Thai Glass Noodle Stir-Fry (pad woon sen)

Pad woon sen or glass noodle stir fry is a staple dish in most Thai homes, mine included. Chewy glass noodles are stir fried with vegetables, eggs, and any kind of meat. It's a flavourful and healthy dish that's always popular with kids and adults alike. Bonus: glass noodles are the easiest noodles to cook, perfect for beginners!

What is Pad Woon Sen

Pad means to stir fry, and woon sen means glass noodles. While there are other types of glass noodle stir fries in Thailand, this is the classic, and the one people will think of first. Some people call this dish woon sen pad kai which means glass noodles stir fried with eggs, to distinguish it from other versions that don't contain eggs, such as this Hainanese glass noodles stir fry.

While it is one of the most common dishes for Thai people, you may not come across it much during your travel to Thailand. That is because it is more of a simple home cooked dish, rather than a restaurant item.

There is one type of restaurant that often has pad woon sen, however, and that's an establishment we call raan khao gaeng, or "curry rice shops." These are shops that serve food "cafeteria-style," often found in food courts and on the street. They have several simple, homey dishes prepared in large trays, and you simply point at the items you want and they will scoop them and put them on a plate of jasmine rice. It's the original Thai fast food! Glass noodle stir fry is a common item offered at raan khao gaeng.

I talk more about raan khao gaeng in my post about what to eat in Thailand.

Ingredients and Notes

Here are all the ingredients you need for pad woon sen and important notes about them. For amounts, see the full recipe card below!

• Thai/Chinese glass noodles. The noodles need to be soaked in water for about 10 minutes and then cut once or twice to shorten. These are very thin noodles made from mung bean starch, not to be confused with Korean glass noodles made with sweet potato starch. They can be labelled as "glass noodles," "bean threads," or "bean vermicelli."
  If possible, look for brands that are made from 100% mung bean starch such as Pine Brand or Kaset Brand. Some brands mix in cheaper starches like cornstarch or pea starch to cut cost. Having said that, if those are the only ones available to you, they will be fine.
• Protein of your choice, bite-sized slices. Chicken or pork is the most common, but you can also use shrimp or tofu. Thai people don't use beef as much in stir fries, but you can use thinly sliced beef for this also.
• Garlic, chopped
• Onion, julienned
• Eggs
• Green cabbage, bite-sized pieces
• Carrots, halved lengthwise, then thinly sliced. Remember it will not have much time to cook in the wok so don't cut them too big.
• Tomato, cut into wedges. I also have a version that uses canned tomatoes that I came up with during the pandemic. So if you don't have fresh tomatoes on hand, but have canned, check out my "lockdown" glass noodle stir fry recipe.
• Green onions, for ganish. You can also opt for cilantro instead
• Jasmine rice, for serving (optional). Yes, rice with noodles, carb on carb at its best! In Thailand, pad woon sen is always served with rice and not eaten on its own like pad thai or pad see ew. Glass noodles are very light compared to rice noodles so they aren't always classified as the carb of the meal, and on ratio this recipe also contains a lot of veggies. But, if you want to eat it as is, you are most welcome to!

Sauce ingredients

• Oyster sauce. See my guide on how to choose good oyster sauce here.
• Soy sauce. I use Healthy Boy Brand Thai soy sauce, but any kind of regular soy sauce is fine.
• Golden Mountain Sauce or Maggi Seasoning. These are a type of soy sauce that has a different flavour than regular soy sauce, and it's added for complexity in flavour. If not available you can sub an equal amount of soy sauce.
• Sugar
• Ground white pepper, which is the standard pepper for most Thai dishes, but if not available, black pepper works too

Step-By-Step

Here's a bird's eye view of the cooking process, not including ingredient prep. The full instructions including how to prep each ingredient will be in the recipe card below. If it's your first time, I highly recommend watching the video tutorial first to ensure success!

1. Saute the garlic and onions in oil until the garlic starts to turn golden.
2. Add the marinated chicken, or whatever protein you're using, and stir to separate the pieces, and until it's about 30% done.
3. Push the chicken and onion aside to make space for the eggs, add a little oil to the space and add the eggs. Break the yolk and then let the eggs set about halfway.
4. Scramble the eggs, then add the cabbage and carrot, and a teaspoon or so of the sauce mixture.

