4.5 from 39 votes
Thai Drunken Noodles (Pad Kee Mao)
Thai Drunken Noodles is an incredibly flavorful stir fry dish featuring rice noodles, chicken, and vegetables. Make it spicy, or not - you control the heat!
Prep Time
20 mins
Cook Time
15 mins
Total Time
35 mins
Servings:
4
servings
Calories:
463 kcal
Course:
Dinner
Cuisine:
Asian
Ingredients
for the noodles mixture:
- 8 ounces wide rice noodles
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 serrano chili thinly sliced, or more to taste (substitute bird’s eye chilis if you can find them!)
- 6 dried chili pods
- 4 scallions roots removed, cut into 2-inch pieces, white and green parts separated
- 4 garlic minced, large cloves
- 1 red bell pepper sliced thin, large
- ½ red onion sliced thin, large
- 1 chicken breasts sliced thin across the grain, large, boneless
- 1 cup basil leaves Thai variety
- lime wedges for squeezing over the top
for the sauce
- 3 tablespoons oyster sauce
- 2 tablespoons dark soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce light
- 1 tablespoon light brown sugar packed
- 1 tablespoon Shaoxing wine or dry white wine or water
- 2 teaspoons fish sauce
Instructions
- Cook noodles per package directions. Drain and rinse with cold water; set aside.
- In a small bowl whisk together sauce ingredients; set aside.
- In a large skillet with deep sides (or a large wok) over high heat, heat the oil. Carefully add serrano chili and dried chili pods, stirring constantly for 30 seconds. Chili pods will start to blacken - this is a good sign.
- Add white parts of the scallions, garlic, red bell pepper, and red onion. Stir fry, stirring fairly constantly for 2-3 minutes until the veggies begin to char slightly.
- Add chicken and stir fry, stirring fairly constantly until it starts to brown slightly on the outside and you can’t see any pink, about 3-5 minutes.
- Add prepared noodles, green parts of scallions, and theprepared sauce. Toss everything together until coated - a tongs works great for this. Toss until most of the sauce is absorbed and it has taken on a deeper brown color, about 2 minutes.
- Add Thai basil and toss just to combine. The leaves will begin to wilt immediately. Remove from heat, remove dried chili pods if desired (see note below), and serve with lime wedges to squeeze over the top of individual servings.
Cup of Yum
Notes
- It's very important to gather all the ingredients before starting to cook. The cooking process is extremely fast and you need everything available to grab and go as you cook.
- The mix of flavors in the recipe is around a medium to medium-low spice level.Add more or less of the hot peppers and dried chili pods to fit your personal level of spice.
- The toasted chili pods can be eaten but they pack a huge punch so be careful when serving. If you do not want to accidentally eat one, remove them prior to serving. I recommend still using them though because they add a unique smokey flavor to the overall dish that adds to the complexity.
- I beg you to not skip the lime wedges. That fresh squeeze brightens up the dish and adds another layer of flavor.
- Dark soy sauce is a must here for that delicious dark color and depth of flavor of the overall dish. However, if you cannot find it, substituting your favorite all purpose soy sauce (such as Kikkoman) works as well. If using all purpose soy, use it in place of the dark soy and light soy, for a total of 3 tablespoons all purpose soy sauce.
Nutrition Information
Serving
1
Calories
463kcal
(23%)
Carbohydrates
52g
(17%)
Protein
51g
(102%)
Fat
45g
(69%)
Saturated Fat
13g
(65%)
Polyunsaturated Fat
21g
(124%)
Cholesterol
135mg
(45%)
Sodium
1602mg
(67%)
Fiber
4g
(16%)
Sugar
10g
(20%)
Nutrition Facts
Serving: 4 servings
Amount Per Serving
Calories 463
% Daily Value*
| Serving | 1 | |
| Calories | 463kcal | 23% |
| Carbohydrates | 52g | 17% |
| Protein | 51g | 102% |
| Fat | 45g | 69% |
| Saturated Fat | 13g | 65% |
| Polyunsaturated Fat | 21g | 124% |
| Cholesterol | 135mg | 45% |
| Sodium | 1602mg | 67% |
| Fiber | 4g | 16% |
| Sugar | 10g | 20% |
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.