Chicken Pad Thai — EASY, ready in 20 minutes, and BETTER than takeout!! Tender rice noodles, juicy chicken, with crisp-tender carrots, cabbage, and more for an IRRESISTIBLE and AUTHENTIC chicken pad Thai!!
Table of Contents
My Thai recipes are some of my most popular recipes on my site and I knew it was time for an authentic-tasting chicken pad Thai recipe that’s easy, ready quicker than you can call for takeout, and leaves you going back for more.
This homemade pad Thai recipe feeds a crowd, so invite your friends over or get ready to enjoy delectable leftovers.
All the chicken pad Thai ingredients are readily available in the Asian or ethnic section of most major supermarkets. Or there’s always Amazon.
What Is Pad Thai?
Pad Thai is a popular street food dish that’s served all over Thailand. It typically features rice noodles, bean sprouts, peanuts, scrambled egg, and a source of protein (I’ve heard that shrimp is most common in Thailand).
The ingredients are stir-fried in a wok in a delicious sauce made from soy sauce, fish sauce, and lime.
The resulting explosion of tastes and textures is what makes this dish so delicious! The rice noodles remain chewy, while the veggies add a slight crunch.
Note that the recipe I’m sharing in this post is NOT authentic pad Thai. It’s simply a home cook’s version of pad Thai using ingredients I can easily find at my local supermarket.
Recipe Ingredients
To make this easy chicken pad Thai recipe, you’ll need:
- Flat rice noodles (sometimes called pad Thai noodles or ban pho noodles)
- Coconut oil
- Onion
- Chicken breasts
- Garlic
- Ground ginger
- Green cabbage (an 8-ounce bag of chopped cabbage is a time-saver)
- Shredded carrots (use pre-shredded to save time)
- Low-sodium soy sauce
- Fish sauce
- Lime juice
- Honey
- Green onions
- Peanuts
Note: Scroll down to the recipe card section of the post for the ingredients with amounts included and for more complete directions.
How to Make Chicken Pad Thai
Homemade chicken pad Thai comes together quickly and easily. Here’s an overview of how the recipe is made:
- Boil one pound of flat rice noodles. Because they’re made from rice and don’t have gluten, they cook very quickly, in about 5 minutes so make sure not to overcook them or you’ll have mush.
- Drain and rinse the noodles under cold water, and set them aside.
- In a very large skillet, cook together diced onions and sliced chicken with sesame oil, coconut oil, garlic, and ginger.
- Add the green cabbage, shredded carrots, fish sauce, soy sauce, lime juice, a touch of honey or agave syrup, and optional sriracha sauce.
- Stir in the noodles, a scrambled egg, top with green onions, peanuts, and get ready to dig in.
Tips for Making This Recipe
One 12-ounce bag of coleslaw mix would do double-duty for the cabbage and carrots. This likely will also have red cabbage, and slightly less carrots, but in terms of taste, it will be very similar and is a time-saver and you’ll a tiny bit of money on ingredients compared to buying cabbage and carrots separately.
Note that fresh ginger can be used instead of dried (use half the quantity listed if using fresh).
Rather than using a combination of sesame and coconut oil, you’re welcome to use vegetable and/or olive oil. (Note that the mere 1 tablespoon of coconut I used in this big-batch recipe does not make the dish taste at all like coconut if you’re sensitive to the flavor).
FAQs
I promise the chicken pad Thai recipe doesn’t taste fishy whatsoever! It just adds a rich umami flavor that’s impossible to replicate with another ingredient.
No, the fish sauce is a must! It helps give the pad Thai sauce its signature flavor.
You’ll want to use flat rice noodles when making pad Thai. Flat rice noodles resemble Italian fettuccini and hold up well again the juicy chicken and hearty sauce.
Yes! To make this pad Thai recipe using shrimp instead of chicken, add cleaned, fresh, raw shrimp at the same place in the recipe where you would add the chicken. As soon as the shrimp is cooked through (in likely 2 minutes), remove them from the pan, set it aside, and stir them back in at the end. Otherwise it will be overcooked and rubbery.
Recipe Variations to Try
There are a million versions and variations of pad Thai you can try. Some optional ideas and variations include:
- Add bean sprouts, bell peppers, and/or mushrooms.
- Rather than green onions, use fresh Thai basil.
- Sriracha adds a touch of heat, and for me Thai food needs to have at least some heat, but you can omit it if you’re sensitive to spices.
- Add extra sriracha and/or dried chili flakes if you want more heat.
What to Serve With Pad Thai
Storage and Reheating Instructions
To store: Store leftover chicken pad thai in an airtight container in the fridge. If stored properly, it will keep for up to 5 days.
To reheat: I recommend reheating the chicken pad Thai in a skillet over medium heat. You may need to add a little oil to the pan if the noodles seem dry. I don’t recommend reheating pad Thai in the microwave as that will make the noodles and chicken rubbery.
