Gluten Free Pad Thai (Quicker Than Takeout)
Gluten-free Pad Thai is a fast, flavorful way to bring Thai takeout straight to your kitchen. This homemade version has all the sweet, tangy, savory flavors you love, but is allergy-friendly and very customizable. Easily make it soy free or vegetarian with a few simple swaps.
Looking for more gluten free recipes? Try my gluten free general tso’s chicken, chicken teriyaki bowl with rice or crispy rice paper dumplings.
What You’ll Love About This Recipe
Ingredients
Here’s what you’ll need to make this gluten free chicken pad Thai:
- Avocado oil – I like this for a neutral flavor, but you can also use olive oil if that’s what you have.
- Pad thai noodles – also called rice sticks are flat rice noodles that look like linguine noodles, but are made of rice instead of wheat and are naturally gluten free. You can buy white rice or brown rice noodles.
- Tangy sauce – coconut sugar or brown sugar, gluten-free fish sauce, tamarind paste, and vegan oyster sauce (gf).
- Vegetables – shallot, fresh garlic, bell pepper, carrot, green onions (also called spring onions), and mung bean sprouts.
- Protein – boneless skinless chicken breasts.
- Eggs – lightly beaten.
- Garnishes – crunchy peanuts and lime wedges.
* In the second round of testing, I used both onion and shallot, which is why there’s onion in the ingredient shot. However, the pad thai doesn’t need both, which is why the recipe card only includes shallot.
How to Make Gluten-Free Pad Thai: Step By Step
Here are some quick visual instructions. The full instructions and ingredient list will be in the printable recipe card below!
- Cook the noodles. Soak the rice noodles according to the package instructions. They should be al dente. Drain and rinse under cold water. Set aside.
- Make the sauce. In a small bowl, whisk together the sauce ingredients until smooth.
- Saute vegetables. Heat a large pan over medium-high heat. One hot, add 1-2 tablespoons of oil, shallot, garlic, carrot, bell pepper, and green onion. Cook for 1-2 minutes stirring frequently.
- Cook the chicken. Add 1 tablespoon of oil if needed and the thinly sliced chicken or protein of choice. Cook stirring often until the chicken is starting to turn white but not completely cooked through. Stir in 1 tablespoon of the pad thai sauce.
- Scramble eggs. Push vegetables and chicken to one side of the pan, pour in beaten eggs on the other side, and scramble until just set.
- Combine. Add the tofu, bean sprouts, cooked noodles, and sauce. Toss to combine and turn off the heat.
- Garnish. Garnish with chopped peanuts and lime wedges. Serve immediately.
Helpful Tips
- Use a large enough pan – ideally 12 inches, so you can easily mix everything together.
- Garlic chives are used in traditional pad Thai but aren’t widely available. If you can find garlic chives where you live, use those instead of green onions.
- To prevent noodles from sticking, rinse them with cold water after draining. If they’re still sticky, you can toss them with a tiny bit of oil.
Quick Tip: Have all the ingredients prepped before you turn the stove on. This dish comes together quickly, so having everything ready to go will ensure nothing cooks too long or gets mushy.
Storage
Refrigerate: Store leftovers in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
Reheat: Warm in the microwave or a skillet over medium heat until warmed through.
Make It Your Way: Substitutions & Variations
Please remember that recipes are just a starting point.
How can you make this gluten-free pad thai recipe using what you already have? Here are some ideas…
- Make it vegetarian – use vegan fish sauce and use 16 ounces of tofu.
- Make it nut free – omit the peanuts.
- Use different vegetables – zucchini, snap peas, mushrooms, or any other vegetable you enjoy.
- Use a different protein – use shrimp or beef instead of chicken.
- Make it soy free – use coconut aminos and homemade vegan oyster sauce using coconut aminos. You can omit the tofu and use 1.25 pounds of chicken.
- Make it spicy – add red pepper flakes, chili garlic sauce, or sliced Thai chilies.
- Add-ins – fresh cilantro.
Frequently Asked Questions
You can make the Pad Thai sauce and chop the vegetables, but I’d wait until the day of to cook the rice noodles, chicken, and eggs so that it has the best texture.
If using homemade oyster sauce, you can make it days in advance. It has many uses beyond pad thai like my spicy garlic noodles or pineapple chicken fried rice.
You can make pad Thai spicy a few different ways: add chili garlic sauce or red chili flakes to the sauce, or saute fresh chili slices with the rest of the vegetables.
More Gluten Free Recipes
- Gluten Free General Tso’s Chicken
- Nasi Goreng Kampung
- Chicken Teriyaki Bowl With Rice
- Crispy Rice Paper Dumplings
I hope you love this Gluten Free Pad Thai! If you make this recipe, please leave a comment & a star rating below. Thank you!
Gluten Free Pad Thai (Quicker Than Takeout)
Ingredients
- 10 oz pad thai noodles also called rice sticks
- ¾ pound boneless skinless chicken breasts thinly sliced
- 2 large eggs beaten
Pad Thai Sauce
- 5 tablespoons brown sugar or coconut sugar
- ¼ cup fish sauce
- 3 tablespoons tamarind paste not concentrate
- 3 tablespoons vegan oyster sauce (gf) or store bought gluten free oyster sauce
Stir Fry
- 2-3 tablespoons avocado oil divided
- 2 shallots diced
- 4 garlic cloves minced
- 1 large carrot diced
- 1 small red bell pepper cut into thin strips
- 6 green onions cut into 2-inch pieces
- 8 oz firm tofu cut into 2-inch long sticks
- 2 cups mung bean sprouts
For Serving
- roughly chopped peanuts
- lime wedges
Instructions
- Cook the noodles. Soak the rice noodles according to the package instructions. They should be al dente. Drain and rinse under cold water. Set aside.
- Make the sauce. In a small bowl, whisk together the sauce ingredients until smooth.
- Saute vegetables. Heat a large pan (12-inch is ideal) over medium-high heat. One hot, add 1-2 tablespoons of oil, shallot, garlic, carrot, bell pepper, and green onion. Cook for 1-2 minutes stirring frequently.
- Cook the chicken. Add 1 tablespoon of oil if needed and the thinly sliced chicken or protein of choice. Cook stirring often until the chicken is starting to turn white but not completely cooked through. Stir in 1 tablespoon of the pad thai sauce.
- Scramble eggs. Push vegetables and chicken to one side of the pan, pour in beaten eggs on the other side, and scramble until just set.
- Combine. Add the tofu, bean sprouts, cooked noodles, and sauce. Toss to combine and turn off the heat.
- Garnish. Garnish with chopped peanuts and lime wedges. Serve immediately.