Recipe for Thai food--chicken beef basil?!
Answers: I want to make this for my boyfriend instead of ordering takeout all the time..does anyone have an easy recipe?
It's usually Thai Basil Chicken or Beef:
Ingredients for Basil Chicken ( or just substitute beef)
2-3 Tbs. peanut oil for stir-frying
10-12 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2-3 shallots, thinly sliced (or substitute with 1/2 cup sliced onion) – optional
1 lb. boneless chicken thighs, coarsely chopped, or cut into small bite-size pieces
12-20 Thai chillies, cut into very thin rounds
2 small kaffir lime leaves
2-3 tsp. black soy sauce, or to taste
2 Tbs. fish sauce, or to taste
1 cup fresh Thai holy basil or Thai sweet basil leaves
Dash of ground white pepper
Preparation:
Leave the fresh basil leaves whole; the flower buds may also be used.
Heat a wok until its surface is smoking hot. Swirl in the oil to coat the wok surface. Wait a few seconds for the oil to heat, then stir in the garlic, followed a few seconds later with the shallots or onion. Stir another 15 to 20 seconds before adding the chicken. Stir-fry 1 to 2 minutes, or until most of the chicken has changed color on the outside and is no longer pink.
Toss in the chillies, slivered kaffir lime leaves (if using), and softened dried holy basil (if using). Sprinkle black soy sauce over the mixture and stir-fry for another 15 to 20 seconds. Season to taste with fish sauce, then stir in the fresh basil. Toss well. Stir-fry another 1/2 to 1 minute, or until the basil is wilted and the chicken cooked through. Sprinkle with white pepper. Stir and transfer to a serving dish, or spoon directly over individual plates of plain steamed rice.
Serves 6 to 8 with other dishes in a shared family-style meal.
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Thai Basil Chicken Notes and Pointers:
This is a good and easy stir-fried dish and one of the favorites among Thai people. It is served over rice as a one-dish meal – for breakfast or for lunch, often topped with a crispy fried egg. Of course, it also appears frequently as one of the courses in a shared family-style meal.
If you are not able to find fresh holy basil, this recipe can be substituted with any fresh basil. I have also tried it with a mixture of fresh Thai sweet basil (bai horapa) and fresh mint leaves with good results.
The smaller the chicken is cut, the greater the surface area to coat with the flavors of the aromatic herbs and sauces, and the more flavorful the stir-fry will be. Some of my students have reported good results using ground turkey.
In Thailand, this dish is often made with chopped pork, beef, or poultry, especially in fast-food, curry-rice shops, where an enormous variety of dishes are prepared ahead of time and served over steaming white rice to order. day until they are sold out.
Try the above recipe also with fresh seafood (in this case, no need to chop) – shrimps, scallops, mussels, clams, crab and firm-flesh fish, such as fresh halibut and salmon.
Chicken / Beef / Pork Basil:
1) 500g minced meat (chicken / beef / pork)
2) 3 tablespoons oyster sauce
3) 1 tablespoon sugar
4) 1 tablespoon fish sauce
5) 1/2 tablespoon chili (finely pounded)
6) 2 bulbs onion (finely sliced)
7) 2 cloves garlic (finely pounded)
8) 1/3 cup water
9) 1 cup sweet Thai basil
Stir fry all the ingredients (except basil) in a pan until meat is cooked. Just before serving, add the basil and mix well.