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    Home » 30 Minutes Recipes

    Pad Pak Thai (Thai Stir-fry Vegetables)

    Published: Jan 15, 2022 by Meesha · This post may contain affiliate links

    Jump to Recipe Print Recipe
    A pan of pad pak with a serving spoon beside with next on the bottom half.
    2 images of pad pak served with rice with text between the images.

    Featuring colorful vegetables tossed in a sweet and savory sauce, this Pad Pak Thai makes a great simple weeknight meal! This recipe is easy to prepare and is ready in 15 minutes. A versatile yet flavorful dish that your whole family will love!

    Vegetable stir-fry served with rice with bowl of rice, chopsticks, green onion and sesame seeds beside.

    This Thai version of vegetable stir-fry has been one of my favorite quick dishes to make of late! It is savory, bold in flavor, with a gentle kick coming from sambal oelek. The best part is, this Pad Pak Thai is highly customizable, and you easily swap ingredients used to suit your taste!

    Jump to:
    • 💚Why you will love this recipe
    • 🤔What is Pad Pak Thai
    • 🧄What you will need
    • 📃Ingredient notes and substitutions
    • 🔪How to make
    • ✔Helpful tips
    • ✨Variations
    • 🍽How to serve
    • ❔Commonly asked questions
    • 🍽More vegan Asian recipes
    • 📖 Recipe

    💚Why you will love this recipe

    • A delicious way to enjoy your veggies - You can easily get in your daily dose of vegetables from this Pad Pak Thai!
    • Fresh and bold in flavor - Thanks to the various seasonings used, this dish is incredibly flavorsome, rich and savory. We definitely do not tolerate bland-tasting recipes here!
    • Highly customizable - Almost every components of this dish is swapable, and you can give your own spin to it by adding other seasonings or spices.
    • Great for meal prep - Leftovers can be refrigerated for 3-4 days, and you can easily multiply the ingredients to make a larger batch. Hence, you will have something healthy to grab during busy workdays!

    🤔What is Pad Pak Thai

    Pad Pak is simply the Thai version of stir fry that is hugely influenced by the Chinese version. Traditionally, this dish mainly consists of veggies paired with protein sources like chicken, shrimp, or beef. It is usually served with a side of rice.

    To keep this recipe vegan, we will be omitting the protein. However, feel free to add plant or animal protein of choice to make this dish more filling and hearty.

    🧄What you will need

    For stir-fry

    Ingredients needed like garlic, broccoli, cauliflower, mushrooms, peas and carrot on a grey background.

    For stir-fry sauce

    Seasonings needed like oyster sauce, sambal, soy sauce, sesame oil and sugar on a grey background.

    📃Ingredient notes and substitutions

    • Veggies - Feel free to substitute vegetables used in this recipe with others you have on hand.
    • Soy sauce - Can be substituted with tamari or shoyu. Use gluten-free ones if needed.
    • Oyster sauce -  Use vegetarian ones to keep this dish vegan. If you do not have it on hand, feel free to use more soy sauce in place.
      • I am using Lee Kum Kee ones. Although it is labeled as '' stir-fry sauce'', it is essentially vegetarian oyster sauce and contains mushroom extracts.
      • Feel free to substitute it with more soy sauce, but you might need less of it.
    • Sambal oelek - It is essentially a ground chili paste. You can substitute with sriracha, or omit it completely to make this Pad Pak spice-free.
    • Coconut sugar - Can be substituted with other granulated sugar of choice like cane or brown sugar.

    🔪How to make

    Here is the simplified version of the instructions. As usual, the full detailed instructions will be in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.

    Heat a pan, then saute garlic until fragrant.

    Add in carrot, red pepper, broccoli, and cauliflower. Saute for a few minutes or until they had softened slightly.

    Collage showing sauteing garlic then adding in veggies in a cast iron pan.

    Stir in snow peas and mushrooms next. Cook for another few minutes, stirring constantly.

