If you’ve stopped eating noodle dishes in favor of more protein and vegetable-based meals, this dish really satisfies the hunger for a good noodle stir-fry. This recipe doesn’t use fish sauce, kits, or other processed components – just some basic ingredients, stir-fryed. And the noodle of choice: zucchini noodles.
I’ve made these with both zucchini and rice noodles, and they’re both really tasty, but I prefer the zucchini noodles for so many reasons (no sugar, no starch, more veggies, fewer processed ingredients). I use this julienne peeler, but you can use a regular peeler, or a mandoline. Even easier though is to use a food processor with the grader attachment, if you have it.
Note If you don’t like zucchini, and you eat rice, you can use gluten-free brown rice Pad Thai noodles
Some readers have asked me if I’ve had success making noodles from almond flour – I haven’t tried it. I am curious about making buckwheat noodles, so if you’ve made them, let me know how they turned out.
Pad Thai
Ingredients (makes about 4 servings)
- 2 tablespoons of sesame oil for frying (grape seed, or safflower oil are good too)
- 3 eggs
- 2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed or finely diced
- 1 tablespoon of vinegar (white, white wine, or rice vinegar)
- 3 tablespoons of honey (add less, or to taste if you don’t like it sweet)
- 1/2 teaspoon of sea salt (or 2 tablespoons of wheat-free soy sauce)
- sprinkle of chili pepper flakes (optional; this makes it spicey)
- about 4 cups of zucchini noodles (yellow and/or green squash)
- 1 to 2 cups of cooked or grilled chicken, diced, or cooked shrimp (optional)
- 1 to 2 cups of bean sprouts (optional)
Garnish (optional, but so worth the effort!)
- small bunch of cilantro leaves, chopped
- diced scallion (green onion)
- a few lime slices
- 1/4 cup of slightly ground, roasted almonds (or peanuts) (I add them to a coffee bean grinder for a quick spin)
Method
- Place about 2 tablespoons of oil in a wok or frying pan on medium heat.
- Add the garlic to the oil and let it cook for a few minutes without burning.
- Combine the vinegar, honey, and salt in a bowl and set aside.
- Scramble the eggs in a bowl and then add them to the frying pan. Scramble with a wooden spoon or spatula until cooked. Move them to one side of the pan.
- Add the bean sprouts, chicken, or shrimp to the pan and mix with the egg.
- Add the vinegar/honey/salt mix and noodles to the pan and stir fry for a minute or two.
- Transfer the Pad Thai to a big bowl for serving.
- Add the garnish.
- Eat!
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Wow, I haven’t thought of this! I’ve done the cauliflower rice, but zuchinni noodles is just genius!
Thanks Nikki! I’m the only one around here who likes the cauliflower rice – although I have had some takers when I make mashed “potatoes” using steamed cauliflower.
I am looking forward to trying this as just got a julienner…so you need to do anything else to the ‘noodles’? or just mix int he stir fry? any other cooking? thanks
Hi Lucy. Yes, just mix it in. That’s it. Not too long. The noodles will cook quickly, especially if they are thin (julienned).
I made this for dinner last night, and even my zucchini-disliking crew thought this was fabulous. Thank you for posting it!
Great to hear, n.j.! I have a crew like that here too.
Thanks for this recipe – what a great idea, and your idea for using yellow zucchini is simple but an excellent variation. I’m really looking forward to trying this.
I’ve made buckwheat noodles. Its quite simple, and you follow the same recipe and cooking method as for standard homemade pasta – flour and eggs, let rest, pull through machine. You can make any form of pasta you like – spaghetti, tagliatelle, fettucine, lasagna, filled pasta. It doesn’t taste much different, particularly when covered with sauce and cheese. Buckwheat pasta are called pizzocheri in Italy, and they are considered a bit rougher and more rustic than white flour pasta.
Have you tried using celeriac for mash? Its fantastic (with lots of butter) on its own, or mixed with mashed potato. It goes well with everything, but especially game. I think it would also lend itself very well to making “cakes” – fishcakes, bacon&cheese cakes, etc. However, I think it is very advanced, borderline SCD.
Looks great! Do you think spaghetti squash “noodles” would work instead of the zucchini noodles?
Yes, I think spaghetti squash noodles will work too!
Erica,
I made this for dinner last night and OMG! This recipe will now be a staple in my scd recipes. I have been on the scd diet for 4 months and I am always searching for good recipes. I doubled this thank goodness because I have leftovers for tonight! I didn’t think with the zucchini noodles it would be good but it was fantastic! My husband loved it too. The craving for pad Thai has been satisfied! Thank you Erica! I am going to so many more of your recipes now!
Alyssa
Thanks! BTW, this is a somewhat old recipe; I now modify it using Red Boat fish sauce (which is just fermented fish so it should be SCD ok). I’ll try to post it sometime, but the basic sauce ingredients are 4 tablespoons of fish sauce, 3 tablespoons of honey, and 4 tablespoons of lime juice. That simple! Enjoy!