Pad See Ew – the popular Thai stir fried noodles straight from the streets of Thailand made at home! While Pad Thai is sweeter and nuttier, Pad See Ew is salty, balanced with a touch of sour and a wonderful chargrilled flavour which you can create at home!
This is a reader-favourite recipe included by popular demand in my debut cookbook “Dinner”!
Pad See Ew
Pad See Ew, which means “stir fried soy sauce noodles”, is an extremely popular Thai street food meal and one of the most popular noodles dishes at Thai restaurants here in Australia.
Making a great Pad See Ew at home simply comes down to two things:
The right sauce. Basic recipes online will instruct you to use little more than just soy sauce and sugar. It takes a little more than that!
Caramelising the noodles – Getting a little caramelisation on the noodles makes all the difference between an “ok” and “wow, it’s JUST like you get at restaurants!”.
The trick? Remove the stir fry ingredients. Cook the noodles with sauce separately. Less stuff in the wok (or skillet) = easier to caramelise the noodles. At least, at home. If you’ve got a giant restaurant wok burner, you don’t need to do the noodles separately!
What goes in Pad See Ew
I can’t remember where I originally got the recipe from. Probably from David Thompson, the famous Australian chef who has dedicated his life to mastering the art of Thai cooking. I’ve made it so many times over the years, I can almost make it with my eyes closed. (Not really….but you know what I mean!)
So I had to actually measure the ingredients properly to share the recipe!
1. Pad See Ew Sauce ingredients
Pad See Ew has a sweet-savoury-touch-of-sour flavour, and this is made with a combination of the following ingredients:
Dark soy sauce – For flavour and staining the noodles a dark brown.
Ordinary or light soy sauce – For seasoning (salt) and a bit of flavour. Most of the flavour comes from the oyster sauce and dark soy sauce. More on different soy sauces and when you can substitute with what in this About Soy Sauces post.
Oyster sauce – Key ingredient, it’s like 10 difference sauces mixed up in one bottle!
Vinegar – To balance the sweet and savoury. Some form of sour is a key ingredient in South East Asian cooking!
Sugar – For sweetness.
2. Pad See Ew ingredients
And here are the other ingredients for Pad See Ew:
Noodles – Pad See Ew is traditionally made with Sen Yai, which are wide, thin fresh rice noodles that are not easily accessible. Even most Asian stores in Sydney do not sell them – you usually need to go to a Thai grocery store.
So it is perfectly acceptable, and just as delicious, to make them with any wide flat rice noodles. I use dried rice noodles labelled as “Pad Thai” Rice Noodles (pictured below) because they are the widest available at the supermarket.
Once rehydrated, they’re essentially Sen Yai Noodles – just not quite as wide.
Chinese Broccoli / Gai Lan – This is a key authentic ingredient in Pad See Ew. Otherwise known as Gai Lan or Kai lan, it’s leafy and looks quite different to broccoli, but you’ll notice a similarity in the texture of the stems (hence the name).
If you can’t find it, just sub with other Asian greens, or a combination of broccoli or broccolini + spinach.
Chicken and egg – Feel free to use other proteins if you wish. But chicken is by far the most popular.
How to make Thai Stir Fried Noodles
Usually when making stir fried noodles, we toss everything together in one big pan or a wok.
But for Pad See Ew made at home, I do things differently to best replicate a restaurant flavour and minimise noodle breakage:
Cook chicken and vegetables first, then remove
Add noodles and sauce, toss to caramelise (just 15 seconds), then add chicken and vegetables back in.
Reason: A signature flavour in Pad See Ew is the caramelisation of the noodles. Restaurants and street vendors achieve this with super powered gas stoves with fiery heat that you’ll never find in a home kitchen. The only way to replicate that caramelisation on the noodles on a home kitchen stove is to declutter the wok and cook the noodles separately – the noodles will caramelise in 15 seconds.
The other reason is that rice noodles break if you toss them too much. Doing the two-stage toss makes it much easier and faster to disperse the sauce and bring the Pad See Ew together.
Trust me on this point. I’ve made a LOT of Pad See Ew at home in my time, and the two-stage toss it the easiest and most effective technique!
Garlic, chicken and Chinese broccoli STEMS first – Using either a wok or large skillet set over high heat, heat the oil then sauté the garlic until it goes light golden. Add the chicken then once it mostly changes from pink to white, add the Chinese broccoli stems which take longer to cook than the leafy part.
Once the chicken is cooked (it should only take 2 to 3 minutes), toss the Chinese broccoli leaves in and cook for 30 seconds or so just until wilted.
Push everything to the side to make room to scramble the eggs on the side. This is the traditional Thai way of scrambling eggs in Pad See Ew!
Crack egg straight into the wok.
Scramble egg – Then mix to scramble it. Speed is of the essence here – we want scrambled egg not a sunny side up egg!
Empty wok – Remove the chicken and vegetables onto plate. As mentioned above, the best way to cook Pad See Ew at home is to cook the noodles separately so we can get some nice caramelisation on them. If we don’t do this, then the noodles just stew instead of caramelising.
