If you’re craving a dish that’s bold, balanced, and downright irresistible, this unique Peanut Pad Thai Stir Fry is your answer! Featuring tender rice noodles, tender vegetables, chunks of scrambled eggs, succulent shrimp, and your choice of marinated pork or beef, it’s all tossed in my signature Peanut Pad Thai Sauce. This sauce is where the magic happens—it perfectly balances salty, savory, sweet, sour, and spicy notes. The beauty of this dish is its balance; focus on one flavor, and it takes the spotlight. Shift your attention, and another shines through. It’s an easy, no-fuss recipe that uses simple ingredients, coming together in just 15 minutes once the prep is done. Which is the most time-consuming part, but in the end is worth every minute!
Peanut Pad Thai Ingredients
Rice Noodles, Vegetables (Bean Sprouts, Green Onions, Carrot, Onion & Garlic), Eggs, Shrimp and choice of Beef or Pork, Peanut Pad Thai Sauce (Water, Dark Soy Sauce (Datu Puti), Sweet Thai Chili Sauce, HP Sauce, Ketchup, White Vinegar (Datu Puti), Peanut Butter, Sriracha), Meat Marinade (Peanut Pad Thai Sauce, Sesame Oil, Coriander, Cumin, Onion, Garlic, Ginger, White Pepper), Cooking Oil (Peanut or Sunflower Oil with Sesame Oil).
Rice Noodles
Use Thai Rice Noodles for this dish, choosing the narrow-sized noodles typically used for Pad Thai. These noodles usually come in 454g packages, but you only need half (227g) to make enough Pad Thai for four people.
Soaking Rice Noodles
Never boil Rice Noodles to soften them. Instead, soak them in water before cooking them in a sauce. In Thai street food, you’ll often see a bucket filled with water and rice noodles or strained rice noodles that have already soaked. The noodles are taken directly from the bucket and stir-fried.
Soak 227g Rice Noodles in Hot Water for about 10-15 minutes. Right at the begining of prep so that they are ready for the Wok to stir fry for about 4-5 minutes.
Peanut Pad Thai Vegetables
Onion, Garlic & Carrots are tossed in to cook with the choice of meat and the Bean Sprouts & Green Onions are added towards the end to cook for 2-3 minutes. Prepare the Vegetables as;
- A Large Onion – Sliced 1/8 to 1/4 inch
- Three Cloves of Garlic – minced or julienne
- A Med Carrot – Julienne
- Three Green Onions – Chopped into 2 inch sections and then chopped into strips
- Bean Sprouts – Washed and strained
The Onions, Garlic and Carrots can go together. While the Green Onions & Bean Sprouts can go together. Put everything together in a tray for a nice presentation as well as being able to access the ingredients quickly during stir frying.
Julienne Carrots
For the Carrots I use a Julienne Y Peeler. But the Carrot can also be shreded long at a 45 degree angle or more. You can even use the peeler to slice off thin slices of carrots. Even picking up a bag of already shredded Carrots.
Pad Thai Eggs
Serve Pad Thai with eggs cooked at the very end after preparing the dish. This technique creates nice chunks of egg that soak up the Pad Thai sauce. Once the Pad Thai is ready, set it aside and add oil to the wok. Pour in the scrambled eggs and let them set. Tilt the pan to spread the eggs into a thin layer as they cook through. Avoid breaking them up at this stage. Add the Pad Thai back into the wok and briefly toss, breaking up the eggs just before serving. Alternatively, cook the eggs at the beginning and mix them back in at the end for a quick toss.
Either way you do the Eggs, whether at the start or end, you do not want to toss the Pad Thai too much with the Eggs or else the Eggs will break down too much. Just a light tossing to mix through before serving.
Shrimp
I typically use frozen Shrimp, raw & deviened, at about a 26 – 30 count. If your Shrimp are frozen, then empty them into a bowl filled with water to defrost about 10 minutes. Then remove the Shells and place back into the bowl of water.
If your Shrimp are fresh, then place in a bowl of water and keep in the refrigerator until ready to add to the Wok.
Strain the shrimp before adding them to the wok, and cook them for about 3 minutes. 1 minute on each side and the last minute tossing them. Once cooked, transfer the shrimp back to the bowl they were in previously. Add the shrimp back to the wok during the final minutes of cooking.
Peanut Pad Thai with Beef
Use Flank Steak, Skirt, Tenderloin or Sirloin. Cheaper or expensive cuts can be used too. Thinly slice across the grain for tenderness. Another option is to julienne them, the same size as fries. Either way, toss the Meat into the Pad Thai Meat Marinade and mix well at the very start, set aside until ready to cook.
Peanut Pad Thai with Pork
Use practically any cut, but not too much fat. Thinly slice across the grain and toss the meat into the Pad Thai Meat Marinade to mix well, set aside until ready to cook.
