Name: Easy Chicken Pad See Ew (Stir Fry Thai Noodles)
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 25 min
Ingredients: 3 teaspoons garlic, finely diced (about 2-3 small/med cloves); 1 pound fresh, already-cooked wide rice noodles (see note about noodles); 8 ounces of dry rice noodles, linguine size (cook to package instructions); 1 small bunch of gai lan (Chinese broccoli; 3-5 stalks depending on size; see substitutions in notes); 1 cup (heaping) boneless chicken breast, sliced into thin strips; ¼ teaspoon salt; 1 large egg; 1 bunch of scallions chopped, optional garnish; Neutral oil (I used peanut); 1 ½ tablespoons dark soy sauce; 1 ½ tablespoon thin Thai soy sauce (or regular, low sodium soy sauce); 2 tablespoons oyster sauce; 3 teaspoons white vinegar; 2 ¼ teaspoons white sugar

Description

You’ll never spend $18 on take-out pad see ew again. You have to try this easy chicken pad see ew – it’s incredible!

Ingredients

Units Scale

3 teaspoons garlic, finely diced (about 2-3 small/med cloves)
1 pound fresh, already-cooked wide rice noodles (see note about noodles)

8 ounces of dry rice noodles, linguine size (cook to package instructions)
1 small bunch of gai lan (Chinese broccoli; 3-5 stalks depending on size; see substitutions in notes)
1 cup (heaping) boneless chicken breast, sliced into thin strips
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 large egg
1 bunch of scallions chopped, optional garnish
Neutral oil (I used peanut)

For the sauce:

1 1/2 tablespoons dark soy sauce
1 1/2 tablespoon thin Thai soy sauce (or regular, low sodium soy sauce)
2 tablespoons oyster sauce
3 teaspoons white vinegar
2 1/4 teaspoons white sugar

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Instructions

Don’t forget to watch the video with step-by-step instructions. TIP: Scroll down to the bottom of my blog post and watch the video inside the recipe card. That links to my YouTube channel and has fewer ads.
Dice the garlic fine and set aside.
If you’re using the optional scallion garnish, chop those now and set aside.
If you’re using the fresh, already-cooked wide rice noodles: The noodles need to be de-glopped. You should do this while you’re working on the other prep so they are de-glopped when you are ready to assemble. The ones I buy are in a package and they’re all stuck together. I used the method the woman at the market gave me. They are already oiled so you don’t need to add anything here. Put the noodles in a large bowl and microwave them in 30-60 second increments. Turn the noodles over a few times while doing this. You’ll see them start to loosen up and you can gently pull at them to help with the de-glopping. You’ll know they are done when you can easily pull out a fistful of noodles with nothing stuck together. It takes about 7-10 minutes or so while you’re doing other things. Then follow the assembly instructions below.
If you’re using the store-bought dry linguine rice noodles: The store-bought package is usually 1 pound (16 ounces). You will need half the box, or 8 ounces for this recipe. Plan your time, have your boiling water ready by the time you’re ready to add the chicken to the pan and cook to package instructions. Once cooked, add to the pan and follow the rest of the assembly instructions below.
Chop the thick stems/stalks from the leaves of the gai lan (Chinese broccoli). Take the thick stalks in cut them in half lengthwise, then cut into thin strips. Some stalks are thicker than others. They should look like sticks when you’re done. Put those in a large pan with a little oil and start cooking those on low-to-medium heat while you’re doing your other prep. These take longer to cook so we’ll start cooking those first. Should be 3-5 minutes to soften. My video shows this well – it’s at the bottom of my blog post. Fewer ads if you watch the video that links to my YouTube channel.
Rough chop the gai lan leaves and set aside with the garlic. Bite-sized pieces work well here. We’ll add those to the pan later when we do the final assembly.
If you do not have access to gai lan (Chinese broccoli), you can use regular broccoli OR broccolini. You can still cook it in the pan the same way with a splash of oil, but I would cover it to let it steam a bit. Keep your eye on it so you don’t overcook. I like my broccoli al dente. Cook yours to your own liking.
Make the sauce: add the dark soy sauce, Thai or regular (low sodium) soy sauce, oyster sauce, white vinegar, and sugar in a bowl and mix until combined.
Cut chicken into thin strips. I found it worked very well to use the already-thin-cut boneless chicken breast for this. Made it easier to cut into thin strips. I used two thin cutlets and that gave me one heaping cup of chopped chicken. Salt the chicken – maybe ¼ teaspoon or so.
Add the chicken into the pan with the gai lan stems. Those should be softer now. Turn heat to medium-high, add chicken and a splash of oil, and cook couple minutes while stirring.
Add the garlic to middle of pan with a little oil. Let it cook in the middle of pan 30 seconds to get fragrant… then combine with chicken and gai lan stems. Stir another minute.
Add gai lan (Chinese broccoli) leaves to the pan and toss to combine. It will only take a minute or so for them to wilt (much like the way spinach does).
Push the chicken and gai lan mixture to side of pan and crack an egg in the empty half. I scrambled with a plastic whisk because I used a Teflon pan… Then combine with chicken mixture and mix another minute.
Remove chicken and gai lan mixture from the pan and set aside.
Add a tablespoon or so of neutral oil (I used peanut) to pan and let it get hot on high heat. Add the cooked noodles and spread across the bottom of pan. Pour sauce over noodles and toss gently to coat the noodles with the sauce. These are delicate noodles so handle with care. Using two wooden spoons worked well for me.
Make sure the noodles are covered in the sauce, and spread out across the bottom of the pan. Now let the noodles sit in the pan for a minute or so and don’t touch them. This is important. You’ll want the sauce and noodles to caramelize on the bottom of the pan. This is part of the magical flavor of pad see ew. The noodles will get browned (almost like a seared look) on the bottom.
Add the chicken and gai lan mixture back into the pan and toss gently to combine everything together. Serve immediately.

Notes

If you’re using the fresh noodles and they are already cooked (this is what I did). You’ll need one pound of the COOKED noodles.
The Asian market where I buy my noodles was out one time, but they directed me to two other markets in the area that carry the wide, already-cooked rice noodles. I picked up a package at another market, but the noodles were not cut yet. The package came in small sheets of rice noodles. It was very easy to figure out how to cut them so if that is what you find, grab them and cut the noodles yourself.
If you cannot get the fresh noodles at a local Asian market near you, go with the linguine-sized rice noodles at your local grocery store – or something wider if you can find that. They always have the linguine sized at my usual supermarket. I show the package in the video and a picture is in the blog post if you need a reference point.
If you’re able to find gai lan (Chinese broccoli), you probably won’t need the whole bunch. Use the amount needed for this recipe and cook the rest as a side dish for dinner one night. Same method: cut the stems into thin strips and cook a few minutes to soften. Once softened, add a little garlic to the pan, cook until fragrant – 30 seconds- 1 minutes, add the leaves and let them wilt – a minute or so. Drizzle a little soy sauce over them. Serve immediately.