Thai food has a special place in my heart, and this Healthy Chicken Pad Thai is a must make! Pad Thai is my husband's favorite Thai dish, so I had to get this recipe "just right." It's got the perfect balance of tangy, sweet, savory, and salty with tender chicken, thick rice noodles, mung beans, crunchy peanuts, and colorful veggies. So good! It's also macro-friendly, gluten-free and dairy-free. If you need this vegan, omit the scrambled egg and use crispy baked tofu instead of chicken!
Did you know? Mung beans (native to India and Southeast Asia) are very nutritious. They're rich in essential protein, antioxidants, and other nutrients. One cup of boiled mung beans contains 80% of the daily requirement for folate and 14 grams of protein.
Choosing the best chicken
When buying chicken, I look for "organic" or "pasture-raised" with "no antibiotics ever." This ensures the chickens were raised in a disease-free environment with access to the outdoors. If available, I try to choose "Certified Humane" chicken.
For this recipe, I went with lean boneless skinless chicken breasts for this recipe, but chicken thighs would work too.
Healthy pad thai sauce
Traditional Pad Thai sauce uses tamarind pulp, a paste-like substance from ripe pods of the tamarind tree. The pulp has a distinct sweet-sour taste. Since tamarind paste can be hard to find, I improvised!
My healthy pad thai sauce combines fresh lime juice, coconut aminos, brown sugar sweetener, fish sauce, and ketchup (yes, ketchup!). Together these ingredients give the sweet, sour, salty, and tangy flavor pad thai is known for.
Other ingredients
This recipe uses brown rice noodles for more fiber, plus lots of veggies: peppers, carrots, mung beans, and green onions. I also added fresh garlic, scrambled egg (optional), and fresh cilantro (optional).
I used avocado oil to stir-fry the vegetables with the cooked noodles, chicken, and sauce. Avocado oil is a great anti-inflammatory, high-heat cooking oil. You could also use coconut oil!
Here's the printable recipe for this Healthy Chicken Pad Thai. I'd love it if you could rate this recipe or comment below if you try it ;)
This Healthy Chicken Pad Thai has the perfect balance of tangy, sweet, savory, and salty with tender chicken, thick rice noodles, mung beans, crunchy peanuts, and colorful veggies. So good!It's also macro-friendly, gluten-free and dairy-free.If you need this vegan, omit the scrambled egg and use crispy baked tofu instead of chicken!
3 tbsp. calorie-free brown sugar alternative (I used Truvia)
1 tbsp. + 2 tsp. fish sauce
1 tbsp. + 2 tsp. ketchup
*See blog post for substitutions.
Directions
Combine lime juice, coconut aminos, brown sugar sweetener, fish sauce and ketchup in a medium bowl for the sauce. Set aside.
Heat 1 tbsp. oil in a nonstick skillet or wok over medium-high heat.
Thinly slice chicken breasts and add to hot skillet or wok, stir-frying 6-7 minutes or until cooked through.
Meanwhile, mince garlic, slice vegetables so they're ready to stir-fry.
Once chicken is done, set aside on a plate.
Fill a large mixing bowl with warm water and add brown rice noodles. Let sit for 6-10 minutes until flexible but not completely soft (al dente).
Meanwhile, add remaining 1 tbsp. oil plus veggies and garlic to the skillet. Stir-fry over medium-high heat for 3 minutes or until crisp-tender. Set aside.
Whisk eggs well then add to skillet, reducing heat to medium. Cook eggs, stirring often, for about 2 minutes until scrambled. Set aside with vegetables and chicken.
Add noodles to skillet along with vegetables, chicken, scrambled egg, and sauce. Stir to combine and cook until heated through, about 2-3 minutes.
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mel
September 24, 2022
I tried this recipe and it turned out really good. What else can I add to the recipe? Thanks for the recipe.