The GüdDish Pad Thai

We studied 203 recipes from around the world and combined the most convincing 13. Then we built the BEST!

Pad Thai. The GüdDish.

Serves 4 · 20–25 min prep · 35–45 min total · 3 steps

Ingredients

Ingredients for Pad Thai
  • 2 large eggs
  • 8 oz peeled shrimp or thinly sliced chicken
  • 8 oz dried rice noodles
  • 3 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 yellow onion, thinly sliced
  • 3 tbs neutral oil
  • 3 tbs fish sauce
  • 1/2 cup roasted peanuts
  • 4 scallions or garlic chives, sliced
  • 2 limes
  • 3 tbs brown sugar or palm sugar
  • 2 cups bean sprouts
  • 3 tbs tamarind paste
  • 1/4 tsp kosher salt

What the best recipes taught us

  • Mix the sauce before you heat the pan. The sauce is ready when the noodles hit the pan, so you can toss right away.
  • Soak the rice noodles until they are flexible but still firm. They finish cooking in the sauce, and that is how they stay tender.

Method

  1. 1
    Rice noodles soaking in a bowl beside a mixed tamarind sauce
    8ozdried rice noodles
    3tbstamarind paste
    3tbsfish sauce
    3tbsbrown sugar or palm sugar
    8ozpeeled shrimp or thinly sliced chicken
    1/4tspkosher salt

    Soak the rice noodles in a bowl of room-temperature water until they are flexible but still firm in the center, 20 to 30 minutes. Drain.

    Meanwhile, stir the tamarind paste, fish sauce, and brown sugar or palm sugar together in a bowl until the sugar dissolves. Taste. It should taste sour, salty, and sweet.

  2. 2
    Shrimp, onion, garlic, and scrambled eggs cooking in a carbon-steel wok
    3tbsneutral oil
    8ozshrimp
    1yellow onion, thinly sliced
    3garlic cloves, minced
    2 largeeggs

    Heat a wide skillet or wok over high heat until a drop of water skips. Add the oil.

    Add the shrimp or chicken to the skillet and cook until just cooked through, 1 to 2 minutes. Push it to the side of the pan.

    Add the sliced onion and minced garlic to the skillet. Cook 30 seconds.

    Crack the eggs into the empty space in the skillet. Scramble them until just set.

  3. 3
    Rice noodles tossed in the same wok with sauce, bean sprouts, and peanuts
    drained rice noodles
    2cbean sprouts
    1/2croasted peanuts
    4scallions
    2limes

    Add the drained noodles and the sauce to the skillet. Toss hard until the noodles are coated and just tender, 2 to 3 minutes. Add a splash of water if the pan looks dry.

    Toss the bean sprouts, most of the peanuts, and the scallions or garlic chives into the skillet.

    Salt to taste. Serve with lime wedges and the rest of the peanuts.