Pad Thai with Prawns is Thailand’s most iconic street food noodle dish, celebrated for its perfect balance of sweet, sour, salty and savoury flavours. This authentic Pad Thai with Prawns recipe follows a traditional Thai restaurant method, building a tamarind and palm sugar sauce first, then stir frying soaked rice noodles with prawns, tofu, preserved turnip and crunchy beansprouts.
The key to excellent Pad Thai is control. The sauce must be balanced before it hits the wok, the noodles must be soaked rather than boiled, and the vegetables added at the last moment to keep their crunch. Cook quickly, taste at the end and adjust with lime, chilli and peanuts just before eating.