Pad Thai to-go, anyone? I thought you’d be on board…
Pad Thai has been one of our favorite dishes for years and I make it frequently when we’re craving a hearty, plant-based meal. You can learn more about this delicious dish and its origin here.
As much as I love it, Pad Thai can be a bit complicated and time consuming. But by morphing it into a spring roll and eliminating any unnecessary ingredients, I’ve whittled this down into a portable, easy, downright delicious meal.
Origins of Fresh Spring Rolls
Fresh spring rolls (also known as gỏi cuốn or summer rolls) are a common Vietnamese dish, but the concept is believed to have originated in China. It’s thought that they may be a modification from Chinese egg rolls, but with Vietnamese flavors.
They are typically made with fresh vegetables, herbs, and protein that are wrapped in rehydrated rice paper and served with a dipping sauce.
How to Make Pad Thai Spring Rolls
This recipe is simple, requiring just 10 ingredients and roughly 1 hour to make! It’s also extremely hearty and will please the hungriest of guests. Bonus? It’s versatile.
If you aren’t into tofu, sub your favorite protein. If you don’t like spicy, leave out the chili garlic sauce. Need something for dipping? Throw in one of my three (yes, three) sauce options.
In other words, I’ve got you covered.
The star of the rolls, in my opinion, is the crispy baked tofu that sautés up beautifully in a bit of my 5-ingredient Pad Thai sauce. But coming in a close second is the rice noodles sautéed to sticky, spicy-sweet perfection before being stuffed into spring roll wrappers.
These rolls really are delicious on their own. But when served with a little additional chili garlic sauce, Sriracha, or peanut sauce, it’s elevated to a new level of awesome.
I hope you guys LOVE these spring rolls! They’re:
Hearty
Fresh
Super flavorful
Subtly spiced
Perfectly sweet
Packed with fresh herbs + carrots
Crunchy
Simple
& Downright delicious
I think these would make the perfect meal for when you want something substantial yet healthy. And if you can’t eat them all, leftovers keep well for a few days making them an ideal picnic, take-along lunch, or road trip food.
If you give these a try, let us know! Leave a comment, rate it, and take a picture and tag it #minimalistbaker on Instagram so we can see! We love seeing our recipes come to life in your kitchens. Cheers, friends!
Pad Thai Spring Rolls
Ingredients
SPRING ROLLS
- 14 ounces extra-firm tofu
- 8 ounces white or brown rice noodles
- 8-10 white or brown rice spring roll papers (I love Banh Trang brand)
- 2 cups thinly sliced carrots
- 1 large handful fresh cilantro
SAUCE
- 3 Tbsp tamarind concentrate (I love this brand)
- 3 Tbsp tamari or soy sauce (plus more for tofu)
- 3-4 Tbsp coconut sugar or maple syrup (or sub brown sugar or honey if not vegan)
- 1/2 medium lime (juiced // 1/2 lime yields ~1 Tbsp or 15 ml)
- 1-2 tsp chili garlic sauce (I love this brand // plus more for tofu)
FOR SERVING optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (204 C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Wrap tofu in a clean towel. Set something heavy on top – such as a cast iron pan – to press out liquid for 15 minutes. Then cut into 1/2-inch wide rectangular strips.
- Arrange tofu on the baking sheet, giving each piece some space so it can firm up. Bake for 28-30 minutes to dry and firm the tofu. For softer tofu, bake for 20 minutes. For firmer, bake for 30-35 minutes. Set aside.
- In the meantime, prep carrots, cilantro, and cook rice noodles according to package instructions, then drain and set aside.
- To make the sauce, add tamarind, tamari, coconut sugar, lime and chili garlic sauce to a small saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Once it begins bubbling, lower heat to low and cook for 3-4 minutes, stirring frequently.
- Taste and adjust seasonings as needed, adding more tamari or soy sauce for saltiness, chili garlic for heat, coconut sugar or maple syrup for sweetness, or lime for acidity. You want it pretty flavorful with a balance of salty, sweet and sour, so don’t be shy! Remove from heat and set aside.
- Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Once hot, add baked tofu and 1 tsp each chili garlic sauce and tamari or soy sauce, plus 1 Tbsp of the Pad Thai sauce (amounts as original recipe is written // adjust if altering batch size). Sauté, stirring frequently, for 1-2 minutes. Remove from pan and set aside.
