A fiery and fragrant Drunken Noodles Recipe that tastes like proper Bangkok street-food! This simple Thai Pad Kee Mao is ready in 16 minutes from start to finish.
Eating outside in Southeast Asia is prime living!
One of my favorite things in the world is digging in at one of the street-food stalls lining a vibrant, hectic and traffic clogged soi in Bangkok.
You see, there’s an undeniable excitement when dining al fresco in a city where everyone is a foodie. Taxi drivers and bank execs belly-up, elbow to elbow at the same stall, and eat the specialty dish that particular open-air chef/proprietor is known for.
Pad Kee Mao (ผัดขี้เมา), or Drunken Noodles, has long been one of my favorites to eat in Thailand. It’s also a favorite when I’m just sitting around at home and want to introduce some delicious, spicy noodles to my tummy while working on a puzzle and streaming Bloodline on Netflix.
The deep savory, sweet and herby fragrance of the springy stir-fried noodles just screams for me to pop a Singha and go for broke!
And drunken noodles is a super easy dish to make at home. Seriously, of all the easy Thai recipes on my blog, this is one of the most glorious and satisfying in my book.
Do you have 16 minutes? Yes? Then you have plenty of time to whip up a noodle dish that tastes like a trip to Southeast Asia! No frequent flyer miles required 🙂
What are Drunken Noodles?
Drunken noodles – or pad kee mao – is a stir fried noodle dish, typically made with broad rice noodles.
Then, legions of flavor is introduced via judicious use of savory elements – namely soy sauce and fish sauce.
Aromatics like kaffir lime leaves and basil deliver a super verdant element to this Thai noodle dish. Also, there’s an understated sweetness just below the surface – typically from use of a dark, sweet Thai soy sauce.
Now, the cool thing about whipping up Thai drunken noodles at home is that it’s a food mash up of a bit of this, mixed with a tad of that.
And, much like the name implies, recipes for these savory and spicy noodles can seem a little all over the place. But there’s a reason for that!
What Does Pad Kee Mao Mean?
Theories abound as to how pad kee mao, or drunken noodles, first came to be.
My favorite is the one suggesting that the originator of the recipe came home drunk one night, whipped out the wok and made a sloppy dinner with the ingredients that were available at that late hour.
I imagine that very first mash-up of fragrant noodles really hit the spot.
It’s not often that an improvised late night meal after a few too many whiskeys becomes immortalized in the Thai food lexicon. How’s that for a lasting innovation!?
And, true or not, what really strikes me about that tale is how much a part of the true human/food experience it seems. Because, no matter how drunken noodles were actually invented, who hasn’t played around with food combinations late at night, maybe after a fewglasses of wine?
I’d venture a guess that most of the casseroles we’ve eaten throughout our childhoods were once dreamed up either out of necessity, or out of an intrepid spirit to create something new by our grandmother’s neighbor’s friend’s great-aunt, twice removed – and then passed along through generations.
The only difference is scale. Aunt Ina’s Tuna Surprise isn’t on the menu when you’re looking for dinner on Seamless. But drunken noodles sure is.
Ingredients in Pad Kee Mao
Wide rice stick noodles
Garlic
Fish sauce
Dark Thai soy sauce
Tomato
Kaffir lime leaves
Thai basil
Shrimp or other protein of your choice
Egg
Thai chili
Depending on the depth of ingredients in your pantry, making pad kee mao at home may require a trip to your local Asian grocery store to pick up essentials.
For this drunken noodles recipe, I used widerice-stick noodles. They soaked up the pungent sweetness brought on by the fish sauce and dark Thai soy sauce. They’re also a perfect vehicle for bits of fiery Thai chili and thinly sliced aromatic kaffir lime leaves.
If you can find Thai basil or holy basil then you should definitely use it. Otherwise, regular basil will do just fine.
I used shrimp for this recipe but, in sticking with the choose-your-own-adventure nature of the dish, you can totally use squid, tofu, or chicken as your protein.
Oh… a word on the volcanic Thai chili (Phrik Khi Nu, พริกขี้หนู): a little goes a long way! The peppers are tiny, but really pack an immense amount of heat. If you don’t like spicy, just leave them out. On the other hand, Ben is a chili fiend and devoured his already spicy drunken noodles with an extra side of sliced Thai chili soaking in a small ramekin of fish sauce.
