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Easy Rad Na

Easy Rad Na (charred noodles and gai lan soaked in a gravy)
Upon our arrival in Thaïland with my companion, we barely took the time to unpack ; it was nearing 1PM, and we felt this imperious need to visit our first listed restaurant before it closed. We took a quick shower and hurried to this place, where we had 2 of the best-ever Chinese-Thaï dishes : Pad See Ew, and Rad Na. Each dish was a true discovery, but Rad Na conquered my heart unexpectedly, as I had never seen it nor heard about it in France. Rad Na is a Thai dish that translates to "thick sauce over noodles." It primarily consists of wide rice noodles stir-fried with vegetables and proteins (the most authentic variant being pork) and topped with a slightly thick, savory gravy made from broth and a few Asian condiments. There is something so comforting about Rad Na. The saucy, brothy gravy gives you chicken soup vibes, all the while conquering your palate with more complex tastes. The many savoury sauces used in the broth and the pork marinade give some strength to the end gravy, and the kick from the pickled chilies is just what you need to get a perfectly balanced result. Aside from the gravy, the charred wide rice noodles are essential to the flavour of this dish. I tried some Rad Na leftovers with udon, and it was just meh. Do not skip the charring part ! The overall recipe has several steps, but each of them is quite quick :
  • Make a marinade for your pork ; mix, and set aside;
  • Chop your veggies;
  • Mix together the gravy’s ingredients ;
  • Make a quick cornstarch slurry ;
  • Coat your fresh noodles with dark soy sauce and char it in a hot wok ;
  • In the same wok scrubbed clean, add your gravy ingredients, let it boil a few minutes and call it a day !
The whole recipe takes around 1h to make. It is not the quickest workweek recipe, granted, but it is doable, and definitely rewarding. The homey gravy, the mellow, smoky noodles ; it’s all worth it.

Easy Rad Na - Recipe

Ingredients - Where to find them

Some ingredients here might be tricky to find. I'd advise you to go to a well-stocked, quite large Asian store, which will likely fresh wide noodles, Golden mountain sauce and gai lan.

Ingredients - Advice & key points

  • If you cannot find Thai fermented soybean paste (tao jiew), which I couldn't this time around, simply replace it with miso, adjusting the amount for salt (only 2/3).
  • If you cannot find fresh wide noodles, you could use thin rice vermicelli (dried), which is another popular choice in Thailand.
  • Instead of Golden Mountain sauce, you could use oyster sauce or even fish sauce.
  • If you can use pork stock instead of chicken one, it's perfect for this recipe. Fancy making it yourself ? Even better !
  • I recommend you get all your ingredients ready and nearby before your start cooking, since the wok part goes quite fast.
  • The most popular choice of protein is pork for this recipe, but feel free to replace it with another you like.
  • For any other ingredient, I would recommend against changing the recipe.
All set ? Let's heat that wok up !
Cuisine
Courses ,
Difficulty Beginner
Time
Prep Time: 30 min Cook Time: 15 min Total Time: 45 mins
Servings 4
Best Season Suitable throughout the year
Description

Savoury, soupy and charred wide noodles, with an umami gravy ; Rad Na is comfort in a bowl. 

Ingredients
    For the marinated pork
  • 350 grams pork butt (shoulder)
  • 1 tablespoon soy sauce
  • 1 tablespoon oyster sauce
  • 1/2 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
  • 1/2 teaspoon palm sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon white pepper
  • 1 tablespoon tapioca starch (or cornstarch)
  • 1 egg
    • For the noodles
  • 700 grams fresh wide rice noodles
  • 1 teaspoon dark soy sauce
  • 1 tablespoon neutral oil
    • For the gravy
  • 200 grams Chinese broccoli (Gai Lan)
  • 1 liter chicken stock
  • 2 tablespoons neutral oil
  • 6 garlic cloves
  • 3 tablespoons Thai fermented soybean paste (tao jiew) (or 2 tbsp miso)
  • 1,5 tablespoon soy sauce
  • 1 tablespoon Golden mountain sauce
  • 1,5 tablespoon palm sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon white pepper
  • 2 eggs
  • 3 tablespoons tapioca starch (or cornstarch)
  • 100 milliliters water
Instructions
  1. Chop it up

    Cut the pork. Make the marinade. Mix the pork with all the marinade ingredients. Let it rest 20mn or more.

    Mince garlic, cut gai lan (thinly diagonally for stems, roughly chop for leaves).

  2. Liquids now

    Make your chicken stock if needed (powdered is OK).

    Make a tapioca slurry by mixing 100ml water with your tapioca starch (or cornstarch).

    Now make your gravy by mixing together all the other gravy ingredients (besides those required for the tapioca slurry) .

  3. Noodles time

    Separate your fresh wide rice noodles. If they're too dry (too cold) and break easily, slightly steam noodles for a few minutes or microwave them with a wet paper towel on top, in 30 seconds intervals.

    Mix noodles with the dark soy sauce.

  4. Onto the wok

    Heat a wok on high. Add oil. Spread the noodles in it.

    Let sit a bit without stirring, then flip them and char the other side (1 min per side, 2 if using a classic pan or an electric stove). Remove & add to serving plates.

    In a cleaned wok, add oil, then garlic until fragrant (10 seconds), then soybean paste.

    Let it cook slightly until garlic golden.

    Add you gravy mixture and bring to a full boil.

    Once it boils, add pork and spread out the pork pieces quickly.

    When they’re separated, add the Chinese broccoli and bring to a boil.

    Add your tapioca slurry progressively and mix well. Don't add too much ! You only want your gravy to slightly thicken.

    Taste and adjust with soy sauce if needed.

    Add to your plates (that already contain your noodles) and serve.

    Et voilà !! You're done ! 

Keywords: home made, Rad Na, Lad Na, gravy, noodles, noodle dish, fresh noodles, thaï food, authentic, authentic thaï food
Read it online: https://multicarbs.com/recipe/easy-rad-na/

Thank you for trying out this recipe ! Do not hesitate to leave some feedback. I hope it brightened your day.