Pad Krapow Gai (Thai Basil Chicken)  Recipe (2024)

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yourconciergect

Is the Golden Mountain a deal breaker? Are there substitutions?

Jo Jo

After trying it this way I feel compelled to share my experience that the traditional ingredients and measurements are really much better than this particular recipe. No need for the large amount of oyster sauce AND the golden mountain Thai sauce flavor is not better than the traditional addition of light and dark soy sauce. This is way yummier in my humble opinion: 1T fish sauce, 1T Thai light soy sauce, 2 t dark soy sauce, 2 t oyster sauce. ❤️

adam

The fried egg is crucial. Don’t skip it. Let a small pool of canola or peanut oil get glimmering hot in your wok. Put on apron. Crack one egg in, it should bubble and sizzle vigorously. The edges of the egg should start to really brown and crisp up in 30 seconds or so. Then tip the wok and use a spoon to scoop up small spoonfuls of the hot oil and ladle over the egg to finish the top. Don’t overdo it. You want a runny yolk. Take out and drain on paper towel. Just takes 1 minute per egg, if that.

Seattle Thai

I don’t know why the Golden Mountain seasoning sauce is added, it’s simply not needed or traditional. Also no oyster sauce no green beans or white pepper. Really is the best with holy basil.Most popular with pork (pad krapow moo). Garlic and chili should be cooked before the meat.

Mo

The internet says substitute with a combo of light soy, dash of fish sauce, dash of regular rice vinegar, and a little brown sugar.

Delightful

Really enjoyed this. Great summer meal if you have access to lots of fresh Thai basil and green beans. Subbed turkey for chicken and it worked just fine. Will make again without major adjustments.

Sharno

For people watching carbs, this works really well as a filling in a lettuce wrap.

Sukie

This is an easy, flavorful weeknight meal that is also easily adaptable. Used ground turkey. Didn’t have the Thai spice so used 1 T soy sauce and 1 T rice wine vinegar. Also didn’t have oyster sauce so substituted 2 T hoisin sauce. Used 4 cloves of garlic and 1 jalapeño and 1 Serrano. Served over rice with the crispy fried egg which was divine with the other intense flavors. Will definitely make again.

Grant W

Like many other western published recipes, this one calls for too much sugar. There is no balance without heat. Advise you either add much more chili or reduce the sugar by half. Otherwise a very tasty dish and easy to make.

Carrie

For oyster sauce you can use hoisin sauce or a half soy sauce, half honey (or molasses, something thick and sweet) combo. Basically it's sweet and salty. I'm allergic to oysters and I like hoisin.

CFXK

Two substitutions and one recommendation...If you can't find or don't want to make a special trip for Thai Seasoning Sauce, use soy sauce.Don't let the fact that you can't find holy basil or Thai basil stop you; just use Italian basil - a bit different, but still wonderful.And let's be honest, in the choice between plain old apple pie and apple pie with a scoop of ice cream on top, is there really any choice? So too, don't even think about omitting that crispy fried egg.

ParisPie

this was super easy to make, required very little prep, and cooked up in a short period of time! I followed one of the comments and threw a smattering of chopped scallions on top and in lieu of chicken i used impossible meat. I found a substitution for golden mountain sauce online (1tbs soy sauce + 1 tbs sugar) and it was fine. this will be added to my go-to weeknight recipes.

Caroline

This was super salty without the Gold Mountain sauce. And i like salt. Think I’ll start with half the amount of oyster and fish sauces next time and add more to taste.

chris hawkins

Subbed Korean fermented soy bean paste for Golden Mountain. Used Italian basil. Subbed tsp of Thai red curry paste for fresh hot pepper (spicy food induces coughing bouts for my wife). Added 1/4 lg onion w green beans just because. Then I used Korean hot sauce on my portion.Will do this again w a combo of ground pork and fine-diced shrimp.

suggestions

Add a little rice vinegar and sesame oil and water to the sauce. Serve with brown rice

Rebecca

Might be sacrilege, but our basil went bad and we substituted in cilantro instead, and it was also incredibly delicious.

Quentin

This recipe some time ago turned me on to Green Mountain which we now use exclusively when soy sauce is called for--and in many cases when it isn't!

jim

Yum-yum

Sam

Subbed the ground chicken for ground impossible meat and it was perfect!

vivian y.

Thai basil is a must in my opinion, it didn’t smell like Thai cooking until that last step when I added it and got a whiff of that delicious peppery licorice aroma. Other basil like Italian would smell different. Also I used minced garlic paste from the asian mart and a bunch of dried chili peppers lying around the house. Don’t skip the egg, it’s a must! It rounds off the saltiness of the dish. I think Golden Mountain Sauce completes this too, dark soy sauce would make this a tad too sweet.

Sarah

Agree with the others regarding reducing the amount of salt. I used 1T fish sauce, 1T Thai light soy sauce 2T dark soy sauce 2T Oyster sauce. I will even halve that next time I make this though.

Melanie

We made our own Thai Seasoning mix from spices we had in the cupboard. I just googled one. I also used Hoisin instead of Oyster sauce. Since we used sugar elsewhere (a bit of brown was in the Thai seasoning recipe too) I didn't add anything else sweet. We found that a spritz of fresh lime on top really made it all sing and added to the balance of the dish. We will definitely make this again!

JenBeee

This is easy and delicious. Great way to use up Thai basil if you have an out of control aerogarden like I do. I used jalapeño in mine and it was a bit too mild, so I’d greatly increase the amount next time (or just use Thai chilies as written!) I used soy sauce and rice wine vinegar in place of the golden mountain.

