Shrimp pad thai with spiralized vegetable noodles tossed in a sweet and spicy sauce for a better for you twist!
Do you love the exotic flavors of Thai cuisine but a little hesitant to make it at home for your loved ones? I’ve got a recipe that makes it easy to recreate one of your favorite noodle dishes right in your kitchen with a better for you twist!
Pad thai is traditionally made with chewy and delicious rice noodles but requires soaking and some wait time. Instead, I’ve added vegetable noodles for a produce-packed dish. This shrimp pad thai explodes with sweet and tangy flavors with a hint of heat. Plus it’s loaded with tons of garden-fresh ingredients.
Have you tried making spiralized vegetable noodles? It’s my new obsession! Using a simple spiralizing tool, you can create ribbons of vegetables for more fun and enjoyable way to enjoy your veggies. I’ve used it to make crunchy salads and as a substitute for pasta in my coconut curry meatball dish.
The summer brings gorgeous squash and carrots at its peak, so I used those as the noodles for the pad thai dish. The vegetable noodles cook up in a matter of minutes so that they can be gobbled up in an instant! One of the key ingredients in traditional pad thai noodles is tamarind paste. It adds that sweet tang characteristic to the plate, but it’s not very easy to find and usually needs to be purchased at an Asian market.
One plate of pad thai is filled with lean protein and vegetables tossed in the rich sauce. Succulent shrimp, tofu, and eggs are sauteed to make the meal more satisfying, perfect for a family meal after a long day!
Grab your chopsticks and get ready to twirl! The tasty fruit and honey sauce get absorbed by the spiralized vegetables, making you wish you had more. The crunchy roasted peanuts and beans sprouts add just the right amount of crunch to each bite.
More shrimp recipes you might like
- Thai Spiced Shrimp with Vegetables Noodles
- Cauliflower Grits with Spicy Shrimp
- Soba Noodles with Spicy Garlic Shrimp
What is the best way to tell if Shrimp is perfectly cooked?
Nobody enjoys tough, rubbery shrimp, we all want those tender and succulent bites right? Shrimp cooks very quickly, usually within a few minutes on each side. Luckily for us, if we keep a watchful eye you can immediately witness the shrimp change from raw to ready. Shrimp is translucent with whitish gray-colored flesh, applying heat turns the protein to an opaque light whitish pink color. You’re going for a “C” shape and not a tight “O”, as cooking any further will cause the shrimp to be overcooked.
Shrimp Pad Thai with Vegetable Noodles
Ingredients
Sauce
- ¼ cup tamarind paste
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons fish sauce
- 2 tablespoons honey
Pad Thai Noodles
- 5 cups squash, spiralized, (2 to 3 large squash)
- 2 cups carrots, spiralized, (2 to 3 large carrots)
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 8 ounces shrimp, medium-sized, 16/20 size
- 1 cup tofu, firm, ½-inch cubes
- 1 cup bean sprouts
- 2 eggs, lightly beaten
- ¼ cup peanuts, roughly chopped
- 2 tablespoons green onions, thinly sliced
- cilantro, for garnish
- 1 lime, sliced into wedges
Instructions
Sauce
- In a medium-sized bowl whisk together paste, lemon juice, fish sauce, and honey. Set aside.
Pad Thai Noodles
- Use a spiralizer, grater or thinly slice squash and carrots to create noodle strands. Set aside.
- Heat a wok or large saute pan over medium-high heat.
- Add 1 tablespoon oil and allow to heat.
- Add garlic and saute for 20 seconds until fragrant.
- Add shrimp, cook about 2 to 3 minutes, flipping halfway through until shrimp is pink. Transfer to a clean plate.
- Add tofu and stir-fry for 2 minutes, until warmed. Transfer to plate with shrimp.
- Add egg and scramble until cooked, creating smaller pieces.
- Add noodles and cook for 1 minute.
- Add sauce, toss to combine and cook 1 minute.
- Add back shrimp and tofu, and half of the bean sprouts. Toss to combine for 1 minute, turn off the heat.
- Add pad thai to a large serving bowl and top with remaining sprouts on the side, top with chopped peanuts, green onions, and cilantro. Serve with lime wedges.
Equipment
Nutrition Facts
Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000-calorie diet. All nutritional information is based on estimated third-party calculations. Each recipe and nutritional value will vary depending on the brands you use, measuring methods, and portion sizes per household.
Jessica Gavin says
Thank you SO much Karly! I am loving my spiralizer too 🙂
Karly says
Well isn’t this just the most gorgeous dinner I’ve ever seen!? Love love love using my spiralizer, and this is such a great recipe to put it to use! Yum!
Anne says
genius!!
Jessica Gavin says
Why thank you Anne 🙂
Jessie {Life As A Strawberry} says
Ok, this looks amazing. I fiiiiiiinally caved and jumped on the spiralizer bandwagon – totally adding this to my zoodle-noodle-to-do-list!
Jessica Gavin says
Thank you so much Jessie! Which spiralizer did you buy? I’m thinking to get the bigger one soon 🙂
Judy says
Hey Jessica,
One more thing, I started using the Ibotta app this last week. One thing I noticed though is a person really has to read the details for the specifics. I had several that were rejected because there were additional things to buy with the product that was shown on the picture in order to gain the refund. I was a bit disappointed with that but it was my own fault as a new user not paying close enough attention.
Have a great day,
Judy
Jessica Gavin says
Thank you for sharing your experience Judy!
Judy says
Hi Jessica,
I really appreciated the tip on how to tell if shrimp is perfectly cooked. Often I will buy the precooked shrimp. Since it is already pink how do you handle the cooking or warming of it?
Judy
Jessica Gavin says
Great question Judy! I would add the shrimp towards the last step and toss it in with the vegetable noodles and cook 2 minutes, or until warmed.