    Pour in stir-fry sauce and toss until everything is well combined. Remove from heat and give it a taste, adding more seasonings if needed. It is ready to be served!

    Collage showing veggies in a cast iron pan then pouring in sauce.

    ✔Helpful tips

    • If you are using different kinds of vegetables than this recipe calls for, remember to cook harder ones first, like carrot, broccoli, and cauliflower, before adding more tender veggies like snow peas and mushrooms, and baby corn.
    • Cut vegetables into uniform sizes so that they are cooked evenly.
    • Use a large enough pan to make your Pad Pak Thai. This ensures that your vegetables do not leap out of the pan and cause a mess while stir-frying them.
    • Leftovers will keep in the fridge for up to 4 days in a sealed container. 

    ✨Variations

    Vegetables - As mentioned above, you can substitute vegetables called for in this recipe for others that you have on hand. Some of my favorite veggies to use in stir-fries include cabbage, mushrooms of any kind, water chestnut, and baby corn.

    Protein - You can add in a source of protein to make this a more filling meal. Both animal and plant protein will work. I especially love adding tofu, tempeh, seitan, or even chickpeas.

    Noodles - Feel free to add in some cooked noodles of choice like ramen, soba, or udon to make stir-fry noodles. I recommend doubling the sauce and adding it to taste.

    Spicy - To make this spice-free, simply omit sambal oelek. If you want to dial up the heat, add some chopped chilies or chili flakes to the mix!

    Low sodium - Use low sodium soy sauce in place of regular ones.

    Oil-free - Use ¼ cup of water or vegetable broth to saute your veggies, adding more at 1 tablespoon increments if the mixture appears dry. Also, omit sesame oil in the sauce, and top Pad Pak with some toasted sesame seeds instead.

    Pad pak in a cast iron pan with bowl of rice, chopped green onions and sesame seeds beside.

    🍽How to serve

    • Toppings - crushed peanuts, chopped green onions, toasted sesame seeds, red pepper flakes
    • Rice - This Pad Pak is best paired with some freshly steamed rice, either white or brown. For lower-carb options, use broccoli or cauliflower rice instead. I also love cooking up some sambal fried rice or green curry fried rice.
    • Noodles - Thai noodles like Pad Thai, Pad See Ew, and drunken noodles pair exceptionally well with this dish. You can also toss in some cooked noodles, but do double the stir-fry sauce.
    • Other Thai dishes - You could also go all out and whip up a few Thai dishes or a Thai-inspired dinner! Red curry, Tom Yum soup, or Thai basil tofu are some great dishes to make.

    ❔Commonly asked questions

    Is this dish vegan?

    Traditionally, Pad Pak Thai is not vegan as it usually includes some sort of animal protein like chicken, shrimp, or beef. The stir-fry sauce might also contain oyster sauce or fish sauce.

    However, this version is naturally vegan, so long that vegetarian oyster sauce is used.

    Is it spicy?

    This Pad Pak Thai is only mildly spicy and can be tolerated by most. If you prefer it to be spice-free, simply omit sambal oelek. To make it spicier, add in some chopped chilies or red pepper flakes.

    What can I substitute sambal oelek with?

    The next best substitute for sambal oelek is sriracha. You can also use chili garlic sauce in place.

    Plate filled with veggies and rice with bowl of rice, chopped green onion and sesame seeds in the background.

    🍽More vegan Asian recipes

    • Dry Wonton Noodles/Wantan Mee (Vegan)
    • Flavorsome Soya Chunks Dry Masala
    • Vegan Yakisoba with Tofu
    • Wakame Miso Soup with Cabbage

    If you did make this recipe, do leave a rating and comment down below, we love hearing from you! Subscribe to My Plantiful Cooking to get new recipes delivered straight to your inbox! Follow us on Instagram, Facebook and Pinterest to get the latest updates. 😉

    📖 Recipe

    Pad pak served with rice on a plate with chopsticks beside.

