This is my take on one of the most classic thai noodle dishes: pad see ew. This recipe can be made in around 30 mins and tastes as good as a takeaway.
If you have ever been to a thai noodle restaurant or takeaway, it is likely that you have seen the words ‘pad see ew’ on the menu. Pad see ew means ‘stir fried soy sauce noodles’ are some of the most popular type of Thai noodle because they are salty with just a hint of sweetness. My girlfriend doesn’t really like sweet flavours on a savoury dish, so when I was looking up noodle recipes I thought these were the best choice!
I’ve never made these before, but wow, these noodles taste just like the ones I’ve eaten at a takeaway. I’m not going to pretend that I’m an expert on Thai cooking (although I recently bought a complete anthology of Thai food!), so most of this recipe has come from a person who is: CJ Eats. I’ve been following this chef for a while now and I’m absolutely obsessed with his food- this definitely won’t be the last recipe I juse.
To make this recipe my own I’ve made a couple of changes. First, I used tenderstem broccoli instead of Gai lun (or chinese broccoli) simply because I couldn’t find it. I think the crunchy stems of the tenderstem and the soft leaves went really well with this dish, but if you want to be truly authentic you will be able to find chinese broccoli in Asian supermarkets. I’ve also included a few toppings that I thought really made the dish: coriander, roast peanuts and spring onion. These are of course optional, but they added crunch and freshness to the dish.
Pad see ew sauce
The key to pad see ew noodles tasting like they do is to make the sauce properly. Luckily, this isn’t difficult. There are only 5 main ingredients: soy sauce (either a mix of light and dark or just light), oyster sauce, white vinegar (I used rice vinegar but you can also use white wine vinegar), sugar and a little water. To make the sauce, all you need to do is mix the ingredients together!
Another tip to creating a pad see ew that really tastes authentic is to caremalise the noodles in the sauce. To do this, I just cooked the noodles in the sauce for a minute until the noodles were begining to smell rich and were ever so slightly charring.
Veggie/vegan pad see ew
This recipe uses chicken, egg and oyster sauce, so it isn’t exactly a vegan friendly meal. You can easily omit the chicken for a vegan alternative such as tofu, Quorn or Seitan and, if you don’t eat eggs, just leave it out.
I really think that this recipe needs the oyster sauce: it gives such a rich umami flavour that you’d struggle to replicate. The sauce contains a very small amount of oyster so, if you are a pescaterian, you can still use it. If you are a very strict veggie/vegan, you could always try making some vegan oyster sauce yourself! Alternatively, swap the oyster sauce for hoisin sauce, and maybe leave the sugar out of the mix as hoisin is sweeter than oyster.
Best 30 minute noodle recipe
I’d never made this recipe before, and I was so surprised by how similar it tasted to the noodles I’ve eaten in a Thai noodle restaurant. Although there are a number of steps, you can make these noodles in around 30 minutes. If you’ve got a wok, use it! If not, use a large frying pan.
I really hope you like this recipe, and a big thank you to CJ eats for the majority of this recipe!
Pad see ew noodles recipe
Preperation time: 10-15 mins
Cooking time: 20 mins
Servings: 2-3
Ingredients
For the noodles:
- 200g thai rice stick (medium or wide sticks, you can find these in most supermarkets)
- Boiled water
For the chicken:
- 2 boneless chicken thighs, finely sliced (substitute with tofu or seitan)
- 1 tsp veg oil
- Salt and pepper (can be white pepper, sezchuan or black pepper)
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
For the sauce:
- 2 tbsp dark soy sauce
- 2 tbsp light soy sauce (if you only have one soy sauce just use 4 tbsp of that)
- 2 tbsp oyster sauce (substitute with hoisin/vegan oyster sauce)
- 1 tbsp white vinegar (either rice or white wine viengar)
- 1 tbsp sugar (any)
- Splash of water
For everything else:
- Veg oil
- 1 onion, finely sliced
- 3 garlic cloves, finely dices
- 8 peices of tenderstem broccoli, stems cut into small chunks
- Handful of peanuts
- Handful of spring onions
- 1-2 spring onions, chopped
How to make pad see ew
- Begin by chopping the chicken into thin slices. Add the chicken to a bowl, then add the veg oil, soy sauce and seasoning. Stir well and leave to marinade for 15 minutes. Always be careful when handling chicken and make sure you wash your hands and utensils thoroughly.
- While the chicken is marinading, make the sauce. Combine all of the ingredients listed, stir well and put to one side.
- Chop your onions and garlic. Heat a wok or frying pan on a medium high heat and add the onions. Cook for a couple of minutes, stirring regularly. Next, add the garlic and stir fry for 15 seconds.
- Add the chicken to the pan and stir fry until it is turning golden (about 75% cooked). Chop the tenderstem broccoli stems into small pieces and add to the pan. After a couple of minutes, add the leafy tops of the broccoli.
- Stir fry for a couple of minutes, then put in a bowl to one side. Add one egg to the hot pan and scramble it, then add to the chicken and broccoli mix.
- Cook your noodles according to instructions. With mine, I poured boiling water over the noodles and let them to cook in the water until they were soft.
- Drain the noodles and rinse under a little cold water. Put the pan on a medium heat and add 1 tbsp oil. Add the noodles and then add the sauce you made earlier. Coat the noodles well and leave to cook for 1-2 minutes until the noodles look as though they’re starting to caramelise.
- Add your chicken, veg and eggs to the noodles and mix well.
- Optional: top the noodles with chopped coriander, spring onions and chopped toasted peanuts.
- Enjoy!
Tip: if you make too much, these noodles taste just as good the next day. Just heat them up in a pan with a little oil and enjoy!
Don’t worry too much if some of the noodles break while you’re cooking. Typically, pad see ew is served with a fork instead of chopsticks for easier eating.
If you don’t have rice noodles, make them with any noodles of your choice!
Love chicken recipes? Why not try my chicken in a white wine sauce?
Or how about my yoghurt-marinated chicken kebab?
Looking for vegan food? Try my spiced lentils, cauliflower soup or beer battered cauliflower tacos!