This 30 Minute Vegan Pad Thai recipe is made with rice noodles, fried tofu, veggies, and the most incredible, simple sauce. Easy to make using everyday ingredients!
This is the easiest Vegan Pad Thai recipe! Rice noodles, pan-fried tofu, veggies, and a really simple sauce are tossed together and ready to enjoy in just 30 minutes. It’s a must-try, Thai-inspired recipe that’s perfect for lunch and dinner!
Why you’ll love this recipe
- The best sauce: The sauce can make or break any Pad Thai recipe. It was a bit of a challenge to get my version just right since traditional Pad Thai recipes call for fish sauce and tamarind paste. After a lot of trial and error, I came up with a savory, tart, and subtly sweet sauce made entirely from everyday ingredients.
- So simple and easy! This is, plain and simple, an easy vegan Pad Thai recipe. That means we’re substituting complicated and hard-to-find ingredients, like vegan fish sauce and tamarind paste, with flavorful alternatives that are probably already in your pantry.
- Easy to prep ahead: Everything, from the vegan Pad Thai sauce to the tofu cubes, can be prepared ahead of time! It’s the best way to turn this 30 minute recipe into a 15 minute recipe.
Ingredients needed (with substitutions)
- Stir fry rice noodles – Rice noodles of any size work well here! Plus, they’re naturally gluten free and vegan.
- Vegetable oil
- Fried tofu – Extra firm tofu is pressed, then fried until golden and crisp. If you don’t want to fry the tofu, you can bake it or air fry it ahead of time instead. Check out the Variations section for more vegan protein options or how to omit the tofu altogether.
- Soy sauce – I recommend using low sodium soy sauce. Or, if you’re gluten free, use tamari.
- Rice vinegar – This adds a necessary tartness to the sauce. More traditional recipes are made with tamarind paste, which can be hard to find sometimes, but rice vinegar works well as a substitute.
- Maple syrup – The real stuff! It’s important for sweetness, warmth, and balance in the sauce.
- Lime juice
- Sriracha hot sauce – For just a touch of heat in the sauce. You can add more or less depending on how much spice you like.
- Carrots – Julienned into thin strips. You can save time by buying pre-sliced carrots from the grocery store.
- Green onions
- Toppings – Top your plate with refreshing and colorful toppings, like lime wedges, mung bean sprouts, chopped peanuts, and cilantro.
How to make vegan Pad Thai
Find the complete recipe with measurements in the recipe card below.
Make sure all of your veggies are chopped and your tofu is being pressed before you start. Tofu Pad Thai moves fast, so it’s important to be prepared!
Begin by cooking the rice noodles in a pot of boiling water. When they’re done, set the noodles aside to soak for a few minutes, then drain and rinse with cold water to prevent them from sticking.
Next, stir all of the sauce ingredients together in a small bowl.
Heat the oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. Add the pressed tofu cubes once the oil is hot and fry until all sides are golden brown.
Tip: Speed up the recipe by making my Air Fryer Tofu while you wait for the noodles to cook. Once it’s done, add the tofu to the pan with the noodles, sauce, and veggies.
Next, add the cooked noodles, sauce, carrots, green onions, and half of the cilantro to the pan. Keep stirring to warm everything up and ensure every bite is well-coated in the Pad Thai sauce.
Serve the Pad Thai immediately and finish each plate with the toppings you love. Don’t forget the drizzle of lime juice – it takes every bite over the top!
Variations
- Gluten free – All you need to do is use gluten free tamari in place of soy sauce to make gluten free and vegan Pad Thai.
- Add more vegetables – You have plenty of options when it comes to vegetables in Pad Thai. I only used carrots and green onions, but you can add even more, such as red pepper strips, broccoli florets, mushrooms, snap peas, or edamame.
- Protein options – You can make vegan Pad Thai with any type of plant-based protein you love! Pan-fried tofu is filling, crispy, and tender, but you could easily use tempeh, leftover strips of vegan chicken, or edamame instead. Or, for a vegetable-only Pad Thai, omit the tofu and replace it with any of the vegetables I suggested above.
- Add vegan eggs – Did you used to love Pad Thai with scrambled eggs? Then I recommend pouring liquid JUST Egg into the pan right before you add the sauce and noodles. It scrambles just like real eggs!
Make ahead tips
Pad Thai doesn’t make for great leftovers because the noodles dry out and the flavors lose their vibrancy. However, you can still have Pad Thai in a hurry by preparing all of the elements ahead of time:
- Noodles: Cooked rice noodles can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 3 to 4 days. Rinse them in cold water, then toss in a little vegetable oil to prevent them from sticking.
- Sauce: Make the sauce as normal and keep it in a jar in the fridge for up to 1 week.
- Veggies: Store the chopped vegetables and toppings in separate containers in the fridge. They’ll stay crisp and fresh for 1 or 2 days.
- Tofu: Press the cubed tofu, then store it in a covered container in the fridge for up to 1 week.
When it’s time to eat, just take all of your prepped ingredients out of the fridge and cook as normal!
Want more 30 minute vegan recipes?
Vegan Pad Thai
Ingredients
- 7 ounces stir fry rice noodles
- 2-3 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 14.5 ounce block extra-firm tofu, pressed and cut into 1/2 inch cubes
Sauce
- 4 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 4 tablespoons pure maple syrup
- 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
- 1 teaspoon Sriracha hot sauce
Vegetables
- 1 cup julienne sliced carrots, about 3 carrots
- 3 green onions, chopped
For serving
- 2 limes, cut into wedges
- 1/2 cup cilantro, chopped
- 1/2 cup crushed or chopped peanuts
- 1 cup mung bean sprouts, optional
Instructions
- Prepare all of your ingredients before you begin. Slice the carrots, chop the green onions, cilantro and the peanuts. Press your tofu if needed (I like to get the vacuum packed extra-firm tofu so no need to press it), and then chop into 1/2 inch cubes.
