Pad Thai is one of the most popular Thai dishes in the world. It’s a dish that is full of flavor and texture, and it’s surprisingly easy to make at home. But what are the best wines with pad thai? We all know that pad thai is best enjoyed with a cold beer, but what if you want something a little more special?
In this blog post, we will discuss the best wine pairings for pad thai. Whether you are looking for red or white wine, we have got you covered!
Spoiler: The ideal wines to match with Pad Thai are Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, Sylvaner, Beaujolais, and Prosecco.
Pad Thai is a mild, slightly sweet, and moderately hot noodle dish that typically includes shrimp, chicken, tofu, chopped almonds, tamarind, fish sauce, and chili peppers. Crisp white wines such as Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling, Prosecco, or Sylvaner work well since they provide zesty notes of lime and lemon that complement all the excellent tastes in Pad Thai.
Red wine isn’t the greatest option for Pad Thai, but a Beaujolais Villages (with a fruity acidity that provides plenty of refreshment against an extra spicy dish of Pad Thai) can work. Not everyone enjoys white wines, so you should always have red wine alternatives on hand.
A Cabernet Sauvignon or Pinot Noir would also go great with Pad Thai.
If you’re making a Thai dish, stick to light and fruity red wines with high acidity for Red wine and Pad Thai pairings. The flavors of Pad Thai are destroyed by bold red wines, which are more powerful alcohol and tannin levels. Bold red wines have more alcohol and tannin, which can cause your mouth to burn when eating Pad Thai if it has any spicy heat.
Best Wine with Pad Thai
The best wine with pad thai is a light to medium-bodied white wine. The acidity in the wine will help cut through the heat of the dish and pair well with the sweetness of the noodles. If you are looking for a red wine pairing, we recommend a Beaujolais Villages. This fruity red wine has enough acidity to stand up to the spice in pad Thai.
Dry Riesling & Pad Thai Pairing
Riesling is a great wine to serve with Pad Thai since it is so food-friendly. Riesling works well with the meal because of its high acidity. The electric acidity of a dry Riesling zips across your taste buds and draws attention to all of the ingredients in your dish. As a result, everything — from delicious shrimp, tofu, and chicken nuggets to bean sprouts, crushed peanuts, and sauced noodles — comes into focus.
Because you consume so much, you are full sooner, and you will never have to shovel Pad Thai in your mouth like some sort of nightmare. Instead, you’ll take your time and savor the experience by drinking in all of the delicious components of the meal.
If your Pad Thai is a little bit spicy, try an off-dry Riesling with a touch of sweetness to it. Many Americans are put off by Riesling because they believe it will be too sweet, but an off-dry Riesling contains just a hint of sugar. As a result, you get a lovely wine that tastes like lemon-lime green apple peach and mineral that quenches the fire in the chili peppers that scorch your mouth. This enables you to detect the chilies’ delicate sweetness, which makes for an incredible combination.
Sauvignon Blanc & Pad Thai Pairing
Sauvignon Blanc is a wonderful match for Pad Thai if the dish isn’t spicy. I adore a New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc from the Marlborough region since it has wonderful grapefruit-like acidity that adds flavor to your meal. There’s also an herbal undercurrent with Sauvignon Blanc that complements the bean sprouts and other vegetables added to your Pad Thai.
In addition, Sauvignon Blanc has a chilly and steel demeanor that contrasts nicely with the warm and inviting persona of Pad Thai.
Silvaner & Pad Thai Pairing
Silvaner (Sylvaner in France) is a German white wine with peach, pear, and passion fruit flavors balanced by subtle mineral, smoke, grass, and spice nuances. On the tongue, you’ll experience an oily texture that persists into a crisp acidic finish.
Silvaner’s pear, peach, and passion fruit tastes, as well as its sharp acidity, help wake up your tongue from the rich carbohydrate content of Pad Thai. When all of those noodles are combined with the sugar, fish sauce, and tamarind sauces, they create a flavor traffic jam because all of those delicious tastes collide. This may be easily resolved by Silvaner’s acidity, which washes away the clogging flavors on your cheeks and tongue so that new ones may emerge.
Silvaner is also cheap, making it an excellent choice if you’re ordering Pad Thai as takeout (as a Thai restaurant is unlikely to serve Silvaner by the glass or bottle).
Prosecco & Pad Thai Pairing
Prosecco is a sparkling wine from Italy that has delicate tastes of apple, pear, melon, and lemon. You’ll also notice complementary flavors of almond, toast, and yeast in your Pad Thai dish, which complement the chopped nuts and noodles well.
Prosecco’s bubbles and acidity make it a palate-cleansing beverage. The first bites of Pad Thai are the most delicious, but after that, everything starts to taste alike because your taste buds become clogged. Prosecco’s sparkling acidity and crisp bitterness help to remedy this problem by making each bite seem delicious. As a result, you eat less since you are satisfied sooner, allowing you to save some Pad Thai for an evening snack or for tomorrow’s lunch.
Beaujolais Villages & Pad Thai Pairing
Beaujolais is a fun and fruity wine, and it’s never a disappointment when paired with fresh and light foods. With Pad Thai, you get a dinner that’s just light enough to not crush Beaujolais’ joyful disposition while still tasting the bright cherry, strawberry, and raspberry notes of the wine in addition to chicken, shrimp, and tofu blended in your Pad Thai.
The Beaujolais grapes, on the other hand, will complement the protein in your Pad Thai, as the wine has a subtle earthiness and spice that goes well with bean sprouts or tamarind.
Beaujolais Nouveau is a wonderful choice for Pad Thai because it cleanses and refreshes the palette, along with highlighting all of the distinct tastes, such as nuts, scallions, bean sprouts, cabbage, or carrot in your dish.
Finally, Beaujolais Villages will be a nice choice with spicier Pad Thai since it is low in alcohol.