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Home Cuisines Thai Recipes

Thai Basil Chicken

By:Nagi
Published:28 Sep '19Updated:8 Apr '21
264 Comments
Recipe v Video v Dozer v

Thai Basil Chicken is arguably the gold standard of Thai Chicken stir fries! An incredibly fast and easy Thai recipe that truly tastes just as good as you’ll get at your favourite restaurant, served over jasmine rice. BONUS: No hunting down unusual ingredients!

If you’re feeling inspired, indulge in a Thai banquet at home with Chicken Satay Skewers, Thai Fish Cakes, Thai Green Curry or Red Curry, and Thai Fried Rice!

Close up of Thai Basil Chicken in a wok, fresh off the stove ready to be served

Thai Basil Chicken

Wowser. I LOVE Thai Basil Chicken. Just looking at these photos and writing up this post has me peeved that I’ll shortly be reheating leftovers instead of firing up the wok. (That’s a nice insight into the immaturity that is me.)

This is a recipe I got from the mother of a friend way back when I was in uni. Obviously, a Thai friend!

And it’s one of the few recipes that I haven’t tinkered with at all. I usually can’t help it – even recipes from well respected chefs. But this one – it’s perfect as it is. It is truly just like what you get at (good) Thai restaurants and on the streets of Thailand!

Thai Basil Chicken served over Jasmin rice in a blue bowl, ready to be eaten

What you need for Thai Basil Chicken

Here’s what you need for Thai Basil Chicken. The really nice thing about this Thai recipe is that you can get everything you need from the grocery store – at least, you can here in Australia!

What goes in spicy chilli Thai Basil Chicken

Best substitute for Thai Basil

The best substitute for Thai Basil is normal basil. While it lacks the slight aniseed flavour that’s distinctly associated with this Thai dish, it is still very much worth making!

Thai Basil

Thai Basil is a key ingredient in this recipe, being the namesake and all. 😂

Thai Basil tastes like normal basil with a hint of aniseed flavour. Nowadays it’s fairly widely available in Australia in large grocery stores and green grocers (Coles, Woolies, Harris Farms).

In actual fact, the authentic version of Thai Basil Chicken is Thai Holy Basil which is different to Thai Basil. It’s actually quite hard to find even in Thai stores, so much so that most Thai restaurants just use ordinary Thai Basil and it’s the flavour that most people have become accustomed to.

Here’s a photo showing the difference between holy basil and Thai Basil.

In the video and photos, I’ve used Thai Holy Basil. (Sydney-siders, I found it in the dark depths of a Thai grocery store in the city, I had to ask for it and the store owner got it from the back!)

Difference between Thai Basil and Thai Holy Basil - Thai Basil tastes like normal basil with a slight aniseed flavour. Holy basil has jagged edges and it does not have an aniseed flavour, it tastes more like Italian basil.

Thai Basil Chicken is often overly saucy when you get it from mid-standard restaurants outside of Thailand.

This recipe sticks more to the traditional way of cooking it with enough sauce to coat the stir fry and to soak the rice a bit (enough!). But not so much sauce that when you dish it up, it’s sitting in a pool of sauce which frankly is too salty and unnecessary because the flavours of this dish are so strong, you don’t need all that sauce.

Close up of Thai Basil Chicken served over Jasmin rice in a blue bowl, ready to be eaten

Serve this over Jasmine rice or any other rice of choice. If you want to add a fresh side, try this Asian Slaw – it’s a great all rounder that goes with all Asian foods. Or for a simpler option, just add a side of plain chunks of tomato and cucumber which is a common side that’s added to plates in Thailand.

As with all stir fries, this Thai recipe moves super fast once you start cooking – about 5 minutes. So if you can get the chopping done in 10 minutes, you’ll have dinner on the table in 15 minutes.

Hey! That’s faster than ordering home delivery! – Nagi xx


Watch how to make it

More Thai takeout favourites

  • Pad Thai – truly just like takeout!

  • Thai Red Curry and Green Curry

  • Massaman Curry

  • Starters – Chicken Satay and Thai Fish Cakes

  • Thai Fried Rice

  • Pad See Ew – Thai stir fried noodles

  • Thai Cashew Chicken Stir Fry

  • Browse the Thai recipe collection

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Close up of Thai Basil Chicken in a wok, fresh off the stove ready to be served

Thai Chilli Basil Chicken

Author: Nagi | RecipeTin Eats
Prep: 10 mins
Cook: 5 mins
Total: 15 mins
Stir Fry
Thai
4.97 from 85 votes
Servings2
Tap or hover to scale
Print
Recipe video above. Right off the streets of Thailand, made in your own home! Spicy, garlicky and savoury with a hint of sweet. Gold standard Thai chicken stir fry, quick to make and no hunting down unusual ingredients.

Ingredients

  • 225g / 7oz chicken thigh fillets , skinless boneless, cut into bite size pieces
  • 1 green onion , cut into 4cm / 2" lengths.
  • 1 cup Thai basil leaves , loosely packed (Holy Basil if you can find it) (Note 1)
  • 2 garlic cloves , large, finely chopped (Note 2)
  • 1 birds eye or Thai chilli , deseeded and finely chopped
  • 1 1/2 tbsp oil (peanut, vegetable or canola)

Sauce

  • 2 tsp oyster sauce
  • 1 tsp light soy sauce (Note 3)
  • 1 tsp dark soy sauce (or all purpose) (Note 3)
  • 1 tsp sugar
  • 2 tbsp water

Serving

  • Steamed jasmine rice

Instructions

  • Put Sauce ingredients in a small bowl and mix to combine.
  • Heat oil in wok or pan over high heat.
  • Add garlic and chilli and cook for 10 seconds. Don't inhale - the chilli will make you cough!
  • Add the white part of the green onions and chicken and fry until cooked, around 2 minutes.
  • Add Sauce and cook for 1 minute until the water reduces to make a thick glossy sauce.
  • Toss through green part of green onions and basil leaves. Stir until just wilted, then serve immediately with steamed jasmine rice.

