AI-generated photo.
Thai · Iconic · Thailand
Prawn Pad Thai
Also called Pad Thai
Tangled rice noodles, a tamarind-palm sauce, and prawns cooked just to curl.
Pai editors’ mark 5 / 5
Plan, list, and collections
This pad thai is built in a hot pan with a short ingredient list and a sauce stirred before you start. The noodles are soaked, not boiled to mush, so they finish in the sauce.
Health
How this plate sits
Counted from the ingredient table. The score, richness, and badges describe one serving as written. The ring and the nutrient table follow the serving count above. This is general information, not medical advice.
59
Health score
Balanced
Moderate
Richness
Gentle
Light to very rich, from fat, saturated fat, sugar, and the cream or butter in the plate.
- Protein 20%
- Carbs 56%
- Fat 24%
Watch · Diabetes-friendly
It misses a gentler mark: sugar, fiber, the starch mix, or the richness of the plate.
Watch · Heart-friendly
Saturated fat, cholesterol, sodium, or fiber keeps this off the heart-friendly list.
Suits · Weight loss
Calories stay contained and protein is high enough to feel like a meal.
Watch · High protein
Protein is about 24.3 g, under the 25 g mark.
Watch · Low sodium
About 1080 mg of sodium, above the 450 mg mark.
Suits · Gluten-free
No wheat, barley, or rye in the required list. Still read labels on sauces and oats.
Suits · Dairy-free
No milk ingredients in the required list.
Watch · Vegetarian
Meat, poultry, fish, or shellfish is in the required list.
Suits · Pregnancy
No alcohol, liver, or caffeine in the required list. Cook meat, eggs, and seafood through.
Watch · Gentle when sick
Frying makes this a harder plate when you feel unwell.
Suits · Kid-friendly
Heat stays mild, and the required list has no alcohol or liver.
Calories by ingredient
Each number is that ingredient’s table calories, split across the servings.
- Dry rice noodle228 kcal
- Shrimp, peeled53 kcal
- Neutral oil44 kcal
- Roasted peanuts, unsalted41 kcal
- Egg36 kcal
- Firm tofu23 kcal
Glycemic load
Estimated glycemic load for this count: 49.2. The bands come from the ingredient table.
Portion
One serving, as written, is about 489 kcal.
Allergens. Egg, Fish, Peanuts, Shellfish, Soy
Make it healthier
Serve three-quarters of the plate
The ingredient mix stays the same. Calories are three-quarters of the counted serving.
About 367 kcal after the change.
Skip the egg and use extra tofu.
An egg-free plate. It is still not vegan while fish sauce is in the sauce. This is the kitchen note. A new calorie figure is shown only when the grams can be replayed on the ingredient table.
Low confidence: no new calorie figure. The grams cannot be replayed on the table.
Halve the fish sauce and add a squeeze more lime.
Lowers sodium without flattening the flavor. This is the kitchen note. A new calorie figure is shown only when the grams can be replayed on the ingredient table.
Low confidence: no new calorie figure. The grams cannot be replayed on the table.
| Nutrient | Amount | % daily value |
|---|---|---|
| Calories | 489 kcal | 24% |
| Protein | 24.3 g | 49% |
| Carbohydrate | 68.5 g | 25% |
| Fiber | 3.2 g | 11% |
| Total sugars | 11.1 g | 22% |
| Fat | 13 g | 17% |
| Saturated fat | 2.5 g | 13% |
| Cholesterol | 188 mg | 63% |
| Sodium | 1080 mg | 47% |
| Potassium | 414 mg | 9% |
| Calcium | 160 mg | 12% |
| Iron | 2.6 mg | 14% |
| Magnesium | 82 mg | 20% |
| Zinc | 2.1 mg | 19% |
| Vitamin A | 45 mcg | 5% |
| Vitamin C | 9.9 mg | 11% |
| Vitamin D · estimate | 1.9 mcg | 10% |
| Vitamin E · estimate | 1.4 mg | 9% |
| Vitamin K | 38 mcg | 32% |
| Thiamin (B1) | 0.1 mg | 10% |
| Riboflavin (B2) | 0.2 mg | 17% |
| Niacin (B3) · estimate | 4.4 mg | 28% |
| Vitamin B6 · estimate | 0.4 mg | 25% |
| Folate | 53 mcg | 13% |
| Vitamin B12 | 1 mcg | 40% |
Low-confidence marks sit on glycemic load or on vitamins the USDA row left blank. Those vitamins are filled from a food-group reference and labeled as estimates. Reported USDA values, including zeros, are kept. 50 g is the daily value for added sugar. This figure is total sugar, including fruit and milk.
