Thai holy basil chicken is a dish bursting with flavor and easy to make. Together with rice, it makes the perfect weeknight meal and is something you’ll make on repeat!

a dish of Thai holy basil chicken a wooden surface

Why This Recipe Works

Thai holy basil chicken or pad kaprao gai is a satisfying and easy dish. It's garlicky, hot, aromatic and just so full of flavor. Plus you can whip this dish up in less than 30 minutes. Imagine that together with my pink milk which can be made within 5 minutes!

A cultural reference here: Thai holy basil chicken is known among us Thais as 'menu sin kid (เมนูสิ้นคิด)' or a go-to dish whenever we go to a dtam sang (made to order) place or cart with friends, feel overwhelmed by the choice available on the menu and get annoyingly indecisive about what to order. But considering how good it is, it does make sense, doesn't it?

Ingredients

Here is a visual overview of the ingredients in the recipe. Scroll down to the recipe at the bottom for quantities.

Ingredient Notes

Chili: As far as chilies go, traditionally, this dish is supposed to be a little spicy so you'll want to use a hot type. Of course, you don't have to use as many chilies as I use in this recipe if it looks like it could be too hot for you. You can adjust the number as you see fit.

Garlic: If you want your Thai holy basil chicken to be more garlicky, by all means, add more garlic.

Sugar: Seems a little funny in a savory dish, right? But yeah, it's used to round out the flavor.

Thai holy basil leaves: To make a great holy basil stir-fry, you want to make sure you really do pick the right kind of basil. You must get *holy basil* for this dish or your pad kaprao ends up a disaster. Well, maybe not a disaster...but definitely something else.

Step-By-Step Instructions

process shots of how to make Thai basil chicken

Step 1: In a mortar, pound the white peppercorns, garlic and chilies in this order with a pestle until quite coarse.

Step 2: Heal oil in a wok over medium heat.

Step 3: Once the oil is hot, add the pounded white peppercorns, garlic, and chilies and stir until fragrant, about 1-2 minutes.

Step 4: Add chicken and stir until cooked.

Step 5: Season with oyster sauce, fish sauce and sugar.

Step 6: Add holy basil leaves and stir until wilted. Turn off the heat and transfer to a plate or over rice to serve.

Tips

When the oil is hot, the garlic and chilies can burn very easily. Make sure they don't burn as you stir fry them.
Always add the holy basil leaves last so that the color is still green.
It's a great idea to cook your rice before you make this dish so you don't have to wait when the holy basil chicken is ready.

What To Serve This Dish With

Thai holy basil chicken served with rice on a wooden surface

Pad Kaprao is best served hot with rice, a fried egg or my Thai omelette, prik nam pla (trust me, this little condiment does make this spicy chicken stir fry better!) . To make it a complete meal, I recommend you wash it all down with one or my drinks below.

Storing and Reheating

Basil chicken is best enjoyed fresh off the pan and it's better if you finish it within one go. However, if you make a large amount or you want to meal prep it during the weekend, you can do that too.

Simply put it in a food container and refrigerate it. It will be good for another 1-2 days. To reheat, pop it in a microwave for about 1-2 minutes.

📖 Recipe