Pad Thai For One

This incredible single serving Pad Thai For One recipe is easy and comes together in 20 minutes! Made with rice noodles, shrimp, an egg, and fresh vegetables along with a homemade pad Thai sauce.

this Recipe

This simple, easy Pad Thai recipe is made with easy-to-find ingredients and only takes about 20 minutes to make. This Thai noodle dish can be made with shrimp, chicken, or tofu. If you like this dish, you should also check out our Small Batch Thai Shrimp Soup, Kung Pao Chicken For One and Shrimp Fried Rice For One.

Looking for more single-serving 20-minute meals? Try my Creamy Mustard Chicken, Cashew Chicken, Mushroom Pasta, or Chickpea Curry.

What Is Pad Thai?

Pad Thai is a popular street food dish in Thailand. This stir-fried noodle dish is made with a pad Thai sauce tossed with a protein like shrimp, chicken, or tofu. The name pad Thai means “Thai stir-fry”.

You can find Pad Thai on the menu of nearly every Thai restaurant and is often served with chopped peanuts, bean sprouts, cilantro and/or a wedge of lime

Ingredients In Pad Thai

See below for ways to use leftover ingredients.

• Rice noodles: The best rice noodles for Pad Thai are long, wide ones that look a little like fettuccine. These dried noodles can be found in the international aisle of most grocery stores. I like using Thai Kitchen brands of rice noodles and I especially love using their brown rice noodles for this dish. I love that this brand of noodles comes in four 2-ounce packets already portioned so there’s no measuring needed when making a single serving of Pad Thai. The noodles require just 5 minutes of soaking in hot water before use.

For the Pad Thai Sauce

Note: Typical Pad Thai Sauce is made with fish sauce, vinegar, sugar, and tamarind paste. Authentic Pad Thai is made with Tamarind pulp which comes in a block, similar to a bar of soap. The pulp must be soaked in hot water, then pressed through a mesh sieve to make tamarind puree. The paste or puree can also be purchased in jars but is not easily found in most grocery stores. For convenience and because this is a single-serving Pad Thai recipe, I chose to use lime juice instead of tamarind paste. If you would like to use tamarind paste, substitute about 1/2 tablespoon in place of the lime juice in this recipe.

• Fish sauce: Fish sauce is a staple condiment in Thailand. You can buy fish sauce in a bottle in the condiment aisle or in the international food aisle in most grocery stores. For the best selection of fish sauce, visit an Asian grocery store. Store fish sauce in the pantry and it will stay good for up to 2 years, opened or unopened.
• Soy sauce: I like using low-sodium soy sauce so I can control the sodium better in this dish.
• Brown sugar: Palm sugar is a traditional Pad Thai ingredient but brown sugar is a great substitute. Feel free to add more brown sugar than called for in the recipe as Pad Thai sauce served in many US restaurants are generally much sweeter. If you don’t have brown sugar, you can make a small batch using our brown sugar recipe.
• Lime juice: Use freshly squeezed or bottled lime juice.
• Hot sauce: A small amount of hot sauce adds just the right amount of heat to your Pad Thai sauce. I love using Crystal brand or Sririacha hot sauce. Add more, use less, or leave it out altogether if preferred.

Pro Tip: I recommend tasting the Pad Thai Sauce and adjusting the ingredient amounts to suit your tastes.