Add noodles and sauce into the wok.
Toss quickly for 1 to 1 1/2 minutes until the sauce is dispersed throughout the noodles and you see some caramelisation on the edges.
PRO TIP: You want to be quick here because the longer and more you toss, the more noodle breakage you have. You’ll notice restaurants typically toss the noodles in the wok without using a wooden spoon or other tool for stirring – this too helps to minimise noodle breakage.
A note on Noodle Breakage – That said, you WILL get some noodle breakage, and that is normal / perfectly acceptable. Ever notice how the wide, flat noodles in Pad See Ew served at Thai restaurants are not long strands? That’s just the way it is. In fact, traditionally, Pad See Ew is served in Thailand with a FORK or spoon instead of noodles for ease of eating.
Add chicken and veg back in – Once the noodles are caramelised, add the chicken and vegetables back in. Give it a quick toss just to disperse, then serve!
As with all stir fries, once you start cooking, it moves very fast! So have everything prepared and ready to throw into the wok because there’s not time to be scrambling around the kitchen!
If you want to add a fresh side, try this Asian Slaw – it’s a great all rounder that goes with all Asian foods. – Nagi x
Watch how to make it
This recipe features in my debut cookbook Dinner. The book is mostly new recipes, but this is a reader favourite included by popular demand!
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Pad See Ew – Thai Stir Fried Noodles
Ingredients
Noodles
- 200g / 7 oz dried wide rice stick noodles , or 15 oz / 450g fresh wide flat rice noodles (Sen Yai) (Note 1)
Sauce
- 2 tsp dark soy sauce (Note 2)
- 1 1/2 tbsp oyster sauce
- 1 tbsp light soy sauce (or all purpose, Note 3)
- 2 tsp white vinegar (plain white vinegar)
- 2 tsp sugar (any type)
Stir Fry
- 3 tbsp peanut or vegetable oil , separated
- 2 cloves garlic cloves, very finely chopped
- 1 cup / 150g / 5oz chicken thighs (boneless, skinless), sliced (Note 4)
- 1 large egg
- 4 stems Chinese broccoli (Note 5)
Instructions
Preparation:
- Chinese Broccoli – trim ends, cut into 7.5cm/3" pieces. Separate leaves from stems. Cut thick stems in half vertically so they're no wider than 0.8cm / 0.3" thick.
- Noodles – Prepare according to packet directions and drain. Time it so they’re cooked just before using – do not leave cooked rice noodles lying around, they break in the wok.
- Sauce – Mix ingredients until sugar dissolves.
Cooking:
- Heat oil: Heat 1 tbsp oil in a very large heavy based skillet or wok over high heat.
- Cook garlic and chicken: Add garlic, cook 15 seconds. Add chicken, cook until it mostly changes from pink to white.
- Chinese broccoli STEMS: Add Chinese broccoli stems, cook until chicken is almost cooked through.
- Chinese broccoli LEAVES: Add Chinese broccoli leaves, cook until just wilted.
- Scramble egg: Push everything to one side, crack egg in and scramble.
- REMOVE chicken from wok: Remove everything in the wok onto a plate (scrape wok clean).
- Caramelise noodles: Return wok to stove, heat 2 tbsp oil over high heat until it starts smoking (HOT is key!). Add noodles and Sauce. Toss as few times as possible to disperse Sauce and make edges of noodles caramelise – about 1 to 1 1/2 minutes.
- Add chicken back in: Quickly add chicken and veg back in, and toss to disperse. Serve immediately!
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
Originally published 2014, updated 2016. Updated over the course of the years with improved photos, the addition of ingredients and process photos as well as a recipe video. Recipe also updated with a more effective cooking method – cooking the ingredients in two batches. No change to ingredients, but yields a better caramelisation and easier to cook – read in post for explanation.
MORE THAI TAKEOUT FAVOURITES
Love noodles? Me too! See my entire Noodle recipes collection.
Life of Dozer
When Dozer ate a VERY spicy piece of chilli biltong!!
I made this and it worked perfectly with firm tofu as my protein of choice. Another great one, Nagi!
Thanks for that feedback Lucinda! N x
Made it last night. Very good, family loved it. (I think next time I will make in two batches. Difficult to get things really hot when you double the recipe). It was great but I think I can get a better caramelization on the noodle. Can’t wait for your cook book. Your recipes are the best!
Yes I agree – one batch is easier to control the caramelisation! N x
Thanks I always enjoy your recipes. I just google things up and whatever I was after, I end up coming to yours, as you explain things really well.
Just one tip about cooking noodles I would like to share, of which I just learned today.
Soaking the noodles in room temperature water for an hour instead of hot water or boiling water helps preventing the breakage, as well as adding some oil in the sauce when caramelising. This way, we can keep the noodle longer after soaking and draining, upto 3days.
And just cook a bit after caramelising the noodles with sauce and oil.
I always struggled with the breakage of noodles and First time success today without any breakage..! So exciting!
