Low-Carb Spicy Peanut Pad Thai
As you’ve probably gathered by now, I’m pretty obsessed with squash.
Butternut, pumpkin, spaghetti, acorn, zucchini — you name it, I eat it. Anywhere from 3-5 of my meals per week include it. Awesome for me, tiring for my dining companion.
So this week, I decided to kick things up a notch. Instead of my usual go-to dish, Spaghetti Squash Spaghetti, I decided to attempt to make Pad Thai using squash noodles.
I’m a huge Pad Thai fan. My love started while working at the uber-fancy eatery Pei Wei in college, and developed on a trip to Thailand a couple of years ago.
Unfortunately, Pad Thai is not all that nutritious. With loads of refined oil and noodles, its only real redeeming quality is the bean sprouts.
By replacing the noodles with spaghetti squash though, I added a boost of nutrients and fiber. Then, instead of dousing the noodles with peanut oil, I made a flavorful sauce with real peanut butter, lime juice, and soy sauce.
Spicy Spaghetti Squash Pad Thai
Ingredients:
4 C. Cooked Spaghetti Squash
8 oz. Sliced Extra Firm Tofu
1/2 C. Shredded Carrots
1/4 C. Green Onions
2 Minced Garlic Cloves
1 T. Minced Ginger
1 T. Coconut Oil
1 Egg
1 Egg White
1/4 C. Bean sprouts
Cilantro, Limes, and Almonds or Peanuts (for garnish)
Sauce:
2 T. Peanut Butter
2 T. Soy Sauce
1 T. White Vinegar
1 T. Stevia or Honey
1 T. Lime Juice
1 T. Chili Paste (more or less depending on heat preference)
Directions:
1. Heat coconut oil in a pan and saute onions, garlic, and ginger for about 2 minutes.
2. Add carrots and tofu and continue to cook until tofu is crispy and browned.
3. Add egg and egg white and scramble until cooked through. Then remove the mixture from the pan and set aside.
4. Mix together all the sauce ingredients in a small bowl.
5. Warm spaghetti squash in the pan over low heat and stir in the peanut sauce. Then add in the tofu mixture and bean sprouts.
6. Dump your “noodles” on a plate. Top with cilantro and nuts. Garnish with lime.
7. Grab your chopsticks and chow down!
I’m proud to say that the BF said this was one of the best meals I’ve ever made, cue the blushing.
If you like, you can add shrimp, chicken, or more veggies.
Don’t know how to bake spaghetti squash? Here’s an easy spaghetti squash noodle tutorial >>
Weigh In: How much does this dish look like real Pad Thai with real noodles?! What’s your favorite cultural cuisine? Care to share any other interesting recipes for spaghetti squash?
Erin says:
This is a great idea :) I wonder if I could doctor the peanut sauce by using PB2 and really make it a light meal.
Whitney English says:
That’s a great idea. Let me know if you do and how it turns out :) It will save you 80 calories!
Stefanie says:
I used PB2 and it was awesome! Such a yummy reciepe
Whitney E. RD says:
So happy to hear that! Thanks for sharing ;)
jules says:
I am going to make this tonight using Trader joe’s new almond butter dressing. It reminds me of pad thai flavor and is so low in carbs and fat!
Coco says:
That looks delicious! Next time invite me over since a certain someone is “allergic” to peanuts :)
Whitney English says:
Haha, for sure! I would try to come up with a modification but I really think the peanut butter makes this recipe!
Marie says:
There is a soy butter that I’d think a great PB sub.
Kacie @ Lace up with Kace says:
That looks delicious! I’ll have to try this some time!
Whitney English says:
You should! As I said, it’s become a favorite in my house.
Celeste says:
I call myself “The lazy chef” because I always look for a way to make a recipe faster and easier. On a work night I substitute Dole Classic Cole Slaw mix for the spaghetti squash eliminating one step. It has just cabbage and shredded carrots already prepped and I stir fry the entire bag and then proceed with the recipe as written. (Also, the hubby won’t eat tofu so a rotisserie chicken purchased at the grocery store on the way home is another quick substitution.) We eat this once a week. The bff who is a stay-at-mom and very organized brags that she has made this recipe cheaper by using cabbage that she cuts up as well as julienned her own carrots.
