This street food-inspired Thai Mixed Noodles is your new quick weeknight fave! Tossed in a sweet, savoury, tangy, spicy sauce, and bursting with texture and flavour.

If you’re craving a quick, flavourful meal that brings the tastes of Thailand to your kitchen, look no further than my Thai Mixed Noodles! This easy Thai-inspired noodle dish is perfect for busy weeknights or a delightful weekend treat. This has been my go-to lunch at home lately, but I would as easily have this for dinner too.

This dish was inspired by the street food noodles I’ve had and always see along the streets of Bangkok. They each have their own signature blend of seasonings to make each bowl distinctive, but the seasonings here are always present. It’s so easy to make, so customisable and is such a good play on texture! With a mix of sweet, tangy, and spicy flavours, it’s sure to become a favourite in your recipe rotation.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

Quick and Easy: Ready in under 30 minutes, making it perfect for busy weeknights.
Bursting with Flavor: Sweet, tangy, and spicy notes come together for a delicious taste experience.
Customizable: Easily adapt the seasoning to your flavour preference! The vegetables and protein are easily customisable to what you have on hand or your personal preferences.
Texture Play: The noodles offer a delightful play on texture, the soft and slightly chewy noodles, tender vegetables and crunchy chicken.

Key Ingredients

Rice Noodles: The base of the dish, they soak up all the delicious flavours of the sauce. I used rice noodles, but this can work with so many noodle types!

Seasoning Sauce: A mix of palm sugar (sugar works as well), fish sauce, golden mountain sauce or soy sauce, lime juice, chili flakes, and garlic makes up that signature Thai trifecta of savoury, sweet and tangy. If you have dark soy sauce or kicap manis, add a dash of it for colour.

Fresh Herbs & Aromatics: Shallots and cilantro for a fresh, vibrant finish.

Khao Kua (optional): Khao Kua is a key ingredient in Thai cuisine, especially in northeastern Thai (Isan) cooking. It is a toasted rice powder, made by toasting uncooked glutinous rice (sticky rice) until it is golden brown and fragrant, then grinding it into a coarse powder. This is optional, but it adds such a good gritty texture to the dish. Plus after you make it one time, it keeps for such a long time. See my recipe for Khao Kua in my Nam Jim Jaew recipe.

Vegetables: Bok choy and enoki mushrooms add texture and nutrients.

Fried Chicken Cutlets: I’m using my Chicken Katsu cutlets but the options are endless for toppings! Fried tofu, shrimp or even nuggets will add a satisfying crunch and protein to the dish.

Key Steps to Making Thai Mixed Noodles

1. Prepare the Seasoning Sauce

In a large bowl, mix together the palm sugar, fish sauce, soy sauce, lime juice, chili flakes and garlic.

Stir to combine well. Give it a taste test, and adjust according to preference. I like mine more spicy, so I added more chili flakes.

If needed, cook the chicken katsu cutlets, or protein of choice. Set aside.

2. Cook the Noodles & Vegetables

Place a pot of water boiling.

If using any vegetables, blanch those first and set aside.

Cook the rice noodles (or noodles of choice) according to the package instructions. Reserve a bit of the noodle water.

3. First Toss

Immediately toss the cooked noodles in the seasoning sauce, adding a splash of the noodle water for easier tossing. Add the blanched vegetables as well.

Toss to coat, allowing the noodles to absorb some of the seasoning.

4. Add Aromatics & Toppings

Once noodles are well coated, add the thinly sliced shallot and chopped cilantro to the noodle mixture. We add them in at this stage, so they don’t get bruised.

Cut the fried chicken into cubes, and add it to the bowl.

If using, add khao kua or toasted rice powder here as well for extra texture.

5. Final Toss and Serve

Toss everything together gently to combine.

Once well combined, serve immediately, garnished with additional cilantro or chili flakes if desired.

How to Serve

Serve this dish immediately for the best flavour and texture.

Garnish with extra cilantro or chili flakes if you like a bit more heat.

Tips and Tricks

Noodle Water: Use a bit of the noodle water to help toss the noodles in the sauce more easily.

Protein Options: Swap the fried chicken for tofu, shrimp, or beef to suit your taste or dietary preferences.

Extra Veggies: Feel free to add more vegetables like bell peppers, carrots, or snap peas for added crunch and colour.

Storing and Reheating

Storing

This is best served immediately; try not to store. If there are still leftovers that you’d like to continue eating, store any leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator and consume it the next day at the latest.

Reheating

This is not suitable for reheating, as it can turn the noodles too soggy and mushy! I would recommend reheating this in a pan over medium heat, and turn this into a stir fry.

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