Pad See Ew is a popular Thai street-food dish that features flat rice noodles stir-fried in a delicious soy sauce mixture. Dark soy sauce is the star ingredient in this dish, giving the rice noodles a nice balance of sweet and savory.
Pad See Ew (also known as Pad Siew) is a popular Chinese-inspired street-food dish from Thailand. Literally translated as “stir-fried soy sauce”, Pad See Ew features wide flat rice noodles stir-fried in a sweet and savory soy sauce mixture, then tossed with chicken, egg and Chinese broccoli.
Dark soy sauce is typically used sparingly to add a deep caramel color and a touch of sweetness to a dish but in Pad See Ew, it is a star ingredient that adds a balanced salty and sweet flavor to the rice noodles. The Chinese broccoli adds not only flavor but a nice contrast in texture.
Noodles for Pad See Ew
Pad See Ew uses extra-wide rice noodles – almost the same type of noodle used in Pad Thai, but much wider. For Pad See Ew, use the widest rice noodles you can find.
If you do not have access to fresh wide rice noodles, you can use extra-wide rice noodles instead.
If you are using dried wide rice noodles, soak the noodles in warm water for about 30 minutes, then drain them well using a colander.
Immediately after draining the noodles, pour about a tablespoon of cooking oil over the noodles, then use your fingers to coat the noodles in the oil.
I recommend this step if you are using fresh noodles as well. The oil prevents the noodles from sticking together, making it much easier to stir-fry to coat each noodle evenly with the yummy sauce.
This recipe calls for 1 pound of fresh wide rice noodles or 8 oz of extra-wide rice noodles.
How to Make Pad See Ew
Pour 1 teaspoon of cornstarch and 1 teaspoon of soy sauce over 6 oz. of chicken breast or chicken thigh meat cut into bite-sized pieces. Stir well, then allow to marinade at room temperature for 15 minutes.
While waiting for the chicken to marinate, prepare the sauce by combining 2 tablespoons of dark soy sauce or Indonesian kecap manis (I like to use a mixture of the two, so one tablespoon each), 1 tablespoon of soy sauce, 2 teaspoons of oyster sauce, 1 teaspoon of rice vinegar and 2 teaspoons of brown sugar.
Stir well to combine.
Heat 1 tablespoon of cooking oil in a wok over medium-high heat. When the wok starts to smoke a little, add the marinated chicken in a single layer. Stir-fry until the chicken is fully cooked, then remove and set aside.
Add 1 more tablespoon of oil to the wok, then add 3 cloves of garlic (minced) and 4 stalks of Chinese broccoli (kai lan), cut into approximately 1 1/2 inch pieces horizontally.
If you are not able to find Chinese broccoli, you can use regular broccoli. As they take a bit longer to cook, use a splash of water to help steam the broccoli so that it cooks faster.
Stir-fry until the stems of the Chinese broccoli have softened a little (about 1 – 2 minutes).
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Push the Chinese broccoli to the side of the wok, then add about 1 more tablespoon of cooking oil. Give the oil a few seconds to heat up, then pour 2 eggs (beaten) into the wok.
Leave the egg untouched for about 20 seconds to allow the bottom to set, flip the egg over, then start scrambling the egg slowly with your wok spatula.
Remove the egg and the Chinese broccoli, and set aside.
Add 2 more tablespoons of cooking oil to the wok, then turn up the heat to high. Use your wok spatula to spread the oil over as much of the base of the wok as possible.
Add the rice noodles, spreading them out in one single layer.
Give the sauce a quick stir, then pour the sauce over the noodles.
Stir-fry the noodles, making sure all of the noodles are evenly coated with the sauce.
If you are using previously-dried noodles, you may need to add a splash of water to ensure that the noodles are soft. If the noodles are still too hard, keep adding a little bit of water at a time until the noodles reach the consistency you like.
They should be slightly softer than “al dente” but not too mushy.
Return the chicken, Chinese broccoli and scrambled egg to the wok. Toss to combine, then transfer to a serving plate.
Serve with chili powder or with sliced pickled chili.
Enjoy!
Pad See Ew
Ingredients
Pad See Ee Sauce:
- 2 tablespoons dark soy sauce or Indonesian kecap manis
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 2 teaspoons oyster sauce
- 1 teaspoon rice vinegar
- 2 teaspoons brown sugar
Pad See Ew Stir-Fry
- 1 lb fresh wide rice noodles or 8 oz dried
- 6 tablespoons cooking oil divided
- 6 oz chicken breast or thigh cut into bite-sized pieces
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon soy sauce
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 4 stalks Chinese broccoli kai lan, cut horizontally into 1 1/2 inch pieces
- 2 eggs lightly beaten
- Chili powder or pickled chili optional
Instructions
- If you are using dried wide rice noodles, soak them in warm water for at least 30 minutes. Drain well.
- Pour 1 tablespoon of cooking oil over the noodles (fresh or previously dried). Toss the noodles with your fingers to coat them in the oil.
- Marinate the chicken in cornstarch and t teaspoon of soy sauce for 15 minutes.
- Prepare the sauce by combining dark soy sauce, soy sauce, oyster sauce, rice vinegar and brown sugar.
- Heat 1 tablespoon of cooking oil in a wok over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and stir-fry until fully cooked. Remove from wok and set aside.
- Add 1 more tablespoon of cooking oil to the wok, followed by the garlic and Chinese broccoli. Stir-fry until the stems of the Chinese Broccoli are slightly soft (1 – 2 minutes).
- Push the Chinese broccoli to the side of the wok, then add 1 tablespoon of cooking oil to the wok.
- Pour the eggs into the middle of the wok. Leave the eggs untouched for about 20 seconds to allow the bottom to set, flip, then scramble the eggs.
- Remove the eggs and Chinese broccoli from the wok.
- Add 2 tablespoons of cooking oil to the wok, then turn up the heat to high.
- Add the rice noodles to the wok, spreading them out in a single layer.
- Stir the sauce, then pour the sauce over the noodles. Stir-fry the noodles, coating them evenly in the sauce.
- Note: If you are using previously-dried noodles, add a couple of tablespoons of water at a time until the noodles are slightly softer than “al-dente” but not too mushy.
- Return the chicken, Chinese broccoli and egg to the wok. Toss to combine all ingredients, then transfer to a serving plate.
- Serve immediately with chili powder or pickled chili (if using)
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Guide
Sunday 2nd of December 2018
I’m also a big fan of wide rice noodle so my fav noodle dish is Pad See Eiw and Kua Gai Noodle. I usually use fresh rice noodle to cook it, never try the dry one before. Is the texture different between fresh and dry? I mention this because sometimes it’s difficult to find fresh noodle around here( I live in Seattle) Thank you! Ps. Your image makes me hungry again!
Char
Sunday 2nd of December 2018
Hi Guide! Thanks for your kind comments :) Yes, you will likely notice a slight difference in the texture but it's not bad. The texture for the dry noodles will be a little more firm. Test it before you plate the dish and if it's too firm, keep adding water or sauce to the wok/frying pan a little bit at a time until you get the consistency you like. Hope that helps! Cheers!