- Add cooked noodles to the still-hot pan over medium heat and add remaining Pad Thai sauce. Use tongs to disperse sauce and toss noodles. Cook for 1-2 minutes, then remove from heat and set aside.
- Assemble a station for preparing the spring rolls with a shallow bowl or plate (for dunking the rice paper), bring a kettle or pot of water to a boil (to cook the rice paper with), and a clean work surface (such as a large cutting board).
- Gather all ingredients and add hot water to the shallow bowl or pan. Let it cool for 1-2 minutes, then add 1 rice paper at a time and cook/soften for 45 seconds to 1 minute. You’ll know it’s ready when you touch it and it swirls around in the water.
- Lift and let excess water drip off, then transfer to your clean work surface. Top with pad thai noodles, tofu, carrots and cilantro, then roll over once, tuck in sides, and continue rolling all the way up. Place seam-side down on a serving plate or baking sheet and cover with a damp, room temperature towel to keep fresh.
- Continue until all spring rolls are prepared – about 8 (as original recipe is written // adjust if altering batch size).
- Serve as is with a bit more chili garlic sauce or Sriracha! Another great addition is peanut, almond, or cashew butter sauce (see links to variations/recipes above).
- Best when fresh, though leftovers keep covered in the refrigerator for 2-3 days.
Amanda says
Tried this recipe and loved it!! The flavors are a perfect blend of sweet and sour. The carrots add a nice crunch to the rolls where the noodles and tofu are softer. The cilantro adds a brightness to it finish off. So yummy! It is definitely a weekend dish as it took awhile to come together. I am sure it would be much faster once I did it a few times though.
We’re so glad you enjoyed it, Amanda! Thanks so much for sharing! xo
B says
Fantastic! I made these with the recommended peanut sauce on your website and the flavors were perfect. Not too difficult at all, either, especially because we make the peanut butter pad Thai from your book all the time. :)
We’re so glad you enjoyed them! Thanks so much for the lovely review!
Michelle says
This is another great recipe! Made this for our Meatless Monday dinner and it was a hit! I always take shortcuts where I can bring wheelchair-bound so I just got Aroy D Pad Thai sauce and just baked the tofu like in Banh Mi Spring Rolls. Soooo yummy! I made a peanut dipping sauce that my Vietnamese friend taught me. It’s also a shortcut. Just mix the creamy PB with housin sauce and add water according to desired texture. I don’t measure so I can’t say how much of each I used. But it comes out really good each time! If I have to guess I would say about 3tbsp of eaxh. Last night, my very picky daughter who is 8 years young said “you should always make this sauce for me, mommy!” Awwwww! Such a sweet compliment! She also loved the julienned yellow apples I threw in these. Mother in law lives with us and is an excellent cook but I take over on Mondays because I implement Meatless Mondays. I am the only vegan in this household and I love being able to show them that vegan doesn’t equal not-good-food! Thanks for another easy and great recipe!
Thanks so much for the lovely review, Michelle. We are so glad you and your daughter both enjoyed them! Next time, would you mind leaving a rating with your review? It’s super helpful for us and other readers. Thanks so much! Xo
Michelle says
Sorry I keep forgetting to leave my rating. I rate this recipe 6 stars on a scale of 5 stars! Thanks for yet another wonderful recipe, Dana!
Thanks Michelle =)
Yolanda says
I have made these twice, once with the tofu and once without. Delicious, yes, but my rice roll wrappers become so sticky that they stick to one another and even to our plates and the rolls tear apart! What am I doing wrong? Thanks
Hi Yolanda, a couple ideas: 1) it could be the type of rice roll wrappers. We like these ones. 2) try adding a little water to the plate and prevent the rolls from touching. Hope that helps!
Yolanda says
Thank you I will try your suggestions!
Ashley says
I’m sooo looking forward to making these a road trip we have coming up. A family of 4 vegetarians going through the south – we could definitely use some backup meals. :)
Whole Foods had two sizes of wrappers – like 6″ and 9″. Which one should I have gotten?
Leah says
Delicious! Really easy to make and the whole family enjoyed it. My 7 month old couldn’t eat the rice paper rolls, but he thought the noodles were pretty amazing, and my 2.5 year old had fun rolling her own roll (even if it turned out pretty wonky!).
That peanut sauce is on a whole new level of amazing deliciousness though. Yum.
liz says
What brand of rice noodles do you use?