Peanut Pad Thai Sauce
This is my version of perhaps a unique Pad Thai Sauce and there are a few things at work here. Overall, Pad Thai Sauce should have a balanced flavor of Salty, Savory, Sweet & Sour with Spiciness. While Thai Peanut Sauce usually has other ingredients, I find just adding Peanut Butter as is, suffificent to derive those Peanut flavors, in particular with this sauce.
Peanut Pad Thai Sauce
- 1/4 C Water, Dark Soy Sauce, Sweet Thai Chili Sauce – each
- 2 Tbl HP Sauce & Peanut Butter – each
- 1 Tbl Ketchup
- 1 tsp White Vinegar & Sriracha Sauce – each
Tamarind Substitute
For a Tamarind substitute use Ketchup, Vinegar with HP Sauce. HP Sauce does contain Tamarind, and is what makes this remarkably close to Tamarind Paste. It’s the perfect mix for a Tamarind substitute and is why these are included in this recipe for Pad Thai Sauce. I do on ocassion have Tamarind, but more so always having HP Sauce on hand for other recipes too.
Tamarind Paste Substitute
- 2 Tbl HP Sauce
- 1 Tbl Ketchup
- 1 tsp Vinegar
Tamarind Concetrate
If substituting tamarind paste with HP sauce, ketchup, and vinegar, adjust the amount to achieve a slight sourness in the Pad Thai sauce. Start with 1/2 tablespoon and add more if needed. You can use either store-bought tamarind concentrate or homemade tamarind paste.
Pad Thai Meat Marinade
The Pad Thai Meat marinade is built off of the Peanut Pad Thai sauce and adds in the following spices with about 1/2 lb to 1 lb of thinly sliced Meat. This is a remarkable spice blend to season the meat with.
Peanut Pad Thai Meat Marinade
- 2 Tbl Peanut Pad Thai Sauce
- 1 Tbl Sesame Oil
- 1/2 teaspoon each of the following ground spices; Coriander, Cumin, Onion, Garlic & Ginger Powder
- 1/8 teaspoon of White Pepper
Pad Thai Cooking Oil
Another important aspect is plenty of Oil. The Oil is used not only for stir-frying, but to keep the noodles from sticking to each other. The cooking Oil is used for the Shrimp & Meat, along with Vegetables and the Eggs.
The types of Oil used in Thailand are Coconut Oil, Palm Oil, Peanut Oil, and Soy Bean Oil. I prefer to use Peanut Oil or Sunflower Oil with a bit of Sesame Oil. A bit of Chili Oil can be added to up the spiciness too, entirely optional and based on preference.
Pad Thai Cooking Oil
- 2 Tbl Peanut Oil or Sunflower Oil
- 1 Tbl Sesame Oil
Storage
Pad Thai is best eaten fresh or within a few hours. If it sits in the fridge overnight it still pretty good. But any longer and it may not be so good as fresh.
How to make Peanut Pad Thai
The longest or most time consuming part is preparing the Peanut Pad Thai ingredients. After the prepartion, the entire dish is made up in about 15 minutes.
Shrimp
Empty 1/2 lb to 1 lb of frozen Shrimp into a bowl and fill with water. Set aside until thawed then remove the Shell and place back into the bowl.
If using Fresh Shrimp, then place into a bowl with water to cover and refrigerate until needed.
Some will leave the tail piece on. Leave on or remove, entirely up to you.
Noodles
Place the Rice noodles into a casserole dish and fill with hot tap water to soak until needed. This casserole dish will also be used to hold the entire Pad Thai when making the Eggs at the very end and for presentation if you choose to lay it out at the table with tongs for everyone to help themselves.
Pad Thai Sauce
Combine together all the ingredients for the Peanut Pad Thai Sauce. 2 Tbl of this will be used for the meat marinade and the remaining sauce used for the Pad Thai.
Meat Marinade
Combine the ingredients together for the meat marinade and then add your thinly sliced Beef or Pork, about 1/2 lb to 1 lb worth. Mix well and set aside.
Vegetables
Prepare all the vegetables needed for the Pad Thai and set aside.
- 1/2 lb Washed Bean Sprouts
- 3 Green Onions, chopped 2 inches and sliced into strips
- 1 Carrot Julienne or shredded long
- 3 Garlic Cloves Minced or Julienne
- 1 Onion sliced
How to cook Peanut Pad Thai
With all the prep work done, we are ready to make some Pad Thai. Heat that Wok up over medium high heat to Max heat.
Shrimp
Add the Shrimp into the hot wok with half of the cooking oil in an even layer. Leave for 1 minute. Flip them over to cook another minute and then cook an additional minute while tossing around. Empty into the bowl the Shrimp were in and set aside to add back in towards the end.
Meat
Add half of the Cooking Oil and marinated meat. Leave for 1 minute. Give the meat a stir and leave another 1 minute. Repeat until the meat is browned.
Add Onion, Carrots and Garlic and stir fry for 3 minutes. Keep everything moving.
