Thai Rad Na | Rice Noodles with Gravy | ราดหน้า

Rad Na is one of the most satisfying Thai street food dishes with charred rice noodles, silky gravy, lots of vegetables and tender pork. This dish has everything you need and it's one your whole family could enjoy!

Why We Love This Recipe

lt's delicious! Rad na (sometimes spelled Rad Naa) is a sister dish to pad see ew (they're usually sold at the sme food cart or stand) because most of their ingredients are the same. It's just that rad na is noodles drenched in gravy whereas pad see ew is a stir fry.

In Thai households, Rad na isn't quite the dish you would cook just one dish when you cook it. We normally cook this in a bigger amount because it does take a bit of time to prepare and cook.

To me, it's more like a family dish. You cook this one time and your whole family can have it together.

Another reason to love this dish is because it's packed full of nutrients. As you can see from the pictures, we put lots of veggies in the gravy. From collard greens to baby corn, carrot, broccoli and mushroom - you can pick whatever you want or have it all.

When it comes to protein, you don't need to stick to pork. Chicken and seafood rad na are common and just as delightful!

And if you want a bit of heat, add some prik bon or Thai chili flakes (which you can make yourself following my guide) to it. Then, be sure to wash it all down with Thai pink milk or Thai milk tea.

Ingredients

Here is a visual overview of the ingredients in the recipe. Scroll down to the recipe at the bottom for quantities.

Ingredient Notes

Pork: You can use any cut you like. I personally prefer the one without fat.

Rice Noodles: I use fresh sen yai เส้นใหญ่ which is the wider type of rice noodles in this recipe. If there are no fresh ones available to you, you can use the dry version of sen yai or rice vermicelli. Make sure you cook the dry ones first!

Sweet Soy Sauce: This is normally added when charring the noodles to add a bit of flavor and color. Rad na with white noodles just doesn't look right.

Fermented Soybean Paste: You probably won't like this ingredient on its own, but it's a crucial ingredient in the rad na gravy. So to get the right flavor, don't omit it!

Step-By-Step Instructions

Step 1: Marinate the pork by adding salt, ground pepper, pounded garlic, and egg to it.

Step 2: Mix everything together with your hand and massage for a few minutes before setting aside.

Step 3: Set your wok over medium heat. Add the fresh rice noodles to it and follow with the sweet soy sauce.

Step 4: Stir the noodles with a spatula until they are all evenly brown. Set the noodles aside.

Step 5: Boil the water in the saucepan. Once it's boiling, add the marinated pork to it and use a spoon to break the pork so that it doesn't clump.

Step 6: Add the carrots to the pan.

Step 7: Close the lid and let the pork and carrots cook.

Step 8: Once the the pan is boiling add the baby corn to it.

Step 9: Mix the corn starch with water over the pan.

Step 10: Slowly pour the corn starch and water mixture into the pan and use the spoon to stir at the same time.

Step 11: Add the fermented soybean paste, fish sauce, and sugar and stir.

Step 12: Add the collard greens and stir until wilted. Then, remove the gravy from heat to serve with the noodles.

How To Serve Rad Na

Store the charred noodles and the tender pork gravy separately when serving. Typically, one would put as much noodles as they want in their own dish and then drizzle the gravy over the noodles. Then you would mix the noodles and the gravy together to enjoy.

If you want to make it really Thai, serve it with a set of 4 condiments - fish sauce, vinegar, sugar, and prik bon (chili flakes). You can make it as sour, salty, sweet, or spicy as you like. We love our condiments when it comes to eating noodles. No joke!

Tips

1. You want to mix the corn starch with a little bit of water before adding it to the pan and stir. This helps prevent clumps in your gravy.

2. If using dry noodles, you will need to add some oil to the wok when charring them so they don't stick to each other. Fresh noodles come coated in oil so I didn't put oil in the ingredients.

Storing and Reheating Leftovers

Again, store the noodles and gravy separately. You can keep both things in the refrigerator. It's best to finish rad na within the day after cooking.

When reheating, place the noodles on a place, drizzle with the gravy and microwave the combo for about 2-3 minutes. Then season with condiments and mix before you eat.

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