Beckah says
This wasn’t so great and became solely a vessel to eat peanut sauce with and I would eat peanut butter for any reason. Imho there is too much tamarind and I tried to make it better after not liking it by playing with the soy sauce, chili sauce, and sugar with no luck. Didn’t really taste like Pad Thai all the way.
Unfortunately I wouldn’t recommend :/
Sarah says
wondering if anyone has tried to bake these?
I don’t think that would work, unless you wrapped them in spring roll paper.
Rhiannon says
I’m fairly new to vegan diet so made I made this and it turned out amazing I was literally so moved. Not only is this method of making crispy tofu easy, it’s delicious! The combination of.crunchy veggies, that “crisp on the outside, soft on the inside” tofu, and the noodles combine wonderfully. Plus the sauce is delicious!
Shakti Joignant says
Hi everybody. I made this recipe a few days ago, didn’t followed it exactly, but I hope it helps someone who wonders if it’s worth a try.
Here is what I did. I used a little less tofu, and I pan-fried it. I used chinese wheat noodles, 250gr to compensate with the tofu. I didn’t put cilantro because I didn’t have any. For the sauces, I made 3 different. For the tofu, I made the pad thai sauce as in the recipe, except I subbed more soy sauce for tamarind (I don’t even know what it is haha) and subbed garlic powder for chili garlic sauce (which I can’t find). It resulted in a very strong and salty sauce that I used entirely for the tofu -while in the recipe it’s used for the noodles as well- because I was scared it wouldn’t be enough for everything so, I realized that the tofu was very flavorful, maybe too much. So, for the noodles, I decided to go for something quite subtle, and mixed peanut butter with water and poured it on the noodles. After tasting the finished result, I decided to make a dipping sauce and made a homemade teriyaki sauce (from homeinthefingerlakes.com). In total, I made 15 rolls, pretty fat in my opinion. Probably because I used different and more noodles.
So what about taste? Wonderful! Really yummy. I will make these again, with some adjustments, like rice noodles, lettuce, and better sauce ratio.
I would also say these are better eaten fresh or the next day. More than that, the rice paper becomes dryer and the sauces have been absorbed. I also freezed some -couldn’t eat 15 rolls within 2 days- and I’ll update you on them, but I think fresh is best.
I’m sorry to the author of this recipe, I know I didn’t followed it properly and that can be annoying, but I used what I had at home. I still wanted to write a feedback in case it would help someone.
I give it 5 stars because it is a great idea that is also versatile. Have fun making spring rolls!
Lauren @ Lauren Caris Cooks says
Just made these for dinner tonight, absolutely delicious! Massive hit, had a fun meals making these up as we went along! Will definitely make these again :=)
B says
Ok – why would you roll up pad Thai in a wrapper ? Could I roll up spaghetti and meatballs?
Katerina says
I just made these for dinner-along with the rainbow rolls and peanut sauce.
It was a bit time consuming to do both but I’m glad I did as I really loved the rainbow rolls, amazing flavor combo. Also I kept the noodles out of these because we had the pad Thai wraps too.
I wasn’t a big fan of the sauce used on the noodles and tofu in the pad Thai wraps. Also these babies are crazy hard to wrap! Took 45 minutes to wrap up about 10, some had holes, they stuck to fingers while eating them and do not expect these to hold together after the first bite. Really hard to get them tight enough. I need to practice more perhaps.
Some good flavors but not worth the effort of wrapping. I’m going to try the leftovers as a bowl for lunch tomorrow but I’ll end up tossing out the left over rice noodles because of the sauce.
My 5 year old loved the rainbow rolls too!
Liana says
I make these time and time again. And lick the sauce from the pan. Yummmmy!
Amy says
Followed the instructions, but found the pad Thai sauce was really lacking. The effort to make these wasn’t worth the return.
Elizabeth says
These were delicious! Pad thai sauces often get thick and aren’t saucy enough, but this one was perfect. I used Annie Chun’s GF Peanut Sauce for dipping.
To soften the spring roll wrappers, I always just run them under hot water for a couple of minutes. This makes it easy to do at work! I ate two rolls fresh today, then mixed all the ingredients to eat for lunches this week. I will just assemble them when I eat them.
Thanks for the recipe!
Beth says
Thrilled that I ran across this on Pinterest, my son is bent on making Pad Thai VERY soon, and I also have brown rice Spring Roll papers in the pantry begging to be used! What a perfect combo! Thank you :)
Amanda Nichole says
This is a game changer! I have been on a Spring/Summer Roll kick and this just ups the ante! Not to mention my LOVE of dipping sauces, and that even seems like an understatement ;) Thanks a heap for this gem!
