Pad Thai is one of our FAVORITE takeout dishes. It’s on weekly repeat around here!
We’ve shared an incredible Noodle-Free Pad Thai in the past, but sometimes it’s nice to have the filling, noodle-y goodness that comes with a more classic version of the dish.
This simple plant-based version of Pad Thai takes just 30-minutes to prepare and delivers a hefty helping of flavor. Let’s do this!
It starts with tamarind, which gives the sauce bold color and a classic Pad Thai flavor. The tamarind is mixed with coconut aminos, coconut sugar, chili garlic sauce, lime juice, and Vegetarian Fish Sauce (optional), creating the perfect balance of sweet, salty, spicy, and umami.
Next, bites of tofu are gently sautéed in oil to add a delicious dose of protein (16.6 grams per serving!) to the meal. Garlic and chili flake add heat and pops of flavor!
Rice noodles are soaked briefly in hot water, then tossed together with the sauce, green onions, bean sprouts, and peanuts. Serious swoon.
And that’s it! In less time than it takes to get a takeout order delivered, dinner is on the table. To make this dish even more special, we like to garnish it with carrot ribbons, cilantro, chili garlic sauce, and peanut sauce.
We hope you’ll love this dish! It’s:
Simple
Flavorful
Hearty
Crunchy
Versatile
& Delicious
This makes an excellent, satisfying meal on its own, but if you’re looking for extra veggies, it would pair nicely with Papaya Salad, Thai Spring Rolls, or Thai Carrot Salad. While we love this noodle version, if you are looking for a lighter option be sure to try our Noodle-Free Pad Thai!
If you try this recipe, let us know! Leave a comment, rate it, and don’t forget to tag a photo #minimalistbaker on Instagram. Cheers, friends!
Easy Tofu Pad Thai
Easy Tofu Pad Thai ready in just 30 minutes with simple ingredients. A hearty, versatile, plant-based dish with tons of texture and big flavor!
Ingredients
SAUCE
- 1 ½ tsp tamarind sauce / concentrate* (or sub additional 1 Tbsp / 15 ml lime juice as recipe is written)
- 1/3 cup coconut aminos (or sub half the amount with tamari or soy sauce and work your way up as it’s saltier)
- 3 ½ Tbsp coconut sugar
- 1 ½ tsp chili garlic sauce
- 1 ½ Tbsp lime juice
- 1-2 tsp Vegetarian Fish Sauce ( or store-bought // optional)
STIR FRY
- 1 Tbsp sesame oil (if avoiding oil, omit and use a nonstick pan)
- 1 cup cubed extra firm tofu
- 2 Thai red chilies (fresh or dried), chopped OR 1/2 tsp chili flakes (optional)
- 2 cloves garlic, minced (2 cloves yield ~1 Tbsp or 6 g)
- 1 Tbsp coconut aminos (or tamari)
- 1 cup bean sprouts
- 1 cup chopped green onions
- 1/3 cup chopped roasted salted peanuts
NOODLES
- 8 ounces Pad Thai rice noodles (We like Annie Chun’s brand)
FOR SERVING optional
- Lime wedges
- Bean sprouts
- Peanut sauce
- Shredded carrot
- Cilantro
- Sriracha or Chili Garlic Sauce (we like Huy Fong Foods brand)
Instructions
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To a small saucepan, add tamarind, coconut aminos, coconut sugar, chili garlic sauce, lime juice, and vegetarian fish sauce (optional) and heat over medium heat until just simmering. Cook for 30 seconds, stirring occasionally, then turn off heat. Set aside.
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Ensure all stir fry ingredients are prepped, including cubed (briefly pressed) tofu, chopped green onions, minced garlic, bean sprouts, and chopped peanuts. If serving with peanut sauce (optional), prepare at this time.
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Add Pad Thai noodles to a large bowl and cover with just boiling water. Stir and cover and cook according to package instructions (usually about 5-6 minutes or until al dente).
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Drain noodles and toss with a little sesame oil to prevent sticking. Set aside.
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Heat a large-rimmed skillet over medium heat. Once hot, add oil and tofu and sauté for about 4 minutes, turning occasionally so it browns on all sides. Add red pepper flakes or Thai chilies, garlic, and coconut aminos (be careful, as the coconut aminos can splatter). Toss gently to combine until garlic is just slightly browned.
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Add noodles, Pad Thai sauce, bean sprouts, green onions, and peanuts and cook over medium-high heat, tossing occasionally (tongs are most useful) for about 2-3 minutes or until the sauce has coated everything and the dish is hot.
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To serve, plate with additional garnishes such as lime wedges, bean sprouts, peanut sauce, shredded carrot, cilantro, and sriracha or chili garlic sauce (all optional).