Recipe Notes:

1. Holy Basil is the type of Thai basil used in the authentic recipe. It has a more aniseedy / peppery flavour than normal sweet basil used in Italian cooking, and is available at some Thai groceries.
Thai Basil is the more common type of basil that is sold at supermarkets here in Australia (Coles, Woolies, Harris Farms) and used in Thai restaurants.  Because my closest Asian store is a trek away, I usually make this with Thai Basil.
If you can't find Thai or Holy Basil, this is still totally worth making using normal basil. The sauce has a strong flavour and dominates, the basil is the fragrant accent flavour.
2. Garlic - Finely chopping the garlic rather than minced it (or using jarred garlic) stops it from burning quickly and spitting when it hits the hot wok.
3. Soy sauces - can sub light soy sauce or both the light and dark soy with ordinary all purpose soy (like Kikkoman). Or can use just light soy sauce. Flavour not quite as intense as it should be and colour will be paler, but still super tasty.
Do not use JUST dark soy sauce, flavour will be too intense.
4. Serving size - This recipe makes one giant serving or 2 reasonable sized servings. Complete the meal with a simple side of juicy slices of cucumber and tomato with no dressing - this is very Thai! Refreshing accompaniment to spicy Thai food.
5. Nutrition per serving excluding rice.

Nutrition Information:

Serving: 160gCalories: 360cal (18%)Carbohydrates: 5g (2%)Protein: 19g (38%)Fat: 29g (45%)Saturated Fat: 6g (38%)Cholesterol: 110mg (37%)Sodium: 588mg (26%)Potassium: 231mg (7%)Fiber: 1g (4%)Sugar: 2g (2%)Vitamin A: 148IU (3%)Vitamin C: 2mg (2%)Calcium: 14mg (1%)Iron: 1mg (6%)
Keywords: thai basil chicken, Thai chicken, thai recipes, thai stir fry
Did you make this recipe?I love hearing how you went with my recipes! Tag me on Instagram at @RecipeTinEats.

Originally published in July 2014, updated with fresh new (better!) photos, new words, a brand new recipe video and of course I added a Life of Dozer section!

Life of Dozer

Story of his life. And mine, for that matter.

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264 Comments

  1. Peta says

    April 18, 2021 at 6:35 pm

    5 stars
    I made this tonight. Very flavoursome, very easy prep.
    I had no Thai Basil (and didn’t want to drive to the shops) so I used sweet basil. I also added some broccoli that I had in the fridge. Will definitely make this one again.

    Reply
  2. Anna Hales says

    April 16, 2021 at 4:57 pm

    Hi Nagi
    Is Thai Holy Basil the same as Tulsi? I’ve found it in Bunnings so thinking I might grow my own!
    Thanks

    Reply
    • Nagi says

      April 17, 2021 at 3:03 pm

      Hi Anna, yes Tusi is the Indian name for it! 🙂 N x

      Reply
  3. Juliana Wool says

    April 9, 2021 at 8:11 pm

    5 stars
    Great dish, easy delicious and just the right amount. Nagi never disappoints!! Also good with normal basil if there’s no other. Can’t wait to try it with the teal stuff!

    Reply
  4. Bandula Amarasekera says

    April 6, 2021 at 7:46 am

    Looks tasty and mouth watering

    Reply
  5. Deepa says

    April 3, 2021 at 2:51 pm

    5 stars
    Hello Nagi, I am based in Goa, we love your food, some of the recipies are so simple and fuss free. love them…thank you so much.

    Reply
  6. Peta says

    April 1, 2021 at 1:36 pm

    5 stars
    Loved this! Super quick, easy snd tasty, just like takeaway but better!

    Reply
  7. Debbie says

    March 28, 2021 at 1:36 am

    4 stars
    I made this a few weeks ago after I grabbed the last packet of Thai basil in my supermarket! Unfortunately it wasn’t holy basil (I plan to explore for this after lockdowns) but it still tasted really nice. It was a bit sweet but the sweetness mellowed down especially for the portion I left for the next day which I preferred. Thanks for another lovely recipe!

    Reply
  8. Pamela van der Ploeg says

    March 4, 2021 at 3:48 pm

    5 stars
    Absolutely love this recipe. Question though…..
    CAN IT BE FROZEN?
    I planted Thai basil and have an oversupply atm. As the growing season is nearly over I don’t want the plants going to waste so was thinking of cooking big batches of this recipe and freezing ready to quickly reheat and serve at a later date.

    Reply
  9. Carol Ryan says

    February 27, 2021 at 9:12 pm

    Finally made this as I found my local Tesco now due fresh Thai basil.one very happy cook xx

    Reply
  10. Shruti says

    February 25, 2021 at 9:16 am

    Love love love it. I never thought it’d be this easy and tasty to make it at home. Thank you so much for such detailed recipe. It’s a hit.

    Reply
  11. Bernadette Gerace says

    February 9, 2021 at 10:54 am

    5 stars
    This was SO easy and turned out perfectly. Thanks for an amazing recipe!!

    Reply
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I believe you can make great food with everyday ingredients even if you’re short on time and cost conscious. You just need to cook clever and get creative! Read More

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