Hannah says
These look fantastic, however I’m in Australia and I don’t know if I can get my hands on that chilli garlic sauce, do you have any ideas for a substitute or how I could make it myself?
Julia LeRoy says
Woah. Just made them and my legs went weak after the first bite! Literally the best recipe ever!!!
Chiara says
Is it 8 ounces cooked or uncooked noodles?
Trisha says
I’m going to make this tonight, looks delicious! So you don’t even have to bake or fry them up after you roll them?
I’m going to add cabbage, green onions, maybe chopped up mushrooms…And sub zucchini noodles for more health benefits. Also using leftover pork for the protein. I can’t wait! Thanks for the recipe!
Michelle says
Hi, I,’m just curious as to whether this is your picture of the rolls with this recipe. The picture shows mint in the rolls but there isn’t any in the recipe. Should there be?
Melissa says
I made this last night and loved it! However, I’m not the best cook so my rolls were very sad looking. I will make it again, but minus the rolls. Thanks for all the great recipes. I have several of them on my weekly menu.
Charlie says
That only looks like the best thing ever!
Marilita Fujisawa says
this is so tedious, too many sauces involved!
Kimberly says
Absolutely delicious! I tried them with the peanut sauce, but think next time, I will eat them without any extra sauce. The sauce used to flavor the tofu and noodles before rolling them is enough! I will also try with the softer baked tofu. This recipe gives me cravings! :)
Matilda says
Just created this little deliciousness. Thank you so much for your inspiring vegan food. I’m new to eating vegan and I am needing motivating delicious, easy recipes and this was it. So thank you
Wonderful! Thanks for sharing, Matilda!
Lorna says
Sounds great. My daughter can not have soy, what can I use as a substitute for tofu, that will still give her protein?
Hmm, perhaps try my quinoa rolls!
Carly says
I am making this tonight, what would you suggest to use instead of tofu? I love it, but am not supposed to eat it :( Do you think edamame would work?
That would be a great swap! Or try quinoa.
Channing says
These were amazing! The Pad Thai had me from the beginning! Even my 3 year old is loving it! A new family fav!
Ruth Meaney says
These so crazy delicious!! No fish sauce and no egg means my toddler could eat them too! Hurray!
Also, what recipe card plug in do you use? I really like the layout. Thanks!
Wonderful! I use Easy Recipe Plugin. John customized it to match our design :D
Ana @ Ana's Rocket Ship says
Wow wow wow wow wow wow these look so awesome wow wow wow wow wow wow
Brandy Krauland says
OMG these were ridiculously delicious and easy to make (as is everything else you post). 2 was enough to fill me up! Any suggestions on how to serve leftovers? Do they do well in the microwave? I ate one cold, but it was a delicious sticky mess. Not that I minded at all. Can’t wait to add another one of your recipes to my dinner menu! Thanks for making it so easy to be vegan!
Thanks Brandy! These really are best fresh, so I would recommend rolling only as many as you’ll eat and storing the individual ingredients separately until you want some more! Otherwise, just let them rest for a bit out of the fridge! And be sure they don’t touch each other too much or they can stick quite a bit. Glad you enjoyed them!! xoxo
Julie says
What do you think about not baking the tofu, but sauteing? I really don’t want to turn my oven on!
Chiara says
I have tried the recipe with pan fried tofu coated in a little cornstarch before frying and it’s sooooooo good.
Linda @ Veganosity says
You just made one of my favorite Thai recipes even better. Holy cow these look good! Pinned for later.
Maria says
My daughter and I made these last night – we used cellophane noodles (that’s what was in the pantry). OMG these were delicious for dinner, and lunch today, and probably dinner tonight…
Delicious & satisfying and my new favorite food. Thank you!
So great! Thanks for sharing!
Danika Maia says
Oh my god seriously this is absolutely brilliant it combines two of my favorite foods ever!!
Danika Maia
Cindy B says
Thank you for this recipe! I made this on Friday night, and being cold, it is a great Shabbat meal for the summer! Such a phenomenal recipe…versatile and easy. A bit of prep, but no super difficult techniques. So delicious!! I used the peanut sauce to dip and it was awesome as well. I will be making these in some variation or another all summer!!!! Thank you!! PS. I used brown rice wrappers and noodles and it was a great, not noticeable, substitution in case anyone is wondering!
