Pad See Ew

From the kitchen of Carly

Thai stir-fried rice noodles with chicken and Chinese broccoli in a sweet-savory dark soy glaze. The chewier, less-spicy cousin of pad Thai. Twenty minutes total once your noodles are out of the bag. Get the wok screaming hot. The wok hei char is the difference between pad see ew and limp noodles in soy sauce.

Pad See Ew

Dark soy, oyster sauce, and a scrambled egg turn wide rice noodles into something irresistible in twenty minutes. The trick is soaking the noodles just until pliable, then tossing them hard over high heat so they catch char without clumping. The egg breaks into streaks that coat everything, giving you that wok hei smoke that makes pad see ew worth cooking at home.

Prep
10 min
Cook
10 min
Total
20 min
Servings
2
Difficulty
easy

Ingredients

2 servings

  • 6 oz (180g)wide rice stick noodles
  • 2 tbspdark soy sauce
  • 2 tbspoyster sauce
  • 2 tspregular soy sauce
  • 2 tspwhite vinegar
  • 2 tspgranulated sugar
  • 2 tbspwater
  • 2 tbsppeanut or vegetable oil
  • 2 clovesgarlic, finely chopped
  • 1 cupboneless chicken thigh, sliced thin
  • 1large egg
  • 4 cupsChinese broccoli (gai lan), cut into 2-inch pieces

Instructions

  1. Soak the rice noodles in hot tap water for 8 to 10 minutes, until pliable but not soft. Drain.

  2. Whisk the dark soy, oyster sauce, regular soy, vinegar, sugar, and water together in a small bowl. This is the sauce.

  3. Heat the oil in a wok or large nonstick skillet over high heat until smoking.

  4. Add the chopped garlic. Stir-fry for 10 seconds until fragrant.

  5. Add the chicken and the Chinese broccoli stems (the thicker parts). Stir-fry 2 to 3 minutes until the chicken is light golden and the stems start to soften.

  6. Push everything to one side of the pan. Crack the egg into the empty space. Let it set for 10 seconds, then scramble it quickly with the spatula. Don't worry if it sticks to the pan; that char adds the smoky 'wok hei' flavor that signals real pad see ew.

  7. Add the drained noodles and the Chinese broccoli leaves.

  8. Pour the sauce over everything. Toss gently with two utensils (chopsticks or two spatulas) until the noodles are evenly stained dark and the leaves wilt, about 1 minute.

  9. Serve immediately. Don't let it sit; the noodles get gummy as they cool.

Tips from the kitchen

  • Soak the noodles only until they bend without snapping, usually 8 to 10 minutes. Oversoaked noodles turn to mush the second they hit the hot pan.
  • Don't worry about the egg sticking to the pan. That browned, slightly charred egg is exactly what you want. Scrape it up and toss it with the noodles.
  • Toss constantly and fast once you add the noodles. The longer they sit, the more they absorb sauce and stick together. Thirty seconds over the top heat is better than two minutes of gentle stirring.
  • Cut the Chinese broccoli stems separately from the leaves. The stems go in first to soften, then the tender leaves join at the very end so they wilt without turning to mush.

Variations

  • Shrimp instead of chicken: use 8 oz peeled shrimp, added at the same point. They'll cook through in the same two to three minutes.
  • Add cashews or peanuts: toss in a handful of roasted, unsalted nuts in the last fifteen seconds for crunch and richness.
  • Vegetarian version: swap the chicken for extra-firm tofu cubes or skip it entirely and double the Chinese broccoli and add mushrooms for body.
  • Spiced up: add a teaspoon of chili paste or a pinch of dried red chili flakes to the sauce for heat.

Make ahead and storage

Eat it fresh off the wok. Leftovers keep in the fridge for up to two days, but the noodles firm up and lose their silky texture. Reheat gently in a hot pan with a splash of water to loosen them.

Substitutions
  • Chinese broccoli to broccolini, kale, or regular broccoli. Broccolini is the closest match. Cut tougher stalks thinner and add them with the chicken.
  • rice noodles to fresh ho fun noodles or even fettuccine. Fresh ho fun is best if you can find them. Fettuccine is the desperate-times move; cook to very al dente first.
  • chicken thigh to shrimp, sliced beef, tofu. Shrimp last (90 seconds total). Beef and tofu interchangeable, same time as chicken.

Pairs well with: Cold Singha or Chang beer, Pickled chili in vinegar (prik nam som) on the side, A small bowl of jasmine rice if the noodles aren't enough