- Sodium is on the higher side. The swaps below pull it down.
- The method is a fry, so it stays out of the lightest group even when the rest of the plate is modest.
- Much of the energy comes from a fast starch such as white rice, white flour, or sugar.
- Fish here is a commonly eaten, lower-mercury choice when fully cooked. Follow your own pregnancy fish guidance.
- Shellfish should be fully cooked. This is an allergen for many people.
Pai shares general nutrition information for everyday cooking. It is not medical advice, a diagnosis, or a treatment plan. Health labels are estimates from reference ingredient data and do not account for your lab results, medications, or how a food is absorbed. If you are pregnant, managing diabetes, cholesterol, an allergy, or any illness, use this as a menu of ideas and follow the clinician who knows you. In an emergency, call local emergency services.
Equipment
- Wide skillet or wok
- Scale
- Spatula
Ingredients
Each line is stored in grams. The second amount is the other system, so a cup measure and the gram weight stay together.
Dry rice noodle, soak until pliable8 oz250 g
Shrimp, peeled, peeled10 oz280 g
Firm tofu, cubed and patted dry4 oz120 g
Egg2 eggs100 g
Garlic, minced4 cloves12 g
Tamarind paste2 tbsp30 g
Palm sugar2 tbsp24 g
Fish sauce2 tbsp27.27 ml
Neutral oil1.5 tbsp21.98 ml
Mung bean sprouts2 cups150 g
Scallion, cut3 scallions30 g
Roasted peanuts, unsalted, crushed0.25 cup30 g
Lime juice2 tbsp30 ml
Chili flakes · optional0.5 tsp2 g
The first amount follows the unit toggle. The second is the other system. Both follow the serving count.
If you need to swap
- Skip the egg and use extra tofu.. An egg-free plate. It is still not vegan while fish sauce is in the sauce.
- Halve the fish sauce and add a squeeze more lime.. Lowers sodium without flattening the flavor.
Method
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1Cover the noodles with hot water until they bend without breaking. Drain. Stir tamarind, palm sugar, and fish sauce together.
Soak noodles 8 min
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2Heat the oil. Fry the tofu until the edges color, then add garlic and prawns.
Cook 2 min
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3Push everything aside, pour in the eggs, and scramble them soft.
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4Add noodles and sauce. Toss until the noodles drink the sauce and look glossy, not soupy.
Toss 3 min
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5Kill the heat. Fold in sprouts and scallions. Serve with peanuts, lime, and chili for each person to add.
How you know it is done
Prawn Pad Thai is done when the outside has color and the center is cooked through for the protein in the pan.
If it goes wrong
- Prawn Pad Thai looks done on top and is still raw in the center. Trust the cue in the method, not the color alone. Give it a few more minutes and check the center.
- Prawn Pad Thai spread, sank, or turned out dry. Measure by weight next time, heat the oven fully, and stop when the doneness cue appears rather than when the timer ends.
Storage
Cool Prawn Pad Thai, then cover and refrigerate for up to 3 days. Freeze portions for a month if the dish reheats in a pot or oven, not a raw salad.
How this dish helps your daily life
- One pan, a complete plate of noodles and protein, and dinner is on the table.
- The sprouts and lime at the end keep a rich noodle from feeling heavy.
Notes
Pregnancy. Prawns and eggs are cooked through. Peanuts are a common allergen. There is no alcohol in this version.
Children. Keep chili on the side. Crush peanuts very finely for small children.
From the kitchen. If the pan looks dry, add a spoon of water, not more sauce, or the salt climbs fast.
Allergens in the required list: Egg, Fish, Peanuts, Shellfish, Soy.
Your stars and note
Pai shares general nutrition information for everyday cooking. It is not medical advice, a diagnosis, or a treatment plan. Health labels are estimates from reference ingredient data and do not account for your lab results, medications, or how a food is absorbed. If you are pregnant, managing diabetes, cholesterol, an allergy, or any illness, use this as a menu of ideas and follow the clinician who knows you. In an emergency, call local emergency services.