Thai Basil Chicken Fried (Print Version)

A spicy stir-fry featuring tender chicken, holy basil, chilies, and fragrant jasmine rice.

# Components:

→ Proteins

01 - 14 oz boneless, skinless chicken thighs or breasts, thinly sliced

→ Rice

02 - 4 cups cooked jasmine rice (preferably day-old)

→ Vegetables & Herbs

03 - 1 medium onion, finely chopped
04 - 3 cloves garlic, minced
05 - 2 to 3 Thai red chilies, finely sliced (adjust to taste)
06 - 1 cup holy basil leaves (substitute with Thai basil if unavailable)
07 - 1 medium red bell pepper, sliced (optional)

→ Sauces & Seasonings

08 - 2 tbsp soy sauce
09 - 1 tbsp oyster sauce
10 - 1 tbsp fish sauce
11 - 1 tsp sugar
12 - ½ tsp white pepper
13 - 2 tbsp vegetable oil

→ Garnish

14 - Lime wedges
15 - Sliced cucumber

# Preparation Steps:

01 - Warm vegetable oil in a large wok or skillet over high heat.
02 - Add minced garlic and sliced chilies; stir-fry for 30 seconds until fragrant.
03 - Add sliced chicken; cook until opaque, approximately 3 to 4 minutes.
04 - Incorporate chopped onion and sliced bell pepper if using; sauté for 2 minutes.
05 - Add cooked jasmine rice, breaking apart any clumps with a spatula.
06 - Pour in soy sauce, oyster sauce, fish sauce, sugar, and white pepper; toss thoroughly until rice is coated and heated through.
07 - Remove from heat; gently fold in holy basil leaves until just wilted.
08 - Plate immediately; garnish with lime wedges and sliced cucumber.

# Expert Advice:

01 -
  • It's ready in 30 minutes but tastes like someone spent hours on it.
  • Holy basil gives it an aromatic complexity that turns simple fried rice into something unforgettable.
  • The heat builds gently, letting you taste each layer instead of just burning your mouth.
02 -
  • Day-old rice is not a suggestion—it's a requirement that will change your fried rice game forever once you understand why.
  • Holy basil is added at the very end off the heat because if you cook it, all that floral complexity just vanishes.
  • Fish sauce smells absolutely rank straight from the bottle, but in the finished dish it's completely unrecognizable and essential to authentic flavor.
03 -
  • A wok is better than a large skillet because the sloped sides let you toss without half the rice flying onto the stove, but if you don't have one, use whatever you've got and just be more deliberate with your mixing.
  • Never walk away once you've started cooking—this dish needs your attention and constant motion for about 8 minutes straight, and that's part of what makes it so fast and good.
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