Drunken Noodles (Pad Kee Mao)

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Our easy Drunken Noodles recipe (Pad Kee Mao) is a spicy Thai stir-fry with wide rice noodles, chicken, vegetables, and fresh Thai basil in a savory-sweet sauce. It's ready in just 30 minutes and you can add whatever protein you like and adjust the spice level to your preference.

How to make Drunken Noodles:

Prep Noodles and Sauce: Cook noodles according to package instructions. In a mixing bowl, whisk all sauce ingredients and set aside.

Cook Chicken and Veggies: Sauté shallots and carrots in a little olive oil in a wok or large skillet. Add chicken and season with pepper and sauté until cooked through. Stir in garlic and ginger then toss in bell pepper, zucchini, tomato, and the whites of the green onion.

Combine and Serve: Dump strained noodles into the pan then pour sauce over noodles. Toss and cook for a few minutes, until warm. Take off heat and stir in chopped basil. Serve Thai Pad Kee Mao immediately, topped with remaining green onion and extra chili sauce, sriracha, or crushed red pepper if you want more spice.

A Word About Thai Basil:

Basil: There are 3 main types of basil, and each will add a different flavor profile. For most Thai food recipes, you want to use Thai Holy Basil.

• Thai Holy Basil (or Hot Basil): This is what we use in this drunken noodles recipe. It's a basil leaf that adds heat to dishes. It may be hard to find in grocery stores, but try an Asian market, or have Amazon ship it to you, or substitute regular sweet basil.
• Thai Basil: It has purple stems and a spicy licorice-anise flavor. It's not commonly found at the grocery store, but can usually be found at Asian grocery stores. It is a good substitute for Thai holy basil.
• Sweet Basil is the most common in US grocery stores and recipes. It can be substituted for Thai holy basil, you just lose a little of the unique flavor from Thai Holy Basil.

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Drunken Noodles

Author: Lauren Allen

This Drunken Noodles recipe (Pad Kee Mao) is a flavor-packed Thai dish with stir-fried rice noodles, tender chicken, crisp vegetables, and aromatic Thai basil in a bold, spicy sauce.

Prep: 15 minutes mins

Cook: 15 minutes mins

Total: 30 minutes mins

Servings: 4

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Equipment

• wok
• Knife
• Mixing bowl

Ingredients 

US CustomaryMetric

 

0.5x1x2x?

• ▢ 8 oz wide rice noodles
• ▢ 2 Tbsp sesame oil , (or canola)
• ▢ 2 shallots, , chopped
• ▢ 2 carrots, , thinly sliced
• ▢ 1 large chicken breast, , chopped (or shrimp or tofu)
• ▢ 3 large cloves of garlic, , minced
• ▢ ½ teaspoon fresh minced ginger
• ▢ 1 zucchini, , thinly sliced
• ▢ 1 green bell pepper, , thinly sliced
• ▢ 2 green onions, , chopped
• ▢ 1 roma tomatoes, , sliced
• ▢ 1 cup fresh Thai Holy Basil leaves (or substitute regular basil), , roughly chopped

For the sauce:

• ▢ 3 Tbsp oyster sauce
• ▢ 1/3 cup low sodium soy sauce
• ▢ 2 teaspoons fish sauce
• ▢ 2 teaspoons brown sugar
• ▢ 2 Tbsp water
• ▢ 1 teaspoon Thai red chili paste, , more or less, to taste (or substitute sriracha or crushed red pepper flakes)

Instructions 

• Cook noodles according to package instructions.
  8 oz wide rice noodles
• Mix sauce in a small bowl and set aside.
  3 Tbsp oyster sauce, ⅓ cup low sodium soy sauce, 2 teaspoons fish sauce , 2 teaspoons brown sugar, 2 Tbsp water, 1 teaspoon Thai red chili paste
• Saute: Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in wok or large skillet over high heat. Add shallots and carrot and cook for 2 minutes. Add another tablespoon of oil to the pan. Add chicken and season with pepper, cooking until it's cooked through. Add garlic and ginger and cook for 10 seconds. Add bell pepper, zucchini, tomato and the whites of the chopped green onion and cook for 2 minutes.
  2 Tbsp sesame oil , 2 shallots, 2 carrots, 1 large chicken breast, 3 large cloves of garlic, ½ teaspoon fresh minced ginger, 1 zucchini, 1 green bell pepper, 1 roma tomatoes, 2 green onions
• Add noodles to the pan and pour the sauce over the noodles. Toss and cook for a few minutes until warmed through. Remove from heat and stir in chopped basil.
  1 cup fresh Thai Holy Basil leaves (or substitute regular basil)
• Serve immediately, garnished with remaining green onion and extra chili sauce, sriracha, or crushed red pepper, for added spice.

Notes

Noodles: Drunken Noodles are traditionally made with extra-wide rice noodles, but if you can't find them you can use thinner rice noodles or buy them from Amazon or at an Asian market. 

Variations:

• Add more vegetables: yellow squash, broccoli, baby corn, etc.
• Swap out the protein: shrimp, tofu, beef, chicken thighs
• Vegetarian drunken noodles: substitute tofu for chicken.  You may choose to sauté the tofu separately until browned on all sides before adding to the dish.
• Vegan Drunken noodles: substitute tofu for chicken, soy sauce for the fish sauce, and hoisin sauce for oyster sauce.

Nutrition

Calories: 405kcal, Carbohydrates: 62g, Protein: 17g, Fat: 9g, Saturated Fat: 1g, Cholesterol: 36mg, Sodium: 1529mg, Potassium: 664mg, Fiber: 4g, Sugar: 7g, Vitamin A: 5826IU, Vitamin C: 41mg, Calcium: 65mg, Iron: 2mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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