This post Prawn/Shrimp Pad Thai (Spice I Am Restaurant), was last updated on 2022.
This is an authentic Prawn/Shrimp Pad Thai recipe from Spice I Am, a critically acclaimed Thai restaurant. It tastes amazing!
Also, here is my everyday Pad Thai recipe which is the version I make most often, no trip to the Asian store required. 🙂
The restaurant version I’m sharing is an absolute ripper of a Pad Thai. I can go on and on about how incredible it is because it isn’t mine, so I don’t have to worry about sounding arrogant! It is the Pad Thai recipe of one of Sydney’s hottest Thai restaurants – Spice I Am.
I was overwhelmed by the flavor combinations my first visit. This Thai cuisine is very different from the rest. It’s phenomenal. And it’s authentic. That’s what I love the most. Spice I am is unapologetically authentic. They don’t tone down the spiciness of curries. They don’t “westernise” dishes. They are modernised in the presentation but at the core of it, every dish is cooked the traditional way which is Why? it’s so different.
I think it was a decade ago that I went to Spice I Am. It is still one my favorite Thai restaurants. So I was beyond excited when I spied a Spice I Am cookbook at my brothers’ house. I went to swipe it but he caught me and wouldn’t even let me borrow it. Hmph! I managed to get my copy.
It’s so much fun to get restaurant recipes for my favorite dishes! There are so many I want to try but in my excitement to share one with you, I decided to start with Pad Thai.
As you can imagine, after describing how authentic the Spice I Am dishes are, the Pad Thai recipe has more steps than my everyday version. And it has one ingredient that requires a trip to the Asian grocery store – dried tiny baby shrimp. It is the magic ingredient that makes this a real Thai restaurant style version. YesIt is well worth the effort and extra steps. The supermarket has everything you need.
It probably sounds like I was hired to talk about this cookbook, but I’m not! This is truly a cookbook that I love. Sujet Saenkham is a native Thai, and his recipes are delicious. He learned his grandmother’s family recipes from his mother. Those are the kind of recipes that really get me excited!! You can get a copy of his cookbook from Bookworld or Booktopia (these are Not affiliate links).
Yummy….Pad Thai….I could eat this every day. It’s true! – Nagi x
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Shrimp/Prawn Pad Thai (Spice I Am Recipe)
Ingredients
- 5 oz / 150 g dried Pad Thai rice noodles (Note 1)
- 4 tbsp Vegetable oil
- 12 Raw shrimp (prawns), deveined and shelled (Note 2).
- 1 Red shallots in small quantities , finely chopped (Note 3)
- 3 oz / 80 g Firm tofu Cut into small matchsticks
- 1.75 oz / 50 g dried shrimp (Note 4)
- 1/4 Cup fish sauce
- 2 tbsp Palm sugar (or brown sugar).
- 2 tbsp Puree of tamarind (Note 5)
- 1 tsp white vinegar
- 1/2 tsp+ chili powder Taste (Note 6)
- 2 eggs Lightly beaten
- 1.5 oz / 45 g Peanuts roasted unsalted Finely ground
- 5 oz / 150 g Bean sprouts
- 2 tbsp Garlic chives , cut into 3/4″ / 2cm lengths
- 1 tsp White sugar
- Lime wedges To serve
Instructions
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Put the rice noodles in an ovenproof bowl. Cover with lukewarm liquid and let sit for at least 1 hour. Note 7: Drain and set aside.
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Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a wok, or large heavy-based frypan on medium heat. Stir in the prawns, and cook for a few minutes. Note 8: Remove from the wok.
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Stir fry the shallot for 2 minutes. Next, add the tofu mixture, dried shrimps, fish sauce, palm sugar, and tamarind purée. Continue cooking for about 1 minute, or until sugar has dissolved.
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Stir fry for 2 minutes.
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Reduce the heat to low, and then turn the heat up to high. The remaining 2 tablespoons of oil and the egg should be added to the wok.
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Mix the noodles with the egg.
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Take off the heat. Mix in half the peanuts, most beans sprouts, garlic, chives, and prawns. Toss gently.
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Transfer to a serving platter. Sprinkle with remaining peanuts and white sugar. Serve immediately with lime wedges, and sprinkle with additional chili powder if you like.
Notes for Recipes
2. Original recipe called out for six large prawns. I couldn’t find any medium-sized ones, so I used 12.
3. Red shallots can be described as baby red spanish onions. They have a milder flavour than onions, and are sweeter. You can substitute 1/4 of a finely sliced red onions if you don’t have them.
4. This restaurant-style version uses dried shrimp as the main ingredient. These are small shrimps / prawns which are dried. They are available at Asian grocery stores for around $4 per packet (you will need only half of the pack).
5. Tamarind, a fruit, is pureed like a smooth paste. It is also sour. You can find it in Australia at supermarkets (Coles Woolworths Harris Farms), in the Asian section.
6. Pad Thai should be spicy. You can adjust the heat to your liking. The chili powder in this recipe is made from pure ground dried chilies. American chili powder, which contains other seasonings and isn’t as spicy, is not used. Cayenne pepper is a good substitute if you’re unsure. Chilli powder is used to heat the dish and not to add seasonings.
7. This tip is crucial: rehydrate the noodles with lukewarm water, not boiling. Stir-frying the noodles with this method will prevent them from breaking.
If you are in a hurry, boil the noodles in hot water. Follow the packet instructions. Reduce the cooking time by one minute and take extra care when tossing them.
8. You can tell when a prawn has been cooked properly by observing how they hang straight. Overcooked prawns will form a “c” shape, while perfectly cooked prawns will curl into an ‘o”.
9. Three servings of nutrition.
Nutrition Information:
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