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Chicken, duck & turkey Lunch / Dinner Main Courses

Thai basil chicken (pad krapow gai)

Published: 06.30.2022 » Last updated: 06.30.2022

A spicy, salty and subtly sweet chicken stir fry with garlic, chilies, shallot, fish sauce, soy sauce, oyster sauce, palm sugar, Thai holy basil and a little lime juice.

Thai basil chicken (pad krapow gai) served with rice and fried egg

What ispadkrapow? It’s a stir friedThai dish. The meat can bepork, beef or chicken. Or dispense with the meat and use shrimps instead.

What cannot be excluded are the Thai holy basil and chilies. Without these two, the stir fry is not pad krapow. 

Frying egg / shallot, garlic and chilies on chopping board

Because the cooking time is so short (10 minutes!), it is a good idea to prepare the accompaniments before cooking the pad krapow. So, cook your rice and fry your eggs before mincing the chicken and cutting the spices for the flavor base.

Yes, I minced the chicken fillets myself. You can substitute ground chicken thigh meat if that is more convenient but you get better control with the size of the chicken pieces if you do the mincing yourself. It’s not that hard. Just cut the chicken fillets into thin strips, cut across the strips then use a heavy knife to chop until you get the size that you like.

Sauteeing shallot, garlic and chilies

The cooking begins with sauteeing the spices. In a little oil, gently cook the shallots, garlic and chilies until softened and aromatic.

Adding minced chicken to sauteed shallot, garlic and chilies in pan

Stir in the chicken, cook until the meat is just starting to lose its raw pinkish appearance then pour in the sauce. Chicken breast fillet is used here, and breast meat can really dry out fast, so as soon as the chicken pieces had soaked the sauce, I turned off the heat.

Adding Thai basil to chicken in pan

The basil leaves were stirred in and left to wilt in the residual heat. The pad krapow is ready at this point but I find that squeezing in a little lime juice heightens the flavor of dish even more.

Full recipe below

Thai Basil Chicken (Pad Krapow Gai)

Connie Veneracion
The sweet-salty-spicy balance of the sauce here is per our preference. Adjust the amount of soy sauce, sugar and fish sauce to create a flavor balance that pleases your palate better.
The amount of chilies is adjustable depending on yout tolerance for heat.
Thai basil chicken (pad krapow gai)
Print
Prep Time 10 mins
Cook Time 10 mins
Total Time 20 mins
Course Main Course
Cuisine Thai
Servings 3 people

Ingredients
  

  • 2 tablespoons cooking oil
  • 2 tablespoons minced garlic
  • 2 to 4 bird’s eye chilies - finely sliced
  • 2 shallots - or one small red onion, chopped
  • 2 chicken breast fillets - minced
  • 2 tablespoons soy sauce
  • 2 tablespoons fish sauce
  • 1 tablespoon oyster sauce
  • 1 tablespoon palm sugar
  • 1 large handful Thai holy basil leaves
  • juice of one lime - optional
  • 3 fried eggs - to serve
  • rice - to serve

Instructions
 

  • Heat the cooking oil in a wok or frying pan. Saute the garlic, chilies and shallots or onion.
  • Add the minced chicken. Stir fry until the meat changes color.
  • Stir together the soy sauce, oyster sauce, sugar and fish sauce, and pour over the chicken.
  • Stir fry the chicken for three to four minutes.
  • Add the basil, stir and leave to allow the leaves to wilt in the residual heat.
  • Optionally, squeeze lime juice over the pad krapow and toss a few times.
  • Taste the chicken pad krapow. Adjust the seasonings, as needed, before serving with fried egg and rice.
Print
Keyword Spicy, Stir Fry

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Connie Veneracion, Chiang Mai, 2020

Hi, I’m Connie!

Welcome to Umami Days, a blog that advocates innovative home cooking for pleasurable everyday dining. No trendy diets, no food fads and definitely no ludicrous recipe names like crustless quiche, noodleless pho or chocolate lasagna.

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