Dish of Chicken with Basil
(click to enlarge)

Chicken with Basil


Thailand
Serves:
Effort:
Sched:
DoAhead:  		 2 main
***
55 min
Prep		 A delicious dish, and an example of how the Thai use basil. The recipe can also be made with Pork, or extra firm Tofu. When used, Holy Basil is always cooked, See Chicken with Holy Basil).

1
----
1/2
1/4
----
1
4
2
3
2
1
1
1/4
2
#
---
T
c
---
c
oz
cl


T
T
c
T
Chicken (1)
-- Coating
Cornstarch
Water
-----------
Thai Basil (2)
Onion
Garlic
Thai Chilis (3)
Red Chili (4)
Fish Sauce (5)
Oyster Sauce (6)  
Stock
Oil
Prep   -   (40 min - 25 min work)
  1. Cut CHICKEN into 1/8 to 3/16 inch thick slices about 1-1/2 to 2 inches long and 1/2 inch wide (or whatever you can do with the chicken you have). Mix Coating items and massage together with Chicken. Set aside until needed.
  2. Remove BASIL LEAVES from stems and set to soak in cold water to cover (they will stay green longer if you do this).
  3. Cut ONION in half lengthwise and slice thin crosswise. Slice GARLIC fairly thin. Chop THAI CHILIS fine. Mix All.
  4. Slice RED CHILIS in half lengthwise, scrape out seeds and cut into very narrow strips.
  5. Mix Fish Sauce, Oyster Sauce and Stock.
Run   -   (15 min)
  1. Drain Chicken.
  2. In a wok or spacious sauté pan heat Oil quite hot, stir in Onion mix and fry stirring for about 1 minute.
  3. Stir in Chicken and fry stirring until it has lost its raw color.
  4. Stir in the Fish Sauce mix and simmer covered until chicken is done, about 5 minutes.
  5. Take off heat. Stir in Red Chilis, then drain Basil Leaves and stir in. Serve immediately with plenty of steamed Jasmine rice.
NOTES:

  1. Chicken:

      Weight is for skinless and boneless. I favor thigh meat for flavor and texture, but breast can be used.

  2. Thai Basil

      Measure is loosely packed. This should be Thai Purple Basil (Bai Horapha) not the light green Lemon Basil often sold as "Thai Basil" (that's for use in salads). Lacking Thai, use regular Italian Basil. For details see our Thai Purple Basil page.

  3. Thai Chilis:

      Here is where you control the hotness so use your own best judgement. If you don't have Thai chilis, use a small Serrano. The amount given makes the recipe moderately hot by Southern California standards. For details see our Thai Chilis page.

  4. Red Chili:

      Around here we all use Red Fresnos, though Holland Red or similar medium hot chilis will work fine. The pattern recipe calls 1/2 red bell pepper thinly sliced, but I like the Fresnos. For details see our Thai Chilis page.

  5. Fish Sauce:

      This clear liquid is as essential to Southeast Asian cuisine as it was to Imperial Rome. If you are unfamiliar with it, see our Fish Sauce - Introduction page.

  6. Oyster Sauce:

      A standard Chinese sauce also used in Southeast Asia for dishes in the Chinese style. My current favorite is Megachef, but Lee Kum Kee Premium brand is also very good - the bottle looks very Chinese, but it's made in Los Angeles. Yes, these are more expensive than some, but there's reasons for that (much higher oyster content, unleaded and no melamine). For details see our Oyster Sauce page.
  7. U.S. measure: t=teaspoon, T=Tablespoon, c=cup, qt=quart, oz=ounce, #=pound, cl=clove in=inch, ar=as required tt=to taste
smc_chktbasil1 100605 bvt135   -   www.clovegarden.com
©Andrew Grygus - agryg@aaxnet.com - Linking to and non-commercial use of this page is permitted.