Different strokes!
How to Make Drunken Noodles
Soak rice noodle in boiling hot water until they are soft (follow instructions on the package).
Use a wok or a large deep pan over high medium heat and add oil and garlic. Fry for a few seconds until the garlic is fragrant.
Add the shrimp and toss for 2-3 minutes, until they are cooked through.
Add the egg and stir constantly to break it and mix it with the shrimp.
Stir in the Thai chilis, kaffir lime leaves, tomatoe, fish sauce, and dark soy sauce, and cook for 1-2 minutes.
Add the rice noodles and toss them to coat with the sauce and ingredients.
When the noodles are hot, transfer them to a plate and top with chopped basil.
A note on rice noodles – they vary slightly from brand to brand so the instructions can vary as well. Make sure to read that package!
While one brand will suggest that you soak your noodles until pliant, another may suggest immersion in a pot full of boiling water.Trust me, no one wants hard noodles in their pad kee mao. And same goes for a gloppy, gluey mess.
I’ve found that following the package instructions to the letter usually produces a springy noodle. So, grab your specs and read that label 🙂
Drunken Noodles is fragrant Thai street-food, served at home
I’m always quite surprised at how few steps are required to make these fiery, savory noodles.
A couple of bites and I’m instantly transported to a food stall in Bangkok.
If you’re anything like me, you LOVE recipes that deliver full taste with minimal effort. And that’s where we find ourselves with this pad kee mao recipe, friends. Easy effort in the kitchen. Big BIG flavor!
Actually, any time we’re about to order Thai delivery at our place, and I find myself contemplating ordering drunken noodles vs pad thai, I’ll usually head to the kitchen. You see, if I have all the ingredients handy, I’ll probably just whip up this pad kee mao recipe and forget about delivery all together.
Like I said: EASY to make 🙂
What about you? What’s a dish you’d rather just whip up at home rather than ordering out? I’d love to hear all about it in the comments!
Other simple, delicious Thai inspired recipes:
Thai Egg and Brussels Sprout Salad
Vegetable Curry Noodles
Thai Basil Chicken
Easy Thai Red Curry
Thai Shrimp and Cucumber Salad
Did you like this Drunken Noodles Recipe? Are there changes you made that you would like to share? Share your tips and recommendations in the comments section below!
5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 4.6 from 5 reviews
Author:Caroline Phelps
Prep Time:10 minutes
Cook Time:6 minutes
Total Time:16 minutes
Yield:3 people 1x
Category:Stir fry
Cuisine:Thai
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Description
A fiery and fragrant Drunken Noodles Recipe that tastes like authentic Bangkok street-food! This simple Thai Pad Kee Mao is ready in 16 minutes from start to finish.
Ingredients
Scale
1 tablespoon vegetable or grapeseed oil
2 cloves garlic (minced)
1–2 Thai chili (finely chopped. Omit if you prefer not spicy)
10–12 shrimp (uncooked and removed from their shells (thawed if previously frozen))
2 tablespoons fish sauce
2 tablespoons sweet dark soy sauce OR regular soy sauce mixed with 1/2 teaspoon sugar
2 tablespoons water
1 large egg (whisked)
2 teaspoon kaffir lime leaves (finely chopped or substitute with 1 1/2 teaspoon finely chopped lime zest (it’s even better if you do half lemon and half lime zest))
1 large tomato (chopped)
8 ounces dry rice stick noodles
10–12 fresh basil leaves (hand torn)
Instructions
Prepare rice noodles by following the instructions on the package. Set aside.
In a wok or frying pan over medium high heat, heat the oil and fry garlic for 1 minute, or until golden.
Add shrimp and toss for approx 2-3 minutes, until almost cooked – then add egg and stir for a couple seconds until egg starts to set.
Add chili, lime leaves, tomatoes, fish sauce, dark soy sauce, and water, and stir for a minute or so until the tomato is cooked and sauce is bubbling.
Add the rice noodles and toss until noodles are hot, evenly coated and ingredients are mixed well.
Turn off the heat and add basil. Toss and transfer to a plate.
Serve with fish and dark soy sauce so people can adjust the flavor to their liking.
Notes
This drunken noodle recipe will keep refrigerated for up to 2 days.
Introduction: My name is Msgr. Refugio Daniel, I am a fine, precious, encouraging, calm, glamorous, vivacious, friendly person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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