Other Pad Thai Ingredients

• Olive oil: I use extra virgin olive oil in this easy Pad Thai recipe and in every other recipe on One Dish Kitchen that calls for olive oil. Extra virgin olive oil is the least processed form of olive oil. It is an unrefined oil and the highest-quality olive oil you can buy. Because of the way extra virgin olive oil is made, it retains a more true olive taste. It also contains more of the vitamins and minerals found in olives. It’s my favorite type of olive oil, but you may use light olive oil instead.
• Garlic: Use 1 clove of garlic in this recipe.
• Red bell pepper: Use 1/2 of a small red bell pepper, thinly sliced.
• Shrimp: Use about 6 to 8 medium-sized or large shrimp which is roughly 2 ounces.
• Egg: One egg adds protein and substance to this dish.
• Bean sprouts: Fresh bean sprouts are crunchy and cook extremely fast when stir-fried with noodles. They can be found in the produce section of most grocery stores. Store bean sprouts in the refrigerator. To clean bean sprouts, rinse them thoroughly under cold running water, drain them, and place them into a resealable plastic bag lined with a paper towel until you are ready to use them. They keep well for just a few days. If you have any bean sprouts leftover from this recipe, add them to other stir fry dishes like Cashew Chicken or Fried Rice or add them to the top of a salad.
• Peanuts: Just a small amount of peanuts are stirred in with the other Pad Thai ingredients and I also like to add chopped peanuts to the top of the finished dish.
• Garnishes: Chopped green onions, cilantro, and extra chopped peanuts

See below for ways to use leftover ingredients.

How To Make Pad Thai For One

See the recipe box below for ingredient amounts and full recipe instructions.

1. Cook the noodles according to the package instructions. Rinse under cold water and set aside.

2. Make the sauce by combining fish sauce, soy sauce, brown sugar, lime juice, and hot sauce in a small bowl. Taste and adjust the sauce as needed. Set the bowl aside.

3. Stir fry: Heat oil in a 10-inch skillet or wok over medium heat. Add the thinly sliced bell peppers and the minced garlic to the pan and cook, stirring frequently for 2 minutes.

4. Add the shrimp to the pan and cook on one side for 1 to 2 minutes, then flip the shrimp over and cook the other side for an additional 1 to 2 minutes.

5. Push all of the ingredients to the sides of the pan. Add a little more oil and the beaten egg. Cook the egg, stirring as it cooks.

6. Add the noodles, sauce, bean sprouts, and peanuts to the pan. Toss all of the ingredients together to combine.

7. Transfer to a plate and garnish the top with chopped green onions, cilantro, and chopped peanuts.

Ways To Use Leftover Ingredients

If you have any ingredients leftover from this recipe, check out our Leftover Ingredients Recipe Finder or you might like to consider using them in any of these single serving and small batch recipes:

• Soy sauce: Carne Asada, Cashew Chicken, Pork Stir Fry, Slow Cooker Orange Chicken, Chicken and Golden Rice
• Brown sugar: Ham Steak, Fried Apples, Bananas Foster, Chocolate Chip Cookies, Butter Pecan Granola
• Lime juice: Guacamole, Cowboy Caviar, Key Lime Pie, Tequila Sunrise, Pickled Onions
• Hot sauce: Baked Buffalo Chicken, Reuben Sandwich, Bloody Mary, Shrimp Creole, Crawfish Beignets
• Garlic: Pizza Bowl, Pizza Sauce, Split Pea Soup, Coq au Vin, Chicken Tortellini Soup,
• Eggs: Breakfast Sandwich, Eggs Benedict, Pasta Carbonara, French Toast, Breakfast Casserole
• Shrimp: Shrimp Tacos, Shrimp Fettuccine, Shrimp Scampi, Cioppino, Jambalaya, Baked Shrimp
• Red bell peppers: Baked Penne with Roasted Vegetables, Italian Pasta Salad, Salmon Rice Bowl, Vegetarian Chili, Ratatouille
• Peanuts: Chocolate Candy Clusters, Rum Balls, Chicken Salad, Brownies
• Cilantro: Mexican Corn Dip, Chicken Tagine, Slow Cooker White Chicken Chili, Steak Fajitas, Pico de Gallo
• Green onions: Corn Casserole, Goat Cheese and Prosciutto Crustless Quiche, Crawfish Etouffee, Cauliflower Casserole, Gumbo
• Fish Sauce: Store fish sauce in the pantry and it will stay good for up to 2 years, opened or unopened.