    Pad Pak Thai

    Meesha
    Featuring colorful vegetables tossed in a sweet and savory sauce, this Pad Pak Thai makes a great simple weeknight meal! This recipe is easy to prepare and is ready in 15 minutes. A versatile yet flavorful dish that your whole family will love!
    5 from 1 vote
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    Prep Time 5 mins
    Cook Time 10 mins
    Total Time 15 mins
    Course Main Course, Side Dish
    Cuisine Chinese, Thai
    Servings 3 servings
    Calories 93 kcal

    Ingredients
     
     

    For the sauce

    • 1 tablespoon soy sauce or tamari (use gluten-free if needed)
    • 1 tablespoon vegetarian oyster sauce *
    • 1 teaspoon sesame oil
    • 2 teaspoons sambal oelek or chili garlic sauce/sriracha
    • 1 teaspoon coconut sugar or other granulated sugar

    For stir-fry

    • 3 cloves garlic minced
    • 1 medium red bell pepper julienned
    • 1 cup broccoli florets
    • 1 cup cauliflower florets
    • 6-8 button mushrooms sliced
    • 1 medium carrot sliced
    • 1 cup snow peas
    Prevent your screen from going dark

    Instructions
     

    • Combine all ingredients needed for the sauce. Stir to mix.
    • Heat up about a tablespoon of neutral-tasting oil in a cast iron/non-stick pan over medium high heat. Once heated, add in garlic and fry for a minute, until fragrant.
    • Next, add in broccoli, cauliflower, bell pepper and carrot. Saute for 3-4 minutes, or until they are partially cooked.
    • Toss in snow peas and mushroom. Cook until veggies have softened to your liking, about 3-4 minutes, stirring constantly.
    • Pour in stir-fry sauce and toss until everything is well combined. Remove from heat and give it a taste, adding more seasonings if needed. Your Pad Pak Thai is ready to serve!

    Notes

    *Oyster sauce -  Use vegetarian ones to keep this dish vegan. If you do not have it on hand, feel free to use more soy sauce in place.
    • I am using Lee Kum Kee ones. Although it is labeled as '' stir-fry sauce'', it is essentially vegetarian oyster sauce and contains mushroom extracts.
    • Feel free to substitute it with more soy sauce, but you might need less of it.
     
     
    Oil-free - Use ¼ cup of water or broth to saute your veggies instead of oil, and omit sesame oil in the stir-fry sauce. If the mixture is getting dry, add more water, a tablespoon at a time. 
     
    Helpful tips
    • If you are using different kinds of vegetables than this recipe calls for, remember to cook harder ones first, like carrot, broccoli, and cauliflower, before adding more tender veggies like snow peas and mushrooms, and baby corn.
    • Cut vegetables into uniform sizes so that they are cooked evenly.
    • Use a large enough pan to make your Pad Pak Thai. This ensures that your vegetables do not leap out of the pan and cause a mess while stir-frying them.
    • Leftovers will keep in the fridge for up to 4 days in a sealed container. 

    Nutrition

    Calories: 93kcalCarbohydrates: 16gProtein: 5gFat: 2gSaturated Fat: 1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 1gSodium: 542mgPotassium: 577mgFiber: 4gSugar: 7gVitamin A: 5190IUVitamin C: 117mgCalcium: 56mgIron: 2mg

    Nutrition info calculated is just a rough estimate and is provided as a courtesy. Bear in mind that value will vary based on variables like specific brand or type of product used. To obtain the most accurate representation, it is highly recommended that you calculate it on your own with the actual amount and type of ingredient used.

    Did you make this recipe ?Tag @myplantifulcooking on Instagram !

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    Hi, I am Meesha, the human behind My Plantiful Cooking! Expect to find plant-powered recipes that are easy to make and wholesome without compromising on taste.

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