Seafood Pad Kee Mao
A fiery Thai stir-fry of shrimp and squid with wide rice noodles, basil, and chilies. Ready in under 25 minutes with a bold, spicy-savory sauce.
- Total time
- 25 min
- Servings
- 2
- Calories
- 420
- Protein
- 28g
Ingredients
- 6 oz wide rice noodles (pad kee mao noodles)
- 8 oz shrimp, peeled and deveined
- 4 oz squid (calamari), cleaned and sliced into rings
- 3 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 whole Thai bird chilies (or red serrano peppers), sliced thin crosswise
- ½ cup fresh Thai basil (or regular basil), leaves only
Instructions
- 1
Bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil over high heat, about 8 minutes. You'll see big bubbles breaking rapidly at the surface.
- 2
Add the rice noodles to the boiling water and stir once with a fork to separate them. Cook for 3 minutes until they are soft but still chewy when you bite one.
- 3
Pour the noodles into a colander (strainer) and rinse under cold running water for 5 seconds, then set aside.
- 4
Pat the shrimp dry with paper towels by placing them in a single layer on clean paper and pressing gently; this helps them brown better.
- 5
Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a 12-inch skillet over high heat for 90 seconds until it shimmers and slides quickly when you tilt the pan.
- 6
Add the shrimp in a single layer to the hot oil and let them cook without stirring for 90 seconds until the bottoms turn opaque (not see-through).
- 7
Flip the shrimp with tongs and cook for another 60 seconds on the other side until the entire shrimp is pale pink and firm when pressed.
- 8
Add the squid rings and stir constantly with a wooden spoon for 60 seconds until they become opaque and curl into tight rings.
- 9
Pour in the 3 tablespoons of soy sauce and stir for 15 seconds until well mixed and the pan smells strongly savory.
- 10
Add the cooked noodles to the skillet and toss everything together with the wooden spoon for 60 seconds until the noodles are hot and evenly coated with sauce.
- 11
Scatter the sliced chilies over the top of the noodles and stir gently for 10 seconds to distribute them throughout.
- 12
Divide the noodle mixture evenly between two bowls, using tongs to transfer a portion to each bowl, making sure each gets shrimp and squid.
- 13
Scatter half of the fresh basil leaves on top of each bowl, covering the surface of the noodles.
Tools you’ll need
- large pot
- colander (strainer)
- paper towels
- 12-inch skillet
- wooden spoon
- tongs
- two bowls
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