The Curious History of Pad Thai

No matter what Thai restaurant you go to in the world, chances are the menu will have Pad Thai. And for good reason! Pad Thai is an exciting dish with a complex blend of sweet, salty, and sour flavors. It has captured the taste buds of foodies around the globe, but how did this dish come to be?

I did a bit of digging into the history of Pad Thai to find out. Turns out the story is much more interesting than I expected…

First things first, what’s in Pad Thai?

The pillar ingredients of Pad Thai sauce are deceptively simple: tamarind paste, palm sugar, and fish sauce. The somewhat odd combination creates a moreish umami flavor that’s responsible for Pad Thai being so darn delectable. Dried shrimp, garlic, chiles, shallots, tofu, egg, and shrimp are fried up in a wok, then the sauce and rice noodles are thrown in until everything is perfectly mixed.

Dish it out onto a plate, add some crushed peanuts and bamboo shoots with a squeeze of lime and BAM. You’ve got Pad Thai!

Now, what is the history of Pad Thai?

Some people believe that the history of Pad Thai can be traced back to the Ayutthaya Kingdom in the 1700s. Chinese traders paid the kingdom a visit and brought rice noodles, called Gway Teow, with them. “Gway Teow Pad Thai”, which translates to fried Thai rice noodles, was added to the culinary repertoire of cooks in the kingdom. But most cuisine was still centered around rice.

That changed in WWII.

In 1938, Plaek Phibunsonghram, known as Phibun in the West, became the Prime Minister after his key role in overthrowing the monarchy. He was worried by the surrounding French and British presence, so he launched a massive campaign to forge a strong national identity. He passed 12 Cultural Mandates over a 3 year period that sought to strengthen nationalism while limiting foreign influence. One of these mandates was changing the country’s name from Siam to Thailand.

Where does Pad Thai come in?

During this time, the country was hit with a 1,2 punch of bad flooding and decreased rice production due to the war. A rice shortage hit. To preserve the grain,  Phibin launched a campaign to promote noodles, which only used 50% of the grain while being cheaper to produce.

Pad Thai spearheaded the pro noodle movement. Not only could it be made with all Thai ingredients, but it also had more vegetables and protein than traditional Thai food. Meaning the population could get physically stronger as well.

Pad Thai was promoted heavily across the country with the slogan “noodle is your lunch.”  Enjoying the dish was marketed as a way to support the war effort, and the Public Welfare Department even gave out food carts and recipes to encourage people to sell it.

The dish quickly became the quintessential dish of Thailand, and it is still loved and enjoyed today.  

The history of Pad Thai is far more fascinating and significant than I expected. It’s a story of nationalism, war, attrition, nutrition, and deliciousness.

Happy eating!

Hungry for more food history? Check out my rundown on the history of soup dumplings and history of tacos!