Pad Thai Sauce and Noodles
Add the Pad Thai Sauce and strained out Rice Noodles. Mix really well, while shaking the wok back and forth. Cook for a total of 4-5minutes.
Last 2 – 3 minutes
During the last 2-3 minutes, add in the Shrimp, Bean Sprouts & Green Onions and toss through really well. Lift the noodles up and over, to get it all mixed.
Eggs
Empty the entire Pad Thai back into the casserole the Noodles were soaking in.
Add the remaining cooking oil and scrambled eggs. Let the eggs cook and form a thin layer on the wok. Tilt the pan around to spread the eggs out. Once they are set, add the Pad Thai back in and toss briefly before serving right away with tongs.
You can also do the eggs at the start and add them back in very last to toss brifely, right before serving.
Pad Thai Toppings
Portion out the Peanut Pad Thai and optionally garnish each plate with crushed Peanuts, toasted peanuts or carmelized peanuts. Serve with Lime wedge that can be squeezed over for additional sourness. Red Thai Chilies can also be used to garnish and add some heat. Use Chopsticks instead of a fork!
Equipment
- 1 Wok
- 4 Bowls for the Marinated Meat, Shrimp, Pad Thai Sauce, Scrambled Eggs
- 1 Tray to lay out all the ingredients
- 1 Casserole to soak the Noodles
- 1 Tong
Ingredients
- 8 C Hot Tap Water - or enough water to cover the noodles
- 1/2 lb Rice Noodle - or 227 g
- 1/2 lb Bean Sprouts - or 227 g or less
- 1/2 lb Pork Chop or Beef - or 227 g or more up to 1 lb, thinly sliced
- 1/2 lb Shrimp - or 227 g
- 2-3 Eggs - Scrambled
- 3 Cloves Garlic - Minced or Julienne
- 3 Stalks Green Onions - Sliced into strips 2 inches long
- 1 Med Onion - Sliced about 1/8 to 1/4 inch wide
- 1 Carrot - Shredded Long or Julienne
Cooking Oil
- 3 Tbl Peanut - or Sunflower Oil
- 1 Tbl Sesame Oil
Peanut Pad Thai Sauce
- 1/4 C Water, Dark Soy Sauce (Datu Puti), Sweet Thai Chili Sauce - each
- 2 Tbl HP Sauce & Peanut Butter - each
- 1 Tbl Ketchup
- 1 tsp White Vinegar(Datu Puti) & Sriracha Sauce - each
Meat Marinade – Used for Thinly Sliced Meats
- 2 Tbl Pad Thai Peanut Sauce above
- 1 Tbl Sesame Oil - can use Peanut or Sunflower Oil
- 1/2 tsp Garlic, Ginger, Onion, Coriander & Cumin - each, all ground
- 1/8 tsp White Pepper
Instructions
- PREPARATION: Place Frozen Shrimp into a bowl and fill with water. Place Rice Noodles into a casserole and cover with Hot Tap Water. Combine the Peanut Pad Thai Sauce ingredients together in a bowl and mix until uniformly smooth. Set aside.Slice meat across the grain into thin strips. Combine the meat marinade and toss with the thinly sliced meat. Set aside. Portion and wash the Beans Sprouts and set aside in its own bowl. Shred the Carrots lengthwise or julienne and set aside in its own bowl. Chop the Green Onions into 1–2 inch sections and add it with the Bean Sprouts. Mince or Julienne the Garlic & Slice the Onion and add to bowl with Carrots. Crack the Eggs into another bowl and scramble. Combine the 3 Tbl of a Neutral Oil with 1 Tbl of Sesame Oil into another bowl. Use this for your cooking oil.
- STIR FRY:Heat half the oil in a wok over medium-high heat. Cook shrimp for 3 minutes. 1 minute per side and tossing the last minute, then empty back into the bowl the shrimp was in. It will be cooked again towards the end.
- Add half of the remaining cooking Oil to the Wok. Add the meat and brown for about 5 minutes. Let it sit for a minute, toss, and repeat until browned through. Then stir-fry Onion, Garlic, and Carrots for 3 minutes.
- Add Peanut Pad Thai Sauce & Rice Noodles, mix really well. Cook for a total of 4–5 minutes. During the last 2 minutes, add the Shrimp, Green Onions & Bean Sprouts. Constantly keep the Pad Thai moving.
- Empty out the Wok into the casserole used to soak the noodles. Add the remaining Cooking Oil to the Wok with Scrambled Eggs. Tilt the Wok around to spread out the Eggs. Once it is fully set, add the Pad Thai back in and briefly toss before serving. Immediately plate and serve or empty back into the casserole to present at the table with tongs so that everyone can help themselves. Optionally garnish with Peanuts or toasted/caramelized Peanuts on top, Red Thai Chilies for heat and more Green Onions if desired. Lime wedges can be served to squeeze over and add more sourness.