- Cook the noodles: Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the noodles and cook for 1 minute. Remove from heat, and let them soak for 5 minutes. Drain and rinse with cold water. Set aside.
- Make the sauce: Stir all the sauce ingredients together in a small bowl. Set aside.
- Fry the tofu: In a large pan (you can even use the same pot you boiled the noodles in), heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the tofu, and fry it until all sides are golden brown.
- To the pan with the tofu, add the noodles, sauce, carrots, green onions and half of the cilantro. Stir as it warms up.
- Serve immediately, sprinkling peanuts and more cilantro on the top of each serving, with lime wedges and mung bean sprouts on the side. Squeeze lime juice to taste before eating. Yum!
Notes
- For Gluten Free, use gluten free tamari instead of soy sauce.
- If you want vegetable only pad thai, replace the tofu with various veggies, such as red pepper strips and broccoli florets. Stir fry these in place of the tofu until tender, before adding the noodles and sauce.Â
- For the carrots, I buy the bag of pre-cut carrots, julienne style so it reduces my chopping time.
- Consider cooking up some JUST Egg to add some “scrambled eggs” to the Pad Thai.
Yummy! Perfect amounts of sour, salt, sweet! Thank you!
Party-in-the-mouth!!! So good! Will make again, with more veggies! YUM!!!
So fun! Thanks for your terrific feedback and review! Happy cooking!
Soooooooooooooooo good!!!! Will make this all the time. So easy and so delicious, tastes exactly as it should. Cracking recipe! Thank you!
You are welcome! Glad you love it! Thanks for your awesome feedback and review!
So, so, soooooooo delicious and truly simple to make!
Thank you for your terrific feedback and review! Glad you are loving the recipe!
Yummmmmo. I just made this. Took a few liberties with the ingredients,,,used coconut aminos in place of maple syrup and loaded up on veggies. This will definitely be a new go to recipe. So fast and easy and the sauce is amazing!
Hi Sarah. It’s so fantastic that you love the Pad Thai! Yours sounds delicious! Thank you for sharing your fabulous comments and ideas. Happy cooking!
Delicious! You can always rely on Nora to provide quick and tasty recipes. Thank you for this one!
Hi Sam. You are welcome! How awesome that you loved the pod Thai! Thank you for sharing your wonderful feedback and review! Happy cooking!
This is SO easy and quick to make. I have made it so many times for myself and friends. I ended up using regular linguini and used sunflower seeds instead of peanuts. It worked out really well. Thanks!
You are welcome, Nina. Thanks for sharing your tips and wonderful feedback and review! I’m thrilled that you love the recipe!
This sauce was great! I didn’t do the full recipe since I like to do my own blend of whatever noodles and veggies I have on hand, but I used the sauce and it was really tasty! It’s hard to find a pad thai without fish sauce so was grateful for this.
Hi Kate. I’m glad you loved the sauce from the recipe! Thanks for sharing your great feedback!
Delicious! I doubled the sauce recipe and used the large pad see ew noodles. Turned out beautifully.
Thanks so much for using my recipe and for your wonderful review!
I often don’t enjoy Pad Thai because it smells and tastes so fishy, but your version is so delicious! The sauce captures everything I love about Pad Thai—the delightful interplay of sweet, sour, salty, and a bit of spice—and leaves out the funk of fish. Thank you, Nora! This is a home run.
You are welcome! It’s so great you love the flavor combination of my Pad Thai recipe! Thank you for your wonderful feedback and review!
I’m not a big fan of pad Thai, but I made this because my husband loves it and your recipes are always delicious. I have to say that I love this recipe! It’s wonderful and I’m looking forward to making it again soon!
How fantastic that you loved the pad Thai! Thanks for your fabulous feedback and review!
So simple and delicious, will definitely be making this again. Thank you!
I’ve made this for my family several times now. It is fresh and delicious for sure. I usually make a little more sauce (1.5 times), but otherwise follow the recipe as listed above. So good!!!
Hi Padoola. I’m so glad you and your family are loving the Pad Thai! Thank you for sharing your wonderful feedback and review!
Excellent and flexible plant based recipe to use veggies that you have on hand. The store was sold out of Sriracha so we used a Szechuan chili sauce we had instead. Â Served with a chopped cabbage salad drizzled with peanut sauce; a great pairing. Family loved it!
Hi Lisa. I’m thrilled that your family loved the Pad Thai! Thank you for sharing your great feedback and ideas!
I am have been vegan for over 6 years and I have never tried to make my own pad thai until now! I made this for my boyfriend and I  (who is vegetarian) and we both loved it. We are already planning on making this again for dinner this week. Nora cooks always has wonderful and easy recipes. Thank you for this delicious recipe. 🙂
Hi Maia. I’m so glad that you and your boyfriend loved the Pad Thai! Thank you for sharing your wonderful feedback! I appreciate you using my recipes, and am glad that you find them delicious and easy! Happy cooking!
It was excellent and turned out exactly as you said! I precooked my carrots and mung beans a little before adding everything else due to some people need them a little softer. It was perfect! Thank you
You are welcome! I’m glad everything turned out perfect for you. Thank you for sharing your wonderful feedback and review!