Mary

Excellent. I used ground pork (what I had on hand), and I added the green beans much sooner as mine were old so they cooked a lot longer than the recipe. I also used soya sauce instead of the Thai seasoning sauce (1:1). A great weeknight dinner!

Todd

This was so salty as to be inedible. Thank goodness I didn't make it for guests.

Dee

I would add that Golden Mountain also has a subtle smokiness to it.

kb

My own note after making:Doubled sauce, didn't have oyster so combined Japanese BBQ and Teriyaki, added fresh ginger,extra fresh chopped chili pepper. I didn't have light soy so used regular. Also, used about 2/3 brick of pressed and crumbled tofu, adding after browning one pound Turkey1/4 c Oyster (Japanese BBQ & Teriyaki)1/4 c dark soy2TBSP Fish Sauce2TBSP Light Soy (dark soy)

HP

This recipe is not traditional for a lot of reasons, but we really enjoyed it. I made it with crumbled tofu and upped both the chilies and the thai basil. Also did not have greenbeans so added some bok choy which worked nicely. I would definitely make this again.

Erik

Em loved it, Xan was sort of meh (Nov ‘23). Both wanted the green beans to be less chewy, so make it with leftover cooked veggies. (We used some leftover cooked carrots and they were good.) Use fermented black beans in place of the Thai Mountain sauce)

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Pad Krapow Gai (Thai Basil Chicken)  Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What does pad Krapow Gai mean? ›

Chicken Krapow or Pad Krapow Gai is a Thai minced chicken with Holy basil and a few classic Thai ingredients. In Thai, Pad means “stir-fried”, Krapow means “holy basil” and Gai means “chicken”. So literally, the dish translates to stir-fried basil chicken.

How do you eat pad krapow? ›

Serve: Place a scoop of jasmine rice on a dish, with the pad krapow stir fry alongside it. Top the whole dish with the fried egg. Serve with a bowl of fish sauce and chilis (nam pla prik) to season the egg. Enjoy!

What is pad krapow in English? ›

stir-fried holy basil), also spelled pad krapow, pad kaprao, or pad gaprao, is one of the most popular Thai dishes in Thailand. Known colloquially as "The No-brainer Menu" (Thai: เมนูสิ้นคิด, pronounced [Menū s̄înkhid]), this dish has garnered a reputation for its appetising appearance and flavour.

What does pad krapow taste like? ›

Pad kra pao is a beloved and popular Thai street food, known for its balance of sweet, spicy, salty and tart flavours and is typically served alongside a crispy fried egg.

What does pad mean in Thai? ›

Pad (ผัด) – means fried. There are however, countless Thai dishes with the word Pad in it. The main ingredient in Pad Thai is rice noodles which are stir-fried. So, if you were to roughly translate Pad Thai, you'd have to say the dish is stir-fried noodles Thai style.

Does pad Krapow come with rice? ›

This combination of herbs and spices, sauces, aromatics, meat, and veggies are stir-fried on a wok before being served with rice.

How healthy is pad thai? ›

While pad thai includes many nutritious ingredients, its sodium content is considerably high. You can reduce its sodium by requesting the eatery go easy on the sauce and salt-contributing condiments. If you make your own, though, you can manage the amount of ingredients and seasonings used.

How healthy is Thai food? ›

Traditional Thai cuisine is quite healthy and largely based on vegetables, lean proteins, and fresh herbs and spices. Certain Thai dishes are high in refined carbs and may contain deep-fried foods, added sugar, or high amounts of salt.

What is the national dish of Thailand? ›

Pad thai is a national dish of Thailand loved so much worldwide that has made it into the online Oxford Dictionary since 2022, gaining the same international status as the words “sushi” and “pizza.” Under the category Food C2 the website Oxford Learner's Dictionaries defines “pad thai” as “A dish from Thailand made ...

What does krapow mean in Thai? ›

Forget Pad Thai or Shrimp Tom Yum, more people ought to know about Pad Krapow. Translated and known in the Western world as “Stir Fried Holy Basil” and also known by many spellings such as: Pad krapao, pad krapow, or pad kraphrao, this dish is a classic stir fried holy basil dish with your choice of protein.

What is Pad Krapow made of? ›

The more modern rendition of pad kra pao (the one your local Thai restaurant probably makes) contains veggies like green beans and onions; along with a more complex seasoning that might include oyster sauce, soy sauce, and dark soy sauce. This recipe, however, is an old-school, traditional style that is much simpler.

What is basil called in Thai? ›

Thai basil, or horapha (Thai: โหระพา), is widely used throughout Southeast Asia and plays a prominent role in Vietnamese cuisine.

Why does Pad Thai taste so good? ›

There is a scientific reason why Pad Thai is so delicious. It follows a Thai culinary tradition of using all five tastes which are salty, sour, sweet, spicy and bitter. That is why the dish is so tantalizingly tasty!… It hits all five flavor profiles in the mouth!

Why is Pad Thai so delicious? ›

Why is Pad Thai so popular? David Thompson says this dish hits all the flavour notes – sour, sweet, bitter, salty and umami. He says, “A good Pad Thai should be made with prawns and deep-fried shallots and when made well, it is damn delicious.”

What is a substitute for pad krapow basil? ›

Holy basil is used for drunken noodles, but just like pad gaprao, you can also use Italian basil or Thai basil as a substitute.

What does Krapao mean in Thai? ›

Pad" means "fried" and "Kra Pao" is the Thai name of Holy basil, its t... TikTok.

Where did krapow come from? ›

Origin: Thailand

Found all across Thailand, this street-food staple is made with ground beef, krapow (basil in Thai - yep, our name), garlic, chili, and gluten-free sauces. We marinate the dish in its juices before searing and serving it with a fried runny egg on top.

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