Video Tutorial
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Chicken Pad Thai
Ingredients
- 1 pound flat rice noodles
- 3 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil
- 1 medium onion, diced small (I used sweet Vidalia)
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breast, sliced into thin long strips
- 3 to 5 cloves garlic, finely minced or pressed
- 1 tablespoon ground ginger, (1/2 tablespoon fresh ginger may be substituted)
- 8 ounces thinly sliced green cabbage, (about 3 to 4 loosely packed cups)
- 1 cup shredded carrots
- ⅓ cup low-sodium soy sauce
- ¼ cup fish sauce
- ¼ to ⅓ cup freshly squeezed lime juice
- 2 tablespoons honey or agave syrup
- 1 large egg, scrambled
- 2 tablespoons sriracha, (optional and to taste)
- 3 green onions, sliced into thin rounds (optionally substitute with 1/3 cup minced fresh Thai basil)
- ⅔ cup chopped roasted peanuts, (I used reduced-salt)
Instructions
- Cook rice noodles according to package directions, drain, rinse under cold water; set aside.
- To a very large skillet at least 4 inches deep, add the oils (vegetable and/or olive oil may be substituted for the sesame and coconut oil), onion, and sauté the onion over medium-high heat for about 5 minutes, or until onion is beginning to soften; stir intermittently.
- Add the chicken and cook for about 3 minutes, or until done; stir and flip nearly constantly to ensure even cooking. The chicken will cook very quickly if it’s sliced sufficiently thin.
- Add the garlic, ginger, and cook for about 1 minute, or until fragrant; stir nearly constantly.
- Add the cabbage, carrots, soy sauce, fish sauce, lime juice, stir to combine, cover skillet with a lid, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer for about 3 minutes, or until cabbage wilts and softens. Remove lid and stir.
- Add the honey and stir to combine.
- Add the cooked noodles, turn off the heat, and stir well to combine.
- Add the scrambled egg, optional sriracha, and stir to combine.
- Evenly garnish with the green onions, peanuts, and serve.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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I’m doing a personal cooking challenge and your Pad Thai dish has been a favorite with my family! I wrote an article about your dish here.
https://marychang-10894.medium.com/pad-thai-anyone-753585eccd8a?sk=b3d84de1e43e1dbd237c87312a33282b
That’s great and nice to hear this has been a favorite for your family!
Can’t wait to make this tonight! Most recipes call for a small amount of ground ginger as compared to using fresh ginger. (1/4 tsp ground = 1 tablespoon fresh ginger) This recipe seems to do the opposite. Are those amounts correct? Do you use ground or fresh when you make it? Thank you!
I use ground, I don’t keep fresh on hand normally and so I sprinkle the dry/ground in fairly freely. Of course, always adjust to taste. I like strong flavors just to note that too.
I honestly was disappointed in this recipe. We picked it out because I was craving Pad Thai and looked quick and easy, and it was easy! But unfortunately the flavors were not at all what I was expecting, tasted nothing like Pad Thai to me or my husband and we habe eaten quite a bit of Thai Food!
This was delicious! I was a little worried because of the amount of fish sauce, but I’ve loved all of your recipes, so I went with it. A definite winner! My whole family loved it. Thanks, Averie!
This was delicious! I was a little worried because of the amount of fish sauce, but I’ve loved all of your recipes, so I went with it. A definite winner! My whole family loved it. Thanks, Averie!
Thanks for the 5 star review and I am glad it was a definite winner! This makes such a big batch of food that 1/4 in all those noodles and chicken and more really isn’t too much.
This recipe was easy to make and was better than any resturant take out. Def five stars. Thanks for sharing!!!
This recipe was easy to make and was better than any resturant take out. Def five stars. Thanks for sharing!!!
Thanks for the 5 star review and glad that it was better than any restaurant take out!
Made this chicken pad Thai recipe last night. I have to say it was absolutely delicious and I will definitely be making it again. I made it exactly as written except I didn’t have any Thai basil so just left it out with no substitution. Thank you for sharing and I will be trying your other recipes as well.
Made this chicken pad Thai recipe last night. I have to say it was absolutely delicious and I will definitely be making it again. I made it exactly as written except I didn’t have any Thai basil so just left it out with no substitution. Thank you for sharing and I will be trying your other recipes as well.
Thanks for the 5 star review and glad it was absolutely delicious and you’ll make it again!
I mixed a spoonful of peanut butter, 2 TBSP of sriracha and 2 TBSP of honey right before I added the noodles. It was delicious but next time I would add thai basil or cilantro (didn’t have any in the house). Would definitely make again! My partner said it was the best meal I have ever made! I would lessen the amount of fish oil buy a bit as it overpowered slightly.
Made this recipe, and it tasted sour due to too much fish sauce. Not authentic at all. Also, sriracha for spice?? No!! Wasted a lot of food as we had to throw this out.
Is the scrambled egg cooked prior to making this or does it cook from the residual heat of the noodles and veggies?
In the ingredients section where I wrote 1 large egg, scrambled that means it’s already scrambled at the time you add it to the pad Thai so you need to do that separately.
With quarantine I’ve been cooking a lot more and this is a favorite of mine! I made a double batch to drop off with my immunocompromised mom, and she also loves it.
I chopped everything myself, so prep we longer. But it was still very quick and it’s not like I have anything else to do.
I’ll be looking into some of your other recipes too! Easy to follow and delicious.
With quarantine I’ve been cooking a lot more and this is a favorite of mine! I made a double batch to drop off with my immunocompromised mom, and she also loves it.
I chopped everything myself, so prep we longer. But it was still very quick and it’s not like I have anything else to do.
I’ll be looking into some of your other recipes too! Easy to follow and delicious.
Thanks for the five star review and how nice of you to drop some of this off for your mom. Glad you’ll be taking a look at some of my other recipes as well!