Whitney English says:
Oh I love the idea of using cole slaw mix! Thanks for the rec!!
Farial says:
Yum!!!!! So creative – looks delish Whitney!
Whitney English says:
Thanks girl! This one would be prefect for Farial’s Kitchen :)
Lauren @ Sweat The Sweet Stuff says:
That looks good to me! I didn’t know skinnygirl made stevia!
Whitney English says:
I know! It worked really well. She has a “monkfruit” flavor too.
Katy says:
I also LOVE Pad Thai – I always feel SO guilty after I eat it. Can’t wait to try this recipe!
Whitney English says:
Now you can enjoy it without the guilt!
Ali says:
Wow looks so good! I was looking for an alternative to regular spaghetti spaghetti squash, trying this weekend!
Whitney English says:
Enjoy! Let me know what you think :)
Ellen says:
Although I’ve never been a huge Thai food fan, I DO have a penchant for anything peanut butter is involved in. Bookmarked!
Whitney English says:
This recipe is more peanuty than anything else. So I have a feeling you’ll like it! Thanks for stopping by :)
Allie says:
OMG!!! I kept meaning to make this and finally got all the ingredients and made it tonight for dinner and amazingly good! Thank you so much for sharing as Pad Thai my fav but rarely indulge… plus was getting tired of my norm spaghetti squash! Love your blog by the way :)
Whitney English says:
Thanks Allie! So happy you tried it! It’s one of my favorite spaghetti squash recipes and that’s saying a lot since I love spaghetti squash in every way, shape, and form :)
Wendy says:
This was amazing! My new favorite. I used zuccini noodles instead of the spegghetti squash since I needed to use them up and chicken tenders instead tofu. Awesome.
Whitney English says:
So glad you liked it!! I haven’t made it in a while. Going to have to try it with zucchini!
Carl Dunn says:
Whitney,
You have to try making Pad Thai with the Black Bean noodles. (Note: read Whitney’s article on Black Bean noodles!) The dark color of the noodle takes a little getting used to for Thai food aficionados but once you realize the benefits you’ll never go back.
Carl (a.k.a. Chef Mancave)
Whitney English says:
Oh, great idea!! I will definitely try that next time!
Alexandra Harrison says:
i tried this to satiate my pad craving… i added zucchini to it as well!! amazing recipe thank you for this!!! very filling and i don’t feel as gross or guilt as i would with regular pad thai =D
Whitney English says:
So glad you liked it! Thanks for sharing the zucchini addition – I’ll have to try that next time!
Kathleen says:
I’ve made this recipe twice now – I love it!! I’m not a high fan of tofu so I replaced the tofu with chicken. It’s amazing how you don’t miss noodles at all when you replace them with the spaghetti squash. Brilliant! Thanks for posting this recipe Whitney!!
Whitney English says:
Thank you so much Kathleen! So happy to hear it’s a winner :) I will have to try it with chicken next time!
Amy says:
Thanks for this fabulous recipe!! I followed nearly to the letter, but omitted the stevia completely because my PB was sweetened. Lots of green onion (about 6 stems) and this dish was a success!!!
Cary says:
I made this last night! I made a few changes but nothing major. I left out the egg white and left out the sugar. This actually tasted authentic! I can say that I liked this better than my favorite Thia restaurant. Thanks for posting this. I highly recommend that you try this dish. Also a friend of mine who doesn’t really like Thia food ate with me last night and loved this dish! Run out and make this tonight! Thanks again!
Shayna says:
This was oh so delicious that I’m making it again. I’ve started clean eating with whole foods again and this is by far my favorite recipe. It’s better than the greasy, idk exactly what’s in it, Thai and Chinese food I’ve been eating. And there was SO much! I actually portioned it out into four servings and it left me full for hours. Two thumbs up and a big round of applause. It’s hard to find filling vegetarian recipes that are high in protein, ate something besides beans, and are different. So, thanks so much!
Whitney English says:
Good for you!! So happy to hear you like the recipe!
LeighAnn says:
Made this tonight with red pepper, purple cabbage, carrots, soy beans, kale,and garlic and it was fantastic! Cheated a little with an organic peanut sauce and added extra peanut butter, sriracha and it worked great! Topped with some toasted sesame seeds and pine nuts- why not?!
Whitney English says:
Those sound like delicious modifications! So glad you liked it!