5. Add the soaked-and-cut glass noodles and drizzle the sauce over them.
6. Toss the noodles until the sauce is fully absorbed and the noodles are cooked, about 2 minutes. Taste the noodles, and if they are a bit chewy, add a splash of water and cook for another minute.
7. Turn off the heat, then add the tomatoes and green onions.
8. Toss briefly just to mix, and serve!

Watch The Full Video Tutorial!

All my recipes come with step-by-step video tutorials with extra tips not mentioned in the blog post, so make sure you watch the video below to ensure success - and if you enjoy the show, please consider subscribing to my YouTube channel. Thank you!

Advance Prep, Storage and Reheating

• Glass noodles can be soaked a few days ahead of time. Though they only take 7-10 minutes to soak, if you want to get it out of the way you can soak them in advance. Be sure to drain them well to avoid pooling water, then store them in a well-sealed container in the fridge.
• The sauce can be mixed and stored in the fridge indefinitely. You can make a large batch of sauce for future cooks as well, just remember to measure how much sauce is required per batch and note that down.
• Leftovers can be kept in the fridge for a few days. The veggies will obviously be a bit soggy when reheated, but the noodle texture will be fine.
• To reheat, microwave or saute in a non-stick pan until the glass noodles are steaming hot. The noodles will not regain their soft texture unless they are fully heated through. Ideally, I'd pick out all the tomatoes so they don't turn to mush while you reheat. Throw them back in for the last 20 seconds or so just to warm through.

Recipe

Thai Glass Noodle Stir-Fry (pad woon sen)

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 4.9 from 9 reviews

• Author: Pailin Chongchitnant
• Prep Time: 20 mins
• Cook Time: 5 mins
• Total Time: 25 minutes
• Yield: 2 servings

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Description

Pad woon sen is a classic Thai home cooked dish that is quick, healthy and super easy to make. It's super popular with kids, and I loved it growing up! 

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Ingredients

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• 40 g dry Thai glass noodles, soaked in water for 7-10 minutes
• 170 g (6 oz) boneless skinless chicken breast to thigh, cut into ½-inch thick slices, or sub another protein of your choice
• 1 tsp (5 ml) soy sauce (for marinating chicken)
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• ¼ small onion, julienned
• 2 large eggs
• 1 cup cabbage, cut in bite-sized pieces
• ⅓ cup carrots, halved lengthwise, then thinly sliced on a diagonal
• ¼ tsp ground white pepper, or black pepper
• 1 tomato, cut in wedges
• 1 green onion, chopped
• For serving, jasmine rice (optional, see note)

Sauce

• 1 Tbsp (15 ml) oyster sauce
• ½ Tbsp (7.5 ml) soy sauce
• ½ Tbsp (7.5 ml) Golden Mountain Sauce or Maggi Seasoning, or sub regular soy sauce
• 1 ½ tsp (7.5 ml) sugar
• 2 Tbsp (30 ml) water

Ingredients and Kitchen Tools I Use

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Instructions

*The instructions may be slightly different from those in the video as this recipe has since been updated.

1. Combine the chicken with the 1 teaspoon of soy sauce and mix well.
2. Drain the glass noodles from soaking water then cut the noodles once or twice with scissors to shorten them.
3. Mix together all the sauce ingredients in a small bowl and stir until the sugar is dissolved
4. Heat oil in a wok or a large saute pan over medium high heat. When hot, add the garlic and onions and cook until garlic starts to turn golden.
5. Add the chicken and cook just until the pieces are well separated and the exterior is partially cooked Push everything in the pan to one side, add a little more oil in the empty space, and add the eggs. Break the yolks with your spatula then let the eggs set about half way, then scramble and mix with the chicken.
6. Add the cabbage, carrots, and about half a tablespoon of the sauce mixture; toss quickly just to mix.
7. Add the noodles and pour the rest of the sauce over the noodles. Add the white pepper and toss the noodles until they are done and have absorbed all the sauce, about 2 minutes. Taste the noodles, and if they are too chewy, you can add a splash of water and cook for a minute longer.
8. Turn off the heat and add the tomatoes and green onions, then toss, using the residual heat to wilt and heat the tomatoes through.
9. Remove from heat and serve. In Thailand we typically serve this with jasmine rice (carb on carbs!) but you can also eat it on its own.

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Notes

In Thailand we eat pad woon sen with rice. Yes, carb on carb at its best! However, you can also enjoy it on its own, if you wish.