Wonderful – thanks for sharing!!
Amanda says
Just made these for dinner and they were not only delicious but something my vegetarian and wheat allergic roommates could enjoy :) Thanks!
Ana | Espresso My Kitchen says
These look amazing! love pad thai and spring rolls in one ! Can’t wait to try this!
Lazzle says
The noodles look delicious enough to eat by themselves !! I think this might be the recipe that makes me try tofu.
Abbe@This is How I Cook says
Pad Thai in a roll sounds fabulous. It also sounds fab on a roll. Or without a roll. I’ll take it however I can get it!!
B says
Could these delicious noodles be enjoyed without the roll? It looks like a delicious pad thai noodle recipe!
Michele @ Two Raspberries says
i LOVE spring rolls and rice noodles!!! I gotta try this recipe ;-) i love the cilantro in here too extra flava!
Tamanique says
Hey! This is a sign, I have been keeping an eye out for tamarind paste for months, and I JUST found some at a flower/convenience shop nearby (of all places?). Can’t believe you managed to make such a cool dish so easy to make!
GET YOU SOME! I always have two jars in stock!
Lauren @ Lauren Caris Cooks says
You had me at Pad Thai to go!
Ha, right? Hope you love these, Lauren!
Abby says
Ohhh, these look delicious, Dana! I’m a huge fan of spring rolls, and with Asian flavors?! Yes, please! <3
Christine - Jar Of Lemons says
This sounds AMAZING. Cannot wait to try it!
Amanda @ Sweets and Greens says
Anything wrapped in spring roll wrappers is a winner for me, but the noodles and sauce have taken it to the next level.
christina @ but i'm hungry says
Whaaaat is this genius idea?!?!?! Game changer.
Valerie says
This demands a trip to the Asian supermarket. Could I substitute the tamarind concentrate for tamarind paste? I think I would have to reduce the amount of additional sweetener….
Coco in the Kitchen says
This is such a cool idea!
My husband makes a killer Pad Thai and his sauce is very similar to yours.
Cassie says
Uh, YUM!
Mel @ The Refreshanista says
These look SO GOOOOD! I love that it’s Pad Thai but in a roll form :)
Arthur in the Garden! says
Yummy!
Megan @ Straight From The Jar says
Spring rolls are my weakness. Love the addition of the rice noodles. Drooling!!!
dixya | food, pleasure, and health says
i see myself stuffing my face this!
Katrina @ Warm Vanilla Sugar says
Whoa – these are a total game changer!! I mean, that sauce? Awesome.
Mariana says
How do you think these would keep? I’m thinking of making them the night before for lunch…
Mariana says
Never mind I should learn to read things all the way through…. sorry I did a quick mom scan.
Jane says
When I saw the title and header photo of this post, I muttered out loud, “Oh my god, shut up!” (In a good way.) Can’t wait to try this recipe. I love pad thai, but seldom order it in restaurants because of the possibility of fish sauce being in it, and it always seemed daunting to try and make it at home. Trust the Minimalist Baker to make an easier and scrumptious-looking version! Off to buy some tamarind!
Traci says
How clever!
Alexa [fooduzzi.com] says
I am SUCH a sauce person, so this pretty much sounds like the best meal ever! What a clever idea – I’m a huge fan of pad thai but, like you, have been turned off from making it due to its time-consuming nature. Throwing it into spring rolls though? Perfection!
Amy says
Your rolls look great. Do you think you could upload a video to explain how to roll those babies? I am incapable to do it properly, it falls apart every time I try! :D
Anna says
omg these look amazing!! such a good idea :D
Louise says
OH my god. One of my favorite foods done spring roll style? You are brilliant! That is pure yummyness wrapped in deliciousness dipped in scrumptiousness. Thanks, MB! :)
Erin@WellPlated says
This is the ultimate pad thai hack! I can’t choose a dip, so I’ll do all three :)
Tom ~ Raise Your Garden says
Well, I think this is the blog where I saw your other Spring Rolls…..isn’t that right? And they intrigued me then too. Never heard of Pad Thai ones, now I must try. Especially since I pack my lunch everyday (okay, my wife packs my lunch) And I need a good lunch to get me through dodge ball, can jam and table tennis (yes, I’m a gym teacher). School lunches are disgusting, won’t eat them!