Pad Kra Pao Gai (Thai Holy Basil Stir-Fry)

Pad Kra Pao Gai (or Pad Krapow Gai) is a popular street food dish in Thailand, known for its perfect balance of spicy, savory, and herbal flavors. The dish gets its name from the fragrant Holy basil (or Thai basil), or "Kra Pao," that is a key ingredient in Pad Kra Pao recipes. In Thai, Pad means “stir-fried”,  Kra Pao (Krapow) means “Holy Basil” and Gai means “chicken”. So literally, this recipe translates to "stir-fried holy basil chicken".

💡 Fun fact: This dish was featured in the hit movie "Chef" and has since become a popular favorite for foodies worldwide. "Gai" means chicken, so this recipe contains chicken. So, grab your ingredients and let's cook up this Pad Kra Pao recipe!

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Step 1
Start off with the pickled cucumber. Cut the cucumber to your liking. Either using a regular peeler, a julienne grater or a knife. I used a peeler to get the beautiful long and thin slices. Put the sliced cucumber in a bowl and just top it off with vinegar. Thinner slices means that the cucumber also incorporates the vinegar faster.

Step 2
Cook the white rice according to the package directions.

Step 3
Wash the yardlong beans. Cut them in pieces of 3/4 cm. Chop the onion and grate the ginger. Keep them separated. You need them in different stages of this recipe.

Step 4
Heat up a wok or large frying pan over high heat. Once the wok is hot, add a tablespoon of oil. Add 3 cloves of minced garlic and 3 sliced rawit chilis. Stir fry for 1 minute or until fragrant.

Step 5
Add the minced chicken to the wok and stir fry until it is starting to get a little brown (not cooked through).

Step 6
Add the diced onions and stir fry for another 2 minutes.

Step 7
Add the yardlong beans and stir fry for 2-3 minutes or until they are cooked but still crispy.

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Step 8
Add fish sauce, oyster sauce, sweet chili sauce, and soy sauce. Add the grated ginger and 2 cloves of minced garlic. Stir well to combine.

Step 9
In a separate pan, fry the eggs to your liking. I like to fry my eggs in quite a lot of oil, and throw the hot oil from the pan over the eggs continuously using a spoon. The top of the eggs then kind of pops in a miraculous way. Fry until the egg's bottom is brown and getting crispy.

Step 10
Turn off the heat from the wok and stir in the Thai holy basil leaves.

Serve the pad kra pao gai with cooked white rice, a fried egg on top, pickled cucumber and a wedge of lemon on the side. Enjoy!

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Chefs Tip
In for some Thai spicy? Bring some Prik Nam Pla to the table as an optional condiment! Prik Nam Pla incorporates a couple of fundamental elements, namely "Prik" which is a reference to pepper, and "Nam pla" which refers to fish sauce. Thai chilis that provide the heat, while fish sauce delivers a savory and salty flavor profile. How to make it? Slice some Rawit chilis (you already have), and put it in a small bowl with fish sauce. Squeeze half a lime in the bowl. Or you can use our Thai Thunder to simply add some spice and heat.

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