Recipe Girl®

Pad Thai Shrimp

October 24, 2018

It’s time to try making Pad Thai Shrimp for dinner!  If you follow this recipe, it will be on the table in 30 minutes.

Two bowls of Pad Thai Shrimp

What is Pad Thai?

Simply said, it’s a Thai dish based on rice noodles.  It’s typical street fare in Thailand, and it’s the dish you’re likely most familiar with from seeing it on the menu at Thai restaurants.

Traditional Pad Thai called for wide rice noodles, and includes ingredients like egg, bean sprouts, some sort of protein, crushed peanuts and lime.  Vibrant in flavor, it usually has a sweet and sour component from the sauce, which is a combination of sugar, vinegar and lime juice.

Serving dish of Pad Thai Shrimp

How do you make Pad Thai Shrimp?

My best advice for you in making easy Pad Thai is to have all of the ingredients ready to go. This will make preparation of your Pad Thai Shrimp pretty simple!

The rice noodles are soaked with hot tap water until softened.  That process takes about 20 minutes.  While the noodles are soaking, you can stir together the sauce ingredients.  Next you’ll stir-fry the shrimp, remove them from the pan, and then pan fry a little oil, garlic and eggs.

The noodles are added to the eggs in the pan, along with the sauce.  You’ll add in chopped peanuts, bean sprouts, green onions, some water and the shrimp, and heat until all is tender.

Individual servings of Pad Thai Shrimp are garnished with more green onions, peanuts and a sprinkle of fresh cilantro.

Serving platter of Pad Thai Shrimp

Is Thai food spicy?

There’s no doubt about it.  Thai food has a reputation for being spicy.  In fact, if you’re in a Thai restaurant, the menu likely has a “heat range” on the menu for each dish.  You can certainly order your food to be “not spicy.”  There are many dishes that are safe from the extreme spice too!

This recipe for Pad Thai Shrimp is not spicy at all. It doesn’t call for any hot peppers.  It just has a wonderful sweet and sour sauce that coats the shrimp, vegetables and noodles.  It’s completely family friendly.

Bowls of Pad Thai Shrimp

If you are looking for more shrimp recipes, you might like to try my Shrimp Po Boy or this Barbecued Shrimp with Remoulade Sauce.  Easy Baked Garlic Shrimp, Browned Butter Honey Garlic Shrimp and Cheesy Shrimp and Grits are also great shrimp dinner recipes!

Pad Thai Shrimp

Love this method for making Pad Thai Shrimp.

  • 8 ounces thick rice stick noodles ((see Recipe Notes below))
  • 1/4 cup freshly squeezed lime juice
  • 1/3 cup water
  • 3 tablespoons fish sauce
  • 1 tablespoon unseasoned rice vinegar
  • 3 tablespoons brown sugar
  • 4 tablespoons vegetable or canola oil, (divided)
  • 12 ounces medium shrimp, (peeled and de-veined)
  • 3 cloves garlic, (minced)
  • 2 large eggs, (beaten lightly)
  • salt
  • 6 tablespoons chopped, unsalted roasted peanuts
  • 3 cups bean sprouts, (well rinsed)
  • 5 whole green onions, (sliced thinly)
  • 1 medium lime, (cut into wedges)
  • 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro

  1. Cover the noodles with hot tap water (not boiling) in a large bowl and soak until softened, pliable, and limp but not fully tender, about 20 minutes. Drain the noodles and set aside.

  2. While the noodles soak, stir the lime juice, water, fish sauce, rice vinegar, brown sugar, and 2 tablespoons of oil together and set aside. Prep and measure out the rest of the ingredients while the noodles are soaking.

  3. Pat the shrimp dry with paper towels. Heat 1 more tablespoon of oil in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over high heat until just smoking. Add the shrimp, spread into single layer, and cook without stirring for 1 minute. Stir the shrimp and continue to cook until spotty brown and just pink around the edges, about 30 seconds. Transfer the shrimp to its own bowl, cover, and set aside.

  4. Add the remaining tablespoon of oil and garlic to the skillet and return it to medium heat until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the eggs and 1/4 teaspoon salt and cook, stirring vigorously until the eggs are scrambled, about 20 seconds.

  5. Stir the soaked noodles into the eggs. Add the fish sauce mixture, increase heat to high, and cook, tossing constantly, until the noodles are evenly coated. Add 1/4 cup of peanuts, bean sprouts, all but 1/4 cup of scallions and cooked shrimp. Continue to cook, tossing constantly, until the noodles are tender, about 2 minutes (if not yet tender, add 2 tablespoons of water to the skillet and continue to cook until tender).

  6. Transfer the noodles to a serving platter and sprinkle with the remaining scallions and peanuts. Serve, passing lime wedges and chopped cilantro.

  • Be sure to use the wide, fettuccine-style rice noodles.
  • For spicy noodles, add a pinch of cayenne to the finished dish or serve with tabasco.

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