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Once a week I crave pad-thai take out and once a week I talk myself out of it. Because it’s SO easy to make at home! With this 35-minute recipe in hand, I can make a pad-thai-inspired dish with pantry staples like rice noodles, garlic, and scallions. The sweet and tangy sauce shakes up in mere minutes and it all comes together with savory bites of ground beef and egg. Nothing better!
Over the course of a few weeks I’ve tested this beef and noodles recipe upwards of 6 times. I’ve visited my local asian markets, tested all kinds of tamarind, honed in on the perfect level of sauciness, and have worked to create a dish that resembles Pad Thai while being totally doable on a weeknight.
Let me be clear, this is not an authentic recipe for Pad Thai, especially with the swaps and omissions like garlic chives (which I absolutely adore so if you can find them, use them) dried shrimp, and preserved radish. But it comes together with that signature savory-tartness that makes Pad Thai just so dang good.
A Note On Tamarind
I intentionally worked to create a beef Pad-Thai dish that is approachable and doable any day of the week. So, most of the ingredients in this recipe can easily be found at your local grocery store, with one exception—tamarind. Below are some notes on Tamarind.
Do not use the black, sticky tamarind concentrate or paste from India as it is much more concentrated; use only tamarind from Thailand or Vietnam. It’s still pretty tart, but much more mild than Indian varieties.
Sourness between brands vary significantly, so give your tamarind a taste, and if it’s so sour it makes you pucker, use only 1 tablespoon and add more at the end to taste. If it feels mildly sour, use the full called for. This is the tamarind product I recommend using.
I have also tested making my own tamarind using a block of tamarind and it turns out well! If you want to do this, I recommend following Hot Thai Kitchen as a guide for making it (it’s much easier than it looks).
It’s Quick and Easy to Make
Get everything prepped before you start cooking, because once the process starts, this ground beef Pad Thai is done in about 15 minutes.
- Mix up the pad thai sauce—I find it’s easy to just shake it up in a jar.
- Cook the noodles by adding them to a large bowl and covering with boiling water.
- Cook the scallion whites and garlic then add the beef and cook until just slightly pink.
- Move the beef to one side of the skillet and pour in the eggs, cook until just set.
- Stir in the bean sprouts, drained noodles, scallion greens, and sauce; stir fry until the sauce is absorbed.
- Stir in peanuts and serve.
Tips from Recipe Testing
- The sauce can be prepped up to 3 days ahead of time. So if you’re looking to get ahead, this is a great place to start.
- If you can find garlic chives (I find mine at my local Asian market), use ¾ cup (cut into 1-inch pieces) in place of 1 bunch of the scallions. The flavor is unmatched (garlicky/onion!) and is a traditional addition to Pad Thai. Just add them at the end when instructed to add the scallion greens. They are a fun ingredient to cook with, SO flavorful, and any leftover garlic chives can easily be blended into my homemade green goddess dressing.
- Don’t cook the ground beef all the way through at step 6. It will continue to cook as you stir fry the eggs and noodles. Undercooking at the start means it will stay juicy and tender by the end of cooking.
35-Minute Stir-Fried Ground Beef and Noodles
Description
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Ingredients
Pad Thai Sauce
- ¼ cup packed brown sugar
- ¼ cup oyster sauce
- 3 tablespoons Thai tamarind paste NOT concentrate*
- 3 tablespoons fish sauce
- 3 tablespoons water
Stir Fry
- 2 bunches scallions
- 6 ounces dry Pad Thai rice noodles
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil avocado oil, or toasted peanut oil
- 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
- 12 ounces ground beef
- 2 large eggs, beaten
- 2 cups mung bean sprouts, rinsed + more for serving
- ½ cup chopped roasted and salted peanuts + more for serving
For Serving
- 1 lime, zested and cut into wedges
- Sambal oelek or sriracha
Instructions
- Bring a saucepan of water to a boil.
- In a jar with a lid, add ¼ cup brown sugar, ¼ cup oyster sauce, 3 tablespoons tamarind paste, 3 tablespoons fish sauce and 3 tablespoons water; secure lid and shake vigorously to combine; set aside.
- Thinly slice the white and light green parts of 2 bunches of scallions. Cut the dark greens into 1-inch pieces and set aside.
- Add 6 ounces rice noodles to a large bowl, pour boiling water over top to cover and let soak until al dente, 5–10 minutes depending on brand. Drain and rinse with cold water.
- Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a very large stainless steel skillet over medium until shimmering. Add scallion whites and stir fry until starting to brown, about 2½ minutes.
- Add 3 cloves chopped garlic and sauté 1 minute.
- Add 12 ounces ground beef and ½ teaspoon salt; cook, breaking up with a wooden spoon into bite-sized chunks, until browned and still slightly pink, about 3 minutes.
- Scoot beef to one half of pan, add 2 beaten eggs to empty side of pan and cook, stirring occasionally until cooked through, about 1½ minutes.
- Stir in 2 cups bean sprouts, cooked rice noodles, scallion greens, and Pad Thai sauce.
- Toss gently to combine and until sauce is absorbed by noodles, 2–4 minutes.
- Stir in ½ chopped peanuts. Top each serving with additional bean sprouts and peanuts, a dash of lime zest, and hot sauce. Serve with a lime wedge on the side for squeezing over top.
Equipment
Notes
Oyster sauce is not traditional in a Pad Thai, but it does make a well-balanced weeknight version. Mung Bean Sprouts: I just buy an 8-ounce package of mung bean sprouts. It’s the perfect amount for making and garnishing the dish.
Nutrition
This post is written and created in partnership with the Iowa Beef Council. As always the thoughts, opinions, recipe, photos and content are all my own.
