Rezept

Pad Thai in 20 minutes: the recipe

Pad Thai in 20 minutes: noodles, egg, shrimp or tofu, and the ready-made THAANI sauce – that’s all you need. A recipe for four people, including a shopping list and wok steps.

3 Min. Lesezeit

Pad Thai in 20 Minuten: das Rezept

Pad Thai is one of the world's most famous dishes, yet it is historically young. In the 1930s and 40s, the Thai government promoted rice noodles specifically to save rice and to form a common national cuisine. A campaign turned into the most well-known Thai export of all.

What carries the dish is a balance of three directions: tamarind for acidity, palm sugar for sweetness, fish sauce for the salty element. In Thai, this is written on the bottle as ซอสผัดไทย, literally Pad Thai sauce. When the ratio is right, the dish tastes well-rounded, without any single ingredient overpowering the others.

This recipe shows how you can achieve the result in 20 minutes using the ready-made sauce, without having to boil down tamarind or weigh out palm sugar yourself. The seasoning is done; you only need to add what is fresh.

Classically, Pad Thai is cooked with shrimp or tofu, and at street stalls, often with dried shrimp and radish, which provide extra salt and bite. For the version at home, a protein of your choice, bean sprouts for freshness, and roasted peanuts for the crunch at the end are sufficient.

  • 4servings
  • 20 min.preparation time
  • 1/5on the THAANI scale

Shopping list

What else you need

  • 170 ml THAANI Pad Thai Sauce (approx. 2/3 bottle)
  • 300 g wide rice noodles (Pad Thai noodles)
  • 300 g shrimp, chicken breast, or tofu, of your choice
  • 2 eggs
  • 150 g bean sprouts
  • 4 spring onions, sliced into rings
  • 2 tbsp rapeseed oil for frying
  • 50 g roasted peanuts, coarsely chopped
  • 1 lime, in wedges

Preparation

  1. Soak the noodles. Soak the rice noodles in warm, not boiling, water according to the package instructions until they are pliable but still firm to the bite. Drain well; otherwise, the sauce will become watery in the wok later.
  2. Heat the wok. Heat rapeseed oil in the wok over high heat and fry the shrimp, chicken, or tofu until cooked through. Remove from the wok and set aside.
  3. Scramble the eggs. Whisk the eggs directly in the wok, let them set briefly, then combine them back with the protein mixture.
  4. Add noodles and sauce. Add the noodles, bean sprouts, and the THAANI Pad Thai Sauce to the wok, tossing over high heat until the noodles have completely absorbed the sauce and are slightly glossy.
  5. Fold in spring onions. Toss briefly, then remove from the heat so they don't wilt.
  6. Serve. Sprinkle with peanuts and serve with lime wedges, which everyone can squeeze over their dish to taste.
Pad Thai is ready as soon as the noodles are glossy, not as soon as they are swimming.

Variations and tips

  • Vegetarian with tofu instead of meat or shrimp; for a vegan version, simply omit the eggs.
  • The sauce is mild; for those who like it spicier, sprinkle dried chili flakes separately over the finished plate.
  • Only soak the noodles, do not boil them, or they will turn mushy in the hot wok within seconds.
  • Leftovers taste great cold the next day as a noodle salad; just refresh with a bit of fresh lime.

Once opened, the sauce keeps refrigerated at +2 to +6 °C and should be consumed within 2 weeks. A whole bottle makes 6 portions of Pad Thai; this recipe requires only two-thirds of it.