If you're looking for a tasty and healthy meal that's sure to impress, look no further than this delicious recipe for Pad Thai from the Kitirattragarn family, founders of Dang Foods. Not only is it packed with flavor, but it's also gluten-free and can be made with shrimp or vegetarian - making it a perfect versatile dish!
Before we dive into the recipe, let's take a moment to learn a little bit about Dang Foods and the history and origin of this popular Thai dish. The Kitirattragarn family shared this recipe with us when we interviewed them and featured their coconut chips in our G-Free Foodie box club.
About Dang Foods
As brothers living between NYC & Bangkok, Vincent and Andrew Kitirattragarn grew up eating differently. Certainly differently than their American neighbors in New York. They created Dang—แดง, named after their Mom—to share uniquely Asian-American snacks with the flavors and ingredients they love, including their famous original Coconut Chips, their Thai street snack-inspired Thai Rice Chips, and their Keto Friendly Bars. The coconut chips were created when Vincent wanted to make his mom's Thai Lettuce Wraps, and couldn't find the right type of toasted coconut. He made his own, and here we are.
Dang Foods coconuts are sourced from family farms in Thailand. As a Certified B Corp, Dang meets rigorous standards of environmental performance and public transparency, and all of their farms follow ethical business practices.
The History of Pad Thai
Pad Thai is a popular street food dish in Thailand. It's made with rice noodles, shrimp, eggs, and a variety of vegetables, all stir-fried together with a flavorful sauce.
The dish has its roots in the 1930s, when the Thai government was looking for a way to reduce the country's dependence on rice and promote the consumption of other types of noodles. In an effort to make noodles more appealing to the Thai people, the government enlisted the help of a chef named Phraya Ratana Kosalathep, who came up with the idea for Pad Thai.
Today, Pad Thai is one of Thailand's most iconic dishes, and it's enjoyed by people all over the world. It's a delicious and satisfying meal that's perfect for a quick lunch or a satisfying dinner.
A recipe for Pad Thai: a nutritious and gluten-free recipe
Now that you know a little bit about the history of Pad Thai, it's time to get cooking! This recipe is not only delicious, but it's also nutritious and gluten-free.
Ingredients:
- Rice noodles
- Peanut oil
- Tamarind paste
- Fish sauce (nam pla) (make sure it's gluten-free if you are)
- Palm sugar
- Rice vinegar
- Ground chili pepper
- Scallions
- Garlic
- Eggs
- Napa cabbage
- Mung bean sprouts
- Peeled shrimp, pressed tofu or a combination
- Roasted peanuts
- Fresh cilantro
- Limes
- Dang Coconut Chips
Instructions:
- Put noodles in a large bowl and add very warm (but not boiling) water to cover. Let sit until noodles are just tender; check every 5 minutes or so to make sure they do not get too soft. Drain, drizzle with one tablespoon peanut oil to keep from sticking and set aside. Meanwhile, put tamarind paste, fish sauce, palm sugar and vinegar in a small saucepan over medium-low heat and bring just to a simmer Stir in chili pepper and set aside.
- Put remaining 3 tablespoons oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat; when oil shimmers, add scallions and garlic and cook for about a minute. Add eggs to pan; once they begin to set, scramble them until just done. Add cabbage and bean sprouts, cook until cabbage is wilted. Then add shrimp and/or tofu.
- When shrimp begin to turn pink and/or tofu begins to brown, add drained noodles to pan along with sauce.
- Toss everything together to coat with tamarind sauce and combine well. When noodles are warmed through, serve, sprinkling each dish with peanuts and coconut chips & serving with a lime wedge.
This delicious Pad Thai recipe is sure to become a new favorite in your household. And don't worry, if you're not a fan of shrimp you can easily substitute it with tofu for a vegetarian version of the dish.
Delicious Recipe For Pad Thai From Dang Foods
Ingredients
- 4 oz rice noodles
- ¼ cup peanut oil
- 2-4 tablespoon tamarind paste
- ¼ cup fish sauce (nam pla)
- ⅓ cup palm sugar or coconut sugar
- 2 tablespoon rice vinegar
- ½ teaspoon ground chili pepper or to taste
- ¼ cup scallions chopped
- 1 garlic clove minced
- 2 eggs
- 1 small head Napa cabbage shredded (about 4 cups)
- 1 cup mung bean sprouts
- ½ pound peeled shrimp, pressed tofu or a combination
- ½ cup roasted peanuts chopped
- ½ cup fresh cilantro chopped
- 2 limes quartered
- ¼ cup Dang Coconut Chips
Instructions
- Put noodles in a large bowl and add very warm (but not boiling) water to cover. Let sit until noodles are just tender; check every 5 minutes or so to make sure they do not get too soft. Drain, drizzle with one tablespoon peanut oil to keep from sticking and set aside. Meanwhile, put tamarind paste, fish sauce, palm sugar and vinegar in a small saucepan over medium-low heat and bring just to a simmer Stir in chili pepper and set aside.
- Put remaining 3 tablespoons oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat; when oil shimmers, add scallions and garlic and cook for about a minute. Add eggs to pan; once they begin to set, scramble them until just done. Add cabbage and bean sprouts, cook until cabbage is wilted. Then add shrimp and/or tofu.
- When shrimp begin to turn pink and/or tofu begins to brown, add drained noodles to pan along with sauce.
- Toss everything together to coat with tamarind sauce and combine well. When noodles are warmed through, serve, sprinkling each dish with peanuts and coconut chips & serving with a lime wedge.
Notes
Nutrition
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Frequently Asked Questions about this recipe for Pad Thai:
In Pad Thai, rice noodles are stir-fried with eggs, veggies, and tofu or another choice of protein in a tamarind-based sauce. Red chili peppers, lime wedges, and peanuts are just a few of the condiments typically served with this dish.
To give Pad Thai its sweet and sour flavor, ingredients include palm sugar, tamarind, fish sauce, and peanuts. While certain variations of Lo Mein also include oyster sauce, sesame oil, or scallion oil, soy sauce/dark soy sauce is the main ingredient in those dishes.
Pad Thai typically isn't spicy, but you can add chili oils, pepper flakes, etc. to make is spicy if you would like.
Brandy says
This is the best pad Thai recipe ever! I couldn’t find tamarind paste one time and substituted it with Worcestershire (since it has tamarind in it) and I sometimes add a little brown sugar. Either way, this recipe is perfection!
K.C. Cornwell says
Thanks for your review - it's one of our favorite recipes too!