Thank you for those tips Sunny!! Were you using the flat dried rice noodles? N x
Yes the same brand dried noodles shown above. Was just hard to find a container big enough for soaking. 🙂
That’s great! I will try it that way next time – thank you for sharing! N x
Absolutely gorgeous! I had Erawan pad Thai noodles that needed to be used, swapped rump steak instead of chicken, added some carrots and cauliflower and a squeeze of lemon juice. So good. Thank you, Nagi 🤗
Could you use rolled noodles chopped into small sections?
Yes MM – that will work. Just prepare them according to the directions. N x
Best noodles I’ve ever made ! So delicious. I just get flashbacks of this yummy food. Super easy to make And inexpensive. Definitely gonna make it some time soon
This was so easy and so delicious! I didn’t have regular vinegar so I used rice wine vinegar and no Chinese broccoli so I used broccolini instead. Will definitely be making this again!
I’m glad you enjoyed it XLY! N x
Hey Navi, great recipe! I tried it last night and it turned out beautiful! Just out of curiosity, where did you get your wok from? I had to do 3 portions in 3 times as my wok is too small! I am in Sydney.
Just made a typo! Meant to say ”Hey Nagi”!
I got my wok years ago (I took it from my mum!) and she got it somewhere at an Asian store I have no idea what brand it is but it works great!! I will post if I ever find one that I like as much! N x
So good! I doubled the meat/noodles, and used broccolini and bok choy. Will definitely make over and over.
I am happy that you liked it May! N x
In proper Aussie speak, “onya Nagi!”
Followed this exactly and ended up with the best Pad See Ew I’ve had in ages.
This was so good! We love Pad See Ew. Thank you for bringing this to my Kitchen! I ♡ u!!☺︎
Just want to say there was another “Yvette” that commented. I just want to make sure you knew I’m a different person. I’m Yvette D. from Corona, CA and I made this dish with beef, regular broccoli with long stems and spinach leaves. 😋
I am happy that you enjoyed it Yvette! N x
Hi. Nagi and Dozer. Your are my fav ever cook Nagi. I just cook your meals constantly. I must of printed every recipe of yours. Tomorrow night it’s pad see ew. Keep up the great cooking. Thankyou
Your biggest fan. Caroline
Hi. Nagi and Dozer. Your are my fav ever cook Nagi. I just cook your meals constantly. I must of printed every recipe of yours. Tomorrow night it’s pad see ew. Keep up the great cooking.
Your biggest fan. Caroline
Never tried Thai recipes before, but with Covid 19, having to go gluten free, and our Thai place going out of business we took a shot at your recipe. FANTASTIC ! We’ve had it 6 times in two months and it is now one of our staples. Love your site, and you explain things so well we are delving into more of your recipes. Pad Thai tonight! Thank you for creating such a great resource!
Thai food in Australia is like Mexican food in the USA – every neighborhood has a good local restaurant! I am glad that you are enjoying trying something new! N x
I made Pad See Ew last night and it was amazing. The recipe was easy to follow and the results were perfect. I wouldn’t change a thing. This is going to be my new “go-to” for Asian noodle dishes!!
I am so happy you liked it Valerie! N x
This was great, any thoughts how to increase the heat? Chilies in the cooking oil?
Just made this for lunch and my mom (hardest critic) even loved it. I didn’t have Chinese broccoli so I used reg broccoli, bok choy, mushrooms and bamboo. Also not a fan of chicken so I substitute it with beef and shrimp. Added some green onions and cilantro for garnishments and jalapeños for a little heat. So good!
Also, i used fresh rice noodles (banh uot) which allowed me to skip the noodle cooking step. Just cut it into strips, takes 3 mins!
Imagine that! Your mum is your harshest critic?? 🤣🤣🤣 ! I’m so happy you liked it!! N x
Great recipe! The sauce is so good. I substituted the chicken with chicken liver and used bok choy for my vegetable. My husband and I loved it.
Super simple and a frequent go-to recipe for a quick meal. Thank you!
This was super easy and really delicious! I made some changes to suit my preferences – I used a bag of regular broccoli instead of Chinese, used 120g of rice noodles instead of 180 (as stated in her recipe e-book) so I could have a higher veg & meat ratio, used birch xylitol instead of sugar, and next time I would double the amount to make it just a little sweeter, and used 2 eggs. I also baked the chicken thighs instead of sauteeing them. I’m not concerned about making this as authentic as possible, just as delicious as possible 😁 The sauce was really excellent, I loved the sour tang! Thank you Nagi 💙
I followed ghe reciepe to the T.
Looked exactky like my take away shop. However, tasted bland. Not sure why lack salt . How can i perfect the seasoning?
Pad see ew is my go to Thai favorite and I’ve eaten probably 100 times in multiple cities and restaurants, so I was excited to find this recipe. It was very easy and very good. It didn’t taste quite like any restaurant style I’ve had, but it was in the ballpark. My one change is that I’m going to reduce or leave out the sugar as it was quite sweet. Maybe it was my black soy sauce or oyster sauce that was sweeter than typical. I live near an Asian market, so I used the real deal imported from Thailand in making this. Definitely recommend using a good oyster sauce in this as it really makes the dish.