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Leftovers will keep in the refrigerator for approximately 3-4 days.
Notes
*Tamarind comes in many forms, including fresh, paste, concentrate, sauce, and more. We have made Pad Thai with mainly paste, sauce, and concentrate, all of which produce varied results. However, the tamarind concentrate linked above produces consistently good results. It’s concentrated, which is why the recipe only calls for a small amount. However, if using more of a “sauce” — which should have a lighter consistency and color — feel free to add more to taste. Tamarind adds a tartness to the sauce, which can be enhanced or mocked with lime juice in a pinch.
*Nutrition information is a rough estimate calculated with brown rice Pad Thai noodles and without optional ingredients or garnishes.
Nutrition Per Serving (1 of 4 servings)
- Calories: 461
- Fat: 15g
- Saturated fat: 2.7g
- Sodium: 525mg
- Potassium: 283mg
- Carbohydrates: 69.4g
- Fiber: 6.8g
- Sugar: 19.6g
- Protein: 16.6g
Possibly the best pad thai I was able to make. And the sauce is heavenly. Although I don’t like peanuts on my pad thai, but i like the nutty flavour, so I add a little of hemp seed oil on top of it.
Thanks for sharing, Luke!
Nice tofu Pad Thai. If takes just 30-minutes to prepare I will do it one these days. Its very tempting!
I made this today. Very easy to prep and make. Loved how it turned out. Also, great for meal prep for several days. Thank you!
Thanks so much for the lovely review, Mimi. We are so glad you enjoyed it! Next time, would you mind leaving a rating with your review? It’s super helpful for us and other readers. Thanks so much! xo
Made this tonight – and loved it. I added asparagus, red onion and broccoli between browning the tofu and adding the noodles, green onions (which I cut back on a bit), etc. because more veggies is always better. Even with the additional veg, there was plenty of sauce. We did use the optional carrots, peanut sauce drizzle and cilantro. All of this said, I was admittedly liberal with the chili-garlic sauce in the peanut sauce – and truly, I would do it all again. Thank you for the lovely recipe.
Hi Minimalist Baker team! First of all, let me say thank you for all of the incredible, soul nourishing recipes you provide us. Without a doubt, you are making a difference in the lives of so many people. I have been cooking exclusively from your recipes for a couple months because I’ve never found a blog that delivers on flavour every. single. time! I could fangirl all day but I’ll spare you ;) I was wondering about the link for the tamarind concentrate, is the product you used “Jude’s Rechaido Masala Curry Paste” or “Tamicon Tamarind Paste”? Somehow I’ve gotten both results (maybe my computer’s just wonky?) but I wanted to make sure I order what you used. Thank you for raising the bar for food blogs everywhere, you guys are the biggest & baddest and I can’t wait to see what you come up with next <3
Aww thanks so much for your sweet note, Fiona! We really appreciate it! For the tamarind, we recommend Tamicon Tamarind Paste. Thanks again xo
Hi Fiona
It should be the tamarind concentrate paste. You can also find tamarind concentrate at a local indian grocery store!
I made this tonight and it was great! Tip: if tou can’t find tamarind concentrate make a juice reduction. It’s easier to find tamarind juice or nectar in the Goya aisle of your supermarket. Bring it to a boil then reduce the temperature and let it thicken. I used two tsp and a half of the reduction instead of the amount recommended and a little bit less coconut sugar. It came out delicious.
Loved this! Will definitely make again. We needed to opt out on chili’s because my pre-schooler won’t eat it if it’s spicy, but we did make to peanut sauce to go with it, which I think is key, and the dish certainly wasn’t lacking on flavor. (We did do the chili garlic sauce in both recipes and it wasn’t spicy at all- used Trader Joe’s brand) We also topped it with cilantro and shredded carrots as suggested. My kid actually gasped and said how great it was, giving a thumbs up as she slurped noodles. Husband has been traveling and tired of eating granola and bananas at the airport, so was also really happy about this, & went back for thirds!
Tried two recipes from your blog today: toasted coconut oatmeal for breakfast and this amazing tofu pad thai for dinner. I think I’m in love!
Thank you for creating magic!
Thanks, Sia!
This Pad Thai was way better than take out! And healthier. This is going to be a go to weeknight meal for me and my boyfriend.
Whoop! Thanks for sharing, Lindsey!
long time recipe-maker, first time commenter: omg SO good. i didn’t have tamarind so i used extra lime juice and it was delicious! i also didn’t have peanut butter so i subbed almond butter for the peanut butter sauce garnish and it was awesome!
got 4 meals total from this recipe so it was perfect for my lunches this week.
thanks!
-i forgot to rate on my first go around so here it is on this comment ;-)
Great! Thanks, Brandy!!
