Pad Thai with Chicken
Paleo Pad Thai isn't all that far off from the "real thing". In our version, you'll julienne yellow squash and use it as the noodles.
Ingredients
- 2 2 2 Chicken Breast, Skinless, cubed
- 4 4 4 Yellow Squash, Julienned with julienne peeler
- 1/4 cup 1/4 cup 1/4 cup Almond Butter, (We used Meenut Butter)
- 1 Tbsp 1 Tbsp 1 Tbsp Sesame Oil
- 3 clove 3 clove 3 clove Garlic, minced
- 1 sprig 1 sprig 1 sprig Shallot, minced
- 1/2 cup 1/2 cup 1/2 cup Coconut Aminos
- 1/4 tsp 1/4 tsp 1/4 tsp Fish Sauce
- 1 1 1 Lime, 1/2 for juice, remaining half cut into wedges for garnish
- 1 tsp 1 tsp 1 tsp Salt, to taste
- 1/3 cup 1/3 cup 1/3 cup Macadamia Nuts, raw, chopped, reserve some for garnish
- 1/8 cup 1/8 cup 1/8 cup Cilantro, for garnish
- 1 tsp 1 tsp 1 tsp Red Pepper Flakes, (optional)
Process
Note, these instructions are written assuming the standard serving size, since you have modified the number of servings, these steps may need to be modified for best results
- Peel yellow squash using a julienne peeler or spiral slicer.
- Place julienned squash into a steamer basket, and steam for approximately 5-8 minutes. Remove the "noodles" before they get too soft.
- Heat a wok to high heat. While the wok is heating, cut the chicken breasts into small bite-sized cubes.
- Mix Almond Butter (ideally, Meenut Butter) with coconut aminos, fish sauce, juice of 1/2 lime, and salt.
- When wok is very hot, add sesame oil. Add cubed chicken and stir fry chicken until cooked (should be opaque and white.
- Add in minced shallot, minced garlic, and sprinkle with red pepper flakes. Continue to stir fry for 1 minute.
- Add chopped macadamia nuts and continue to stir fry for 2 minutes.
- Pour in the sauce mixture, toss until evenly coated.
- Reduce heat, and gently toss with yellow squash noodles.
- Serve Pad Thai garnished with cilantro, chopped macadamia nuts, and a squeeze of fresh lime juice.
Notes
Be sure not to over-steam the yellow squash noodles for this recipe. They will be later added to a hot wok and continue to cook a little.
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Delicious!! I used almond butter and fajita steak strips instead of chicken, and it turned out wonderful. Great idea to use julienned yellow squash for noodles (squoodles?). Yellow squash are so inexpensive and such a healthy alternative to regular noodles. I will be making this again!
I made this and served it to my non-paleo parents. They LOVED it!! They continue to be surprised at how good everything paleo/primal is that I serve them. They enjoyed it so much, as did I, they asked for the recipe and are going to include it in their favorites. My two-year-old loved this as well and even wanted seconds. Such a simple recipe with such complex flavors. Definitely will be one of my go-to meals!!
Thanks!!
I made this tonight for my husband and… WOW!!!! It was sooooo good! I followed the recipe to a T, except I added a little minced ginger with the garlic and some thin strips of red bell pepper. My husband I were blown away!! We did NOT find it too salty at all, but we used all Coconut aminos.
Thank you for an amazing recipe!!!
Sorry, I wanted to add that I omitted the macadamia nuts and used chunky almond butter instead. It was fantastic! And that could have also taken the salt content down a bit. I did it, because I didn’t have any on hand and I felt the nutrition content was just perfect without it.
This is definitely a “keeper” recipe. When I try new recipes on my husband he will tell me if it is a “keeper” or “not”. Just found this website and I am so glad I did. Just so you know, here is a link to a site listing 100 paleo sites to check out. Some are good, some not so good. Yours site is on the list. Glad I kept trying.
Hi there, I just made this pad thai dish and although I have been eating Thai food for over 15 years, it doesn’t really taste like it but it is a great tasting dish. I will make again. I only cook healthy food now and this dish is a winner. I just can’t call it pad thai to my family. Also, I guess 4 yellow squash were not enough. It was hard to find them on the plate.
Thanks for all your hard work and sharing all your knowledge!!!
Yoli
I made this last night — subbed kelp noodles for squash since that’s what I had and we thought it was perfect. Wouldn’t change a thing. Even the bf who loves his his carbs thought it was fantastic. I’ll be adding it into our regular rotation.
I’m going to try this recipe with kelp noodles since I have 8 bags of it. Since I’m allergic to almonds I’m going to try sunbutter instead. Hopefully it will turn out good anyway.
This recipe is absolutely incredible! I used almond butter, skinless/boneless chicken thighs, white zucchini and cashews as substitutes and it is the best Pad Thai I have ever tasted!
YUMMY! I grated the squash in the food processor and skipped steaming it and that worked perfectly, although I didn’t use nor need all four. And I used Bragg’s instead of coconut aminos. Love it, definitely a repeat!
I’m allergic to fish what can I use to sub fish sauce?
There is really no true substitute for it, but you can simply leave it out. You can add in more coconut aminos for more flavor. Hope this helps! Kara
This is my new favorite!! I’ve made it several times already. One question: for the “sprig shallot” do you mean just a chopped shallot, or a sprig of scallion? Maybe a “spring” shallot? Either way would be yummy…
Also agree with others about the salt. Omitting it made the recipe perfect.
I love this recipe!! I used a spirilizer to turn the squash into “noodles.” Used sliced almonds instead of macadamia nuts and added chopped red and green pepper. Quick and delicious! Thanks for sharing!