Pad Woon Sen

Pad Woon Sen. Delicious, bouncy chewy clear glass noodles stir fried in a savory sauce with tender chicken, leafy greens and a red chili vinegar.

Ready in 30 minutes! Perfect for dinner or lunch. 

What is Pad Woon Sen?

It's a classic Thai glass noodles stir fry that originates from Thailand. These stir-fried glass noodles dish are made of mung bean clear noodles, gai lan (aka Chinese broccoli), chicken or your favorite protein, eggs, and a stir-fry sauce. Then topped off with a simple chili vinegar that takes this Thai noodle stir fry to the next level! 

It's so scrumptious and satisfies all your taste buds! One of my favorite Thai dishes that I can't get enough of! 

​A Classic Thai Dish

Pad Woon Sen is a classic Thai noodle dish made of simple ingredients. It's served at any Thai Restaurant in Southeast Asia. The main ingredient of this dish is the silky smooth glass noodles. 

These Thai noodles are made of mung beans and they have a very chewy texture. The special thing about this type of noodle is that they are clear and very bouncy. Unlike rice vermicelli which is opaque and less chewy. When the dry form of these noodles is soaked in hot boiling water, they become a soft tangle of chewy glass noodles. 

This Thai glass noodle stir-fry is usually accompanied with crunchy vegetables, like Gai-lan. It also contains a protein like scrambled eggs, chicken thigh or chicken breast, with a flavorful sauce. The sauce has a salty flavor and is commonly made of a mixture of regular soy sauce, dark soy sauce and sometimes oyster sauce.

Easy Recipe

This Thai Pad Woon Sen recipe is so simple and can be cooked in one wok with ease! It can feed a large family if you double the portion. Making it a perfect weeknight meal that is ready in 30 minutes or less! The cooking process takes less than 7 minutes!

Pad woon sen is one of my favourite dishes in Thai Food because I love those glass vermicelli noodles in that savory sauce! It's very similar to pad see ew or pad kee mao in terms of taste but the main difference are the silky glass noodles. The latter two dishes use flat rice noodles.

Ingredients

You will need the below pad woon sen ingredients. Please scroll down to full recipe card below for full measurements.

Note: The Asian market is likely to carry these ingredients. You may find some at your select local grocery store or online, like on Amazon.

• Mung bean noodles: these are clear glass noodles aka as cellophane noodles or bean thread noodles. They are made of mung bean starch and are completely clear when cooked. The star ingredient to an authentic pad woon sen. 
  • When you buy them at the Asian markets or your Asian local grocery store, they are very thin and look opaquer. I share an image below of what they look like below. It's one of those types of noodles that is commonly used in Asian cuisine
  • If you can't source these noodles, feel free to substitute with sweet potato glass noodles. These particular noodles are made of potato starch sourced from sweet potatoes. 

Protein

• Chicken thighs: preferably boneless skinless chicken thighs to make the preparation process easier. You may also substitute with chicken breast for a leaner option or replace with any protein you enjoy like pork or beef.
• Eggs: please feel free to omit if you can't eat eggs. 
• Gai Lan aka Chinese Broccoli: Feel free to substitute with any leafy green of your choice, such as Bok choy, Yu Choy or Choy Sum, or Napa cabbage. 
• Neutral oil: any neutral tasting oil like avocado oil, grapeseed oil, peanut oil, vegetable oil, or canola oil. Please avoid using olive oil, coconut oil or sesame oil as they carry a slight scent and taste. 
• Garlic: garlic is a key ingredient in Thai cuisine and most of Asian cuisine. It adds a wonderful aroma and garlicky taste to many of my favorite Thai dishes.

Chicken Marinade

• Regular soy sauce: This helps season the chicken, so we won't be adding salt. Regular soy sauce is an all-purpose soy sauce. The label should simply say 'Soy Sauce". You may sub with low sodium soy sauce. If you use light soy sauce, please reduce the amount by half as light soy sauce is much saltier than regular soy sauce.
• Sesame oil: This oil will add a nice nutty flavor to your chicken. Most Asian grocery stores, select Western grocers or online retailers like Amazon may carry this ingredient.
• White pepper or black pepper

Stir Fry Sauce

• Regular soy sauce
• Dark soy sauce: This type of soy sauce adds color to our pad woon sen recipe!
• Fish sauce: This adds a wonderful deep umami flavor to our pad woon sen sauce. Most Asian grocery stores, select Western grocers or online retailers like Amazon may carry this ingredient. If you can't find it, add more regular soy sauce to taste.
• Sweetener: a teaspoon of white sugar, or brown sugar will work to balance out the salty flavors in the sauce.

Chili Vinegar for Pad Woon Sen

• Red chili: Fresh chili is the key for this. You can use red chili or green chilis if you'd like. To make it less spicy, feel free to de-seed them before chopping.
• White vinegar or rice vinegar

How to Make Pad Woon Sen

Marinate sliced chicken thighs with regular soy sauce and white pepper. Set aside as you prepare other ingredients. 

In a small bowl, combine Stir-Fry Sauce ingredients. Set aside. 

In a small bowl, combine red chili and white vinegar. Set aside. 

In a large bowl with dried mung bean noodles, add hot boiling water and let this soak for 2 minutes until loosened and slightly softened. Do not over soak.

Strain immediately. Rinse off with running cool water and strain. 

In a wok or large skillet on medium-high heat, add vegetable oil or any neutral oil. Followed by garlic and marinated chicken. Cook chicken until 75% cooked. Move to the side of the pan. 

Pour in beaten eggs. Cook and scramble them. Move to the side of the pan. 

Add in Chinese broccoli, noodles, and Stir-Fry sauce. Toss everything together until noodles are well coated in sauce and greens have softened. 

Remove off heat and serve by mixing in some of the chili vinegar (start by adding 1-2 tablespoons and add more as needed to taste). Enjoy!

​Storage

How long will this Thai glass noodle stir fry last?

Up to 4 days stored in an airtight container in the fridge. Any leftover pad woon sen can be reheated on the stove top with a couple of tablespoons of water to help loosen the noodles. Or you can simply microwave it for a few minutes. 

FAQ

​Can I make this Pad Woon Sen gluten free?

Yes, by swapping out the soy sauce and fish sauce with a gluten free soy sauce, tamari sauce or coconut aminos. The mung bean starch noodles are already gluten free. 

Can I add other vegetables to this dish?

Yes, feel free to add these other suggested vegetables:

• Nappa cabbage
• bean sprouts
• baby corn
• red bell peppers or any colored bell pepper
• bamboo shoots
• shiitake mushrooms
• green onions or spring onion
• green beans
• snow peas

Other recipes you may like!

If you enjoyed this Thai noodle dish, check out these Thai recipes:

• Pad See Ew (Stir fried Soy Sauce Noodles)
• Pad Kee Mao (Thai Drunken Noodles)
• Thai Spicy Basil Fried Rice
• Shrimp Pad Thai
• Authentic Chicken Pad Thai