ผัดซีอิ๊วPad see ew

The wok-fried noodle dish of the home kitchen — flat, wide rice noodles (khanom jeen) in a two-part soy sauce with cabbage and Chinese cabbage, and a protein of your choice. The whole point is the char: the noodles are meant to go dark and a little bitter on the edges, not stay pale and soft. That char is the flavor.

Origin

Thai (ก๋วยเตี๋ยวผัด), a daily home and street-food dish

Difficulty

2 / 5

Servings

2

Prep

10 min

Cook

8 min

Total

~20 min (noodles cooked fresh, same bench)

Equipment

• Wok or 28 cm (11 in) heavy skillet — a wide surface is what gives the noodle its char
• A wide, flat-bottomed bowl to lay the noodles out to dry
• Tongs or a flat spatula — you'll need to keep the noodle moving

Ingredients

• 200 g (7 oz) flat, wide rice noodles (khanom jeen / 河粉), from a fresh sheet or a good dried one, cut to 15 cm lengths
• 150 g (5 oz) chicken thigh, sliced thin against the grain, or a similar cut of pork, or large peeled shrimp
• 2 (from 120 ml) eggs (optional but traditional)
• 10 g (2 cloves) garlic, sliced thin
• 25 g (1 tsp) light soy sauce — the salt
• 25 g (1 tbsp) dark soy sauce — the color and depth
• 15 ml (1 tbsp) vegetable oil, plus more for the wok
• 150 g (5 oz) Napa cabbage, torn into 5 cm pieces (or Chinese white cabbage, cut the same way)
• 40 g (2) spring onions, cut in 4 cm lengths, the white and green parts kept separate
• 30 g (2) bird's eye chilies (or 2 (15 g) dried), cut on the diagonal — for the table, and a few in the wok
• 2 (90 ml) limes, cut into wedges — for the table
• For the noodle, if you want it fresh: 150 g rice flour, a pinch of salt, and enough warm water to make a dense, smooth batter — the same logic as any fresh rice noodle, and the noodle article has the shape and the thickness to aim for.

Method

1. Prepare the noodle. If dried: soak it in near-boiling water 10–15 min until pliable, drain well, and cut to 15 cm lengths. Lay it out in a single layer on the wide bowl and let it sit, uncovered, for the rest of the prep — the surface moisture is what you don't want in the wok, and air is the cheapest way to take it out. If fresh: keep it in a single loose layer; it will steam a little and that is fine.
2. Everything else on the bench. Slice the protein, slice the garlic, tear the cabbage, separate the spring-onion white from the green, and measure out the two sauces together in one small bowl — the light soy and the dark soy, stirred to a single 50 ml of mixed sauce. That single pour is the whole seasoning step; you won't want to be hunting for two different bottles mid-wok.
3. The protein (if you're using one). High flame, the wok properly hot — 1 min, a thin wisp of smoke. A generous pour of oil, then the protein, stir-fried 1–2 min until just cooked through and the color has set. Tip it out into a bowl and set aside. The oil left in the wok is now carrying its flavor, which is exactly what you want for the noodle next.
4. The garlic and the char window. Same oil, same heat. Add the garlic slices and, in the same motion, the drained noodle. For the first 30 s, let the noodle sit — don't stir it. You want a few pieces pressed flat against the surface, where they will dark and char. Then stir, turn, and toss for another 1–2 min, until the noodle is glossy, the edges are a deep brown, and the raw starch smell is gone. This is the wok-heat step: the dense noodle only takes on its "pad see ew" color and that faint bitter edge when it is charred, not steamed.
5. The egg, if you're using it. Push the noodle to one side, and the instant you've made the gap, pour the beaten eggs in a thin stream down the middle — the same move as pad thai. 15–20 s, just until set in a film, and fold it into the noodle. The egg is there to break up the density of the noodle and to carry the wok-smell on to every strand, not to be a separate "egg dish."
6. The sauce and the greens. Pour the mixed soy sauce down the side of the wok, not over the top of the noodle, and 10–15 s of it will spit and steam — that is the point, and it also means the sauce is hot enough to flavor the surface. Toss the noodle in, then add the cabbage and the white part of the spring onion. 30 s, just enough to warm through and soften at the edge — the cabbage is there for a cool, crisp bite, and it will keep it if you don't cook it past that. Off the heat, in with the protein, the green part of the spring onion, and a few of the cut chilies.
7. Plate and finish at the table. Tip it onto a plate. A lime wedge on the side, a few more chilies, and the dish is done. Squeeze the lime over it before eating, if you want the acid to cut the soy — the lime is the balance that most home versions skip, and it is the one that turns "soy-fried noodle" into "pad see ew."

What to serve with it

This is the "noodle dish" of a Thai table — the one that stands in for rice when you want a quick, heavy, satisfying plate. The classic companion is a salad to cut its density: a som tum (green papaya salad) is the right weight and the right acid, and the two of them together cover the whole sour–salt–sweet–hot range. A gaeng som (sour curry) is also right, for the people who want a spoon-dish with the noodle dish. A cold lager or an iced Thai tea is the drink that goes with it, by the logic of any Thai street-stall counter.