodle while the oil is NOT TOO hot. Use a spatula, a ladle, or tongs to help you separate the noodle while stirring
Add fresh water shrimps, and turn them on both sides. While stir-frying, you can pour a splash of water on the noodle
When the noodle is getting soft, add an egg and keep frying until the egg and noodle are cooked. Next, add sauce mixture and stir thoroughly
After the noodle has sipped the sauce, add bean sprouts, chives, and diced fried tofu
Keep saute until bean sprouts partially cooked, chives are wilted, transfer to your plate.
To garnish, place 1 Tbsp of the crushed peanut, dry chili flakes, sugar and a piece of lime wedges on a side.
Recipe Notes
- You can substitute any kinds of meats with shrimp such as chicken, pork, beef, seafood.
- I recommend to make a large batch of Pad Thai sauce at once and keep it refrigerated, so you can use it anytime you want.
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