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Oh my goodness, this looks TO DIE FOR. I would love to recreate this Pad Thai with chickpea noodles. I think I would become addicted to this dish!
SMART!
This truly is a QUICK and delicious pad thai! It’s so hard to find pad thai recipes that have accessible ingredients and don’t take forever – but this does the trick! I didn’t have tamarind on hand so I used extra lime juice and it was just as yummy. My husband went back for three helpings :)
Thanks for sharing!!! xoxo
I teach vegan Thai cooking classes and do a delicious version of pad Thai that is similar to yours. A fun tip is to add diced fresh tomatoes for a bit of moisture and some sliced carrots for a pop of color. I also have the best luck when I let the rice noodles sit in warm water for about 30 minutes to soften rather than put boiling water on them as they tend to get sticky and clump together that way. Then I just cook the noodles all together with the sauce and the veggies. Super quick and easy! Oh and don’t forget to cut the noodles before hand so you don’t have a never ending noodle bite, haha! (BTW I love your blog and always recommend it in my classes!!)
Ah, thanks so much for the kind words and for your tips!
Very tasty recipe! I found that it is more like a recipe for 2 servings and not 4. I would double next time.
Thanks so much for sharing, Dal. We are so glad you enjoyed it! Next time, would you mind leaving a rating with your review? It’s super helpful for us and other readers. Thanks so much! xo
Wow!!! Huge fan (and very particular about) Pad Thai…..this is just fantastic! You nailed it yet again Dana!
Thanks, Payal!
My husband declared it was the best tofu dish I have ever made! I used tamarind paste (instead of concentrate), because it was what Whole Foods near me carried, but I used the same amount as specified for the concentrate and it worked out great. I used the recommended brown rice noodles and they were perfect and so easy to cook with the soaking method. Thanks for such a tasty and easy to follow recipe!
Yay! Thanks, Sujean! Your name is gorgeous, btw!
Oh my goodness, I made this tonight for dinner and it was amazing! Rather than cooking the tofu as per this recipe, I made and added the baked, crispy peanut tofu instead. Holy moly, taste EXPLOSION! I also made the peanut sauce as a garnish which balanced the spicyness of the baked tofu. Thanks so much for the recipe! I don’t think we’ll ever go to a restaurant for pad Thai again!
YUM! Thanks so much for sharing, Ebony. We are so glad you enjoyed it! Next time, would you mind leaving a rating with your review? It’s super helpful for us and other readers. Thanks so much! xo
I learn so much from you as well! Thank you so much for sharing your helpful information.
I am a big fan of your noodle free pad thai, and will try this version soon as well. The tamarind really clinhes it for me. But I ADORE all forms of pad thai and make some version once a week…usually low carb version without rice noodles. I encourage you to try green papaya pad thai, and if you use your own home sprouted mung beans that kicks it up a notch. In the recipe I use, the pickled radish/turnip really makes it sing. Green papaya great low carb.high resistant starch plant food great for the microbiome.
green papaya can be used many ways
BTW, the Netflix show Chefs table episode of the Thai Bo-Lan restauranteurs Duangporn ‘Bo’ Songvisava and Dylan ‘Lan’ Jones has a segment where they show how palm sugar (a key ingredient in tradtitional pad thai) is made from scratch by a female organic pal farmer. Blew my mind.
I loved that episode, too! So inspiring. To cook Pad Thai with Bo = Life goals :D
OMG, if you liked that episode, you shoudl check this out. A Chinese woman making brown sugar from Sugar cane the traditional way. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rC6ARq8SZAI
This woman’s you tube channel is mind blowing. A friend just turned me on to it, as he knows I love food traditions. She makes schezchuan style fermented foods, holiday favorites, meat and fish dishes, wildcrafted ginseng, mushroom, etc. She makes structures, sews clothing, makes paper, makeup, medicine all without electricity or gas. She is clearly very skilled with a cleaver and other tools. Really mesmerizing and relaxing to view. No words, and often no English subtitles: just chill music and the actions of a clearly capable woman who knows how to survive without modern conveniences (although she clearly has access to them..as in one video she leaves her grandmothers compound to go back to an apartment in the city.)
Apparently she was orphaned at an early age and raised by her grandparents in a small village near Mianyang of Sichuan province in Southwest China. Her grandfather had a catering business cooking traditional foods in the old style for festivals and weddings, so this how she is so conversant in these methods. As a young woman she went to the big city to find her fortune and worked alot of low paying jobs: kitchen, waiting tables, music DJ. After her grandfather died she moved back to her village to care for her grandmother.
This one on processing magnolia flowers also gorgeous. They are all good!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F8O3fRC4tSk
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