Recipe
🍽️ DINNER
Pad Krapow Gai (Holy Basil Chicken)
Bangkok's favorite one-plate meal: fiery minced chicken and holy basil over rice with a crispy fried egg.
Thai · easy · serves 2
prep 15 min · cook 10 min
~606 cal · 52g protein · 64g carbs · 13g fat · 1g fiber · 2g sugars · 4g sat fat (estimated, per serving)
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AI-generated illustration
Pad krapow gai is the dish Thais reach for when they don't know what else to order, minced chicken stir-fried hard and fast with garlic, chilies, and holy basil, its peppery, almost clove-like aroma defining the plate. It is the quintessential Thai 'rice-topper,' fast street and shophouse food found on nearly every corner of Bangkok.
Holy basil (bai krapow) is essential and distinct from sweet basil; its sharp, spicy fragrance is the soul of the dish, released in the final seconds of the searing-hot wok. , oyster sauce, and a hit of chili complete the balance of salty, spicy, and savory.
It is almost always served over rice and crowned with a crispy-edged fried egg ('khai dao'), to be broken over the top. Cheap and fast, it is eaten morning, noon, and night.
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Make it yours
✓ Naturally dairy-, nut- and pork-free. No swaps needed.
Toggle a diet and the ingredients rewrite themselves with regional substitutes.
🥕 Vegetarian
🌱 Vegan
🌾 Gluten-Free
🥛 Dairy-Free
🥜 Nut-Free
🥚 Egg-Free
🐖 Pork-Free
Dietary labels are a cooking guide, not allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish; we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, read the label on every product you use, and note that a kitchen can cross-contaminate in ways a recipe cannot control.
Ingredients
US
Metric
Serves 2
12 oz ground chicken
3-6, to your courage Thai bird chilies
5 cloves garlic
1.5 tbsp
1 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp sugar
1.5 cups, packed holy basil (krapow) leaves, or sweet Italian basil
2 eggs, for frying
2 cups jasmine rice, cooked
Instructions
1
Pound the chilies and garlic to a rough paste in a mortar (or mince finely together).
2
Get a wok ripping hot with 2 tbsp oil. Fry the eggs first until the edges are lacy and crisp; set aside.
3
Stir-fry the chili-garlic paste 20 seconds, then add the chicken (or tofu), breaking it up and letting it sear, 3-4 minutes.
4
Add fish sauce, oyster sauce, soy, and sugar with a splash of water; toss 1 minute.
5
Kill the heat, fold in the basil until just wilted, and serve over rice with the crispy egg on top.
✎ Chef’s note
Holy basil is the whole dish, and it is a different plant from Thai basil despite the name of the latter. Holy basil is peppery and almost clove-like; Thai basil is aniseedy and sweet. If you cannot find holy basil, reach for ordinary Italian sweet basil, which is closer, rather than Thai basil. And add it off the heat: residual heat is enough to wilt it, and cooking it dulls the pepper.
Bangkok street-stall standard.
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🌏 While it simmers, know your destination
📍
Bangkok (Central). Bangkok's Chinatown is as old as the city. When Rama I moved the palace in 1782 the Teochew community was resettled at Sampheng, and what grew from that is now the Yaowarat area, one of the largest Chinatowns anywhere. Much of what reads as Thai street food, the noodles, the braised pork, the rice porridge, came through those kitchens.
🗺️
Thailand. Thai cooking chases the balance of sweet, sour, salty, spicy, and bitter in every dish, from fragrant coconut curries to fiery som tam salads and stir-fries fired in a screaming-hot wok. Fish sauce, lime, chili, and fresh herbs give it its unmistakable brightness.
🌍
Asia. A grain line runs across the continent. Rice dominates the wet south and east, wheat the drier north and west, and the tools follow it: the wok and the steamer where rice is milled, the tandoor and the griddle where wheat is ground. Tea travels the other way, drunk green, black, salted, buttered or with milk depending how far it got from China.
The story behind this dish is up top, worth a read while the pot works.
More from Thailand
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Good to know
You’ll need: Wok, Mortar and pestle.
Storing it: Fried food is best eaten fresh while crisp. Re-crisp leftovers in a hot oven or air fryer; the microwave makes them soft.
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Cuisine
Diet
Frequently asked questions
What is Pad Krapow Gai (Holy Basil Chicken)?
Bangkok's favorite one-plate meal: fiery minced chicken and holy basil over rice with a crispy fried egg.
Where does Pad Krapow Gai (Holy Basil Chicken) come from?
Pad Krapow Gai (Holy Basil Chicken) is a Thai dish from Bangkok (Central), Thailand.
Can Pad Krapow Gai (Holy Basil Chicken) be made vegan, gluten-free, or dairy-free?
This Pad Krapow Gai (Holy Basil Chicken) recipe includes substitution suggestions for vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, egg-free, and pork-free versions, including several at once such as gluten-free and dairy-free together. Treat them as a starting guide rather than a guarantee, and see the allergen note below.
Is Pad Krapow Gai (Holy Basil Chicken) safe for people with food allergies?
Our dietary labels and substitutions are a cooking guide, not medical or allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish, but we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, always read the label on every product you use, and remember a home or commercial kitchen can cross-contaminate ingredients in ways a recipe cannot control.
How long does Pad Krapow Gai (Holy Basil Chicken) take to make?
About 25 minutes total (15 minutes prep, 10 minutes cooking), serving 2.
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