Pad Thai is traditionally made with thin, flat rice noodles (often called Pad Thai rice noodles or rice sticks).

Quick Scoop

  • The classic answer to “what noodles is Pad Thai made with” is: flat rice noodles, about 2–5 mm wide.
  • They’re usually dried noodles that you soak (not fresh egg noodles or wheat spaghetti).
  • Menus or packages may label them as “Pad Thai noodles,” “rice sticks,” or “Thai-style rice noodles,” but they’re all rice-based.

Little extra context

Most restaurant Pad Thai you’ve tried—whether with chicken, shrimp, or tofu—uses these same chewy rice noodles stir-fried with egg, bean sprouts, and a sweet-sour tamarind-based sauce.

TL;DR: Pad Thai = stir-fried flat rice noodles, not egg noodles or wheat pasta.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.