Low Carb Paleo Pad Thai Recipe (2024)

FAQs

Does pad thai have lots of carbs? ›

Pad Thai and other noodle dishes are high on carbs and a lot of sugar is usually added too, not to mention oil. Fried rice is a no-no as is sticky rice which is possibly worse than white steamed rice for those with T2DM.

It can definitely be a part of a balanced, well-rounded diet. While pad thai includes many nutritious ingredients, its sodium content is considerably high. You can reduce its sodium by requesting the eatery go easy on the sauce and salt-contributing condiments.

While spices like red and green chilies are used to add heat to a dish, other spices like cumin and cinnamon are used to create complex flavors. Meanwhile, ingredients like chili peppers, ginger, garlic, and peppercorn give Thai food the tingling spicy sensation that people love.

For us, pad Thai is a thing of beauty. The bright red color and the scent of Thai spices are intoxicating. We love how it tastes—how it melts in your mouth and tickles your nose with a sweet-spicy-sour flavor that's unlike any other dish you've ever tried.

While both these recipes are carb happy, Pad See Ew has fewer calories than Pad Thai. As it's also the less sweet of the two, Pad See Ew is considered slightly healthier.

Thai Dishes You Can Enjoy

Many appetizers — like lettuce wraps, for example — are OK on the keto diet with some minor adjustments, or curries with a few vegetable substitutes make for a great meal. Need places to eat in Hopatcong? You can't go wrong with Twist on Thai café — even if you're on the keto diet.

This chicken pad Thai recipe calls for simple, healthy ingredients you can buy at your local grocery store: brown rice noodles, red bell pepper, green onion, tamari (gluten-free soy sauce), chicken breasts, garlic, and a few others. The best part is that you don't need to go to a special Asian food store.

Choose from a variety of lower-fat options such as garlic shrimp, hot-and-sour soup, chicken satay, stir-fried noodles, scallops, bamboo shoots, sautéed ginger chicken, Thai salad, tom yum, Pad Thai, and green or red curry with lower fat content.

Thai food is often healthier than Chinese food. Thai food puts a focus on balance and variety. They are often light and the aromas are just as important as the taste of the food. Thai food uses less heavy sauces and oils than Chinese food uses that are healthier for you, if any oil at all.

The name of this establishment refers to the five flavors (ha/ห้า=five, roat/รส=flavors) which are present in a good pad Thai: salty, sweet, sour, spicy, and savory.

What gives pad thai its taste? ›

Pad Thai Sauce is made with fish sauce, oyster sauce, brown sugar and tamarind. Tamarind is the ingredient that is the heart and soul of Pad Thai sauce, giving the sauce the sour flavour that Pad Thai is known for. It's an ingredient used in South East Asian cooking, like this Malaysian Beef Rendang.

Pad Thai Adaptations

But the backbone of the dish remains the same – rice noodle, eggs, tofu and dried shrimps. As for the all-important sauce, it consists of a balanced nuance of three tastes: saltiness from either fish sauce or soy sauce, sweetness from palm sugar, and sourness from tamarind juice.

Best: Pad Thai

This dish is a menu staple of Thai restaurants. It's made from rice noodles sauteed with spices, peanuts, egg, and bean sprouts. Get it with shrimp, chicken, or tofu for lean protein, and extra veggies for fiber and vitamins. Just watch your portion: Pad thai clocks in at 300 to 400 calories a cup.

Soak the dried rice noodles in cool or lukewarm water for 30 minutes, or until they're limp but still firm to the touch; later cooking in the wok will soften them more. Drain the noodles thoroughly in a colander and set aside while preparing the other ingredients.

When it's sold in restaurants outside Thailand, the noodles are sometimes bright orange – that's because sauces or spices, like paprika, have been used instead of tamarind. Authentic Pad Thai is a light reddish-brown colour.

Many Thai dishes are served with rice. Fried rice and pad Thai, in particular, often contain large amounts of refined carbs from white rice or noodles. To boost the nutrition of these dishes, opt for brown rice, which has more fiber and nutrients than white rice, if it's an option.

Rice noodles have 103 milligrams of sodium per serving, while pasta only has 3 milligrams. Regular pasta also contains 4 more grams of protein than rice noodles, as well as higher counts of some nutrients like iron and folic acid, since most dry pastas are enriched.

Pad Thai With Chicken (1 cup) contains 38.7g total carbs, 36.7g net carbs, 15.7g fat, 17g protein, and 360 calories.