Savoury, sweet, salty and spicy! Thai food is all about FRAGRANT, BIG FLAVOURS and this Thai basil fried rice is exactly that! Typically served with a cheek or two of lime to help brighten and elevate the dish up, adding a subtle mouthwatering tang.
If you love the sound of this and love a good, super flavour fried rice, also check out my fragrant and easy Chinese Sausage Fried Rice! I'm confident you'll love both.
Done in under 20 minutes, this Thai basil fried rice is the perfect weeknight quick and easy dinner!
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Ingredients
- Basil if you have access to it, try using Thai basil or holy basil to be as authentic as possible. I just used the commonly found Mediterranean (sweet) basil which also works perfectly fine.
- Oyster sauce is a fantastic Chinese condiment that makes a dish from yum to omg what is this deliciousness!? To understand a bit about what it is made of and other ways of using oyster sauce, head on over to my umami packed Chinese Broccoli (gai lan) recipe where I discuss in more detail.
- Fish sauce is a staple condiment in South East Asian dishes. It has a sharp, funky smell and when you taste it, it's salty, savoury and fishy. Because it's really strong in flavour, a little goes a long way. Don't be put off by the smell at first, it's DELICIOUS when balanced perfectly.
- Day-old rice/leftover rice is crucial when making any fried rice. This is because rice hardens overnight which makes them much easier to stir fry and the firmness provides great texture.
- Asian greens has been put down as optional. Typically, you'll find a few bits of green leaves in fried rices in Thailand or at Thai restaurants. This adds a pop of colour and freshness to the dish. Since we're using a handful of basil leaves in this Thai basil fried rice, you can skip it if you want.
- Chicken mince can substitute with pork mince or thin slices of pork.
- Raw prawns/shrimp a fancy addition to pimp a fried rice up! Buy frozen ready peeled ones or buy fresh and peel at home. For instructions on how to peel and devein prawns at home, head to my Easy Garlic Prawn Pasta recipe.
Step by step instructions
To begin, you want to saute the aromatics on medium heat, until fragrant and onions translucent. The pan I used here is a little smaller than I'd like but it's the only truly non-stick pan I've got. Work with what you've got! If you've got a wok, perfect. If not, a pan like mine will work too.
A very useful technique in stir-frying is pushing ingredients to the sides/rims of the pan to make room for new ingredients to be added. This will ensure new ingredients get direct heat from the pan, allowing browning (colour = flavour!) and caramelisation.
Next, turn the heat up to high and add chicken mince, brown then make room for eggs and prawns (shrimp). At this stage, season with a little salt and pepper (to start layering flavours) and stir fry.
Now make room for the overnight rice and then saute for just under 2 minutes.
This step will allow the rice to get direct heat from the pan, creating flavour before the sauces are added. Lastely, add seasoning, basil and green leaves (if using). Stir fry for about 2 minutes until super fragrant and sauces caramelised.
To serve, sprinkle some finely sliced coriander, a couple of cheeks of lime for that final touch of tang and freshness. If you've got some, a few slices of cucumber too.
Tips for making this perfect every time
- Saute on high heat the whole time is key to ensure maximum flavour and caramelisation of the sauces and rice.
- Have all the ingredients out, within arm's reach before you turn the stove on. When it comes to stir-frying, things happen FAST so you gotta be ready when it's time to add the next ingredient. This will make the whole cooking smooth and fun!
- Make sure to let every single grain of rice get direct heat from the pan. This transforms plain rice into delicious, flavourful fried rice. It's like magic.
- Use the back of the spatula to flatten and break apart the rice clumps when stir-frying. This is not only efficient, it also makes sure the rice maintain its shape and stay whole. DO NOT stab the rice vertically (like you would when breaking mince apart - like how I demonstrated in this family favourite comfort food classic Lasagna).
- Let the eggs cook undisturbed for about 40 seconds before stirring. This will allow the eggs to roughly hold shape for the distinct egg white and yolk separation you get at Thai restaurants.
Good to know (FAQs)
To make rice specifically for fried rice, use less water to make the rice and allow it to cool down before making the fried rice. The ratio for making jasmine rice is 1 cup rice to 1.5 cups of water. To make rice for fried rice on the day, use a 1:1.25 ratio. This will result in firmer rice and thus easier to stir-fry.
Once the rice is cooked (using the method above), allow the rice to sit in the pot without lifting the lid for 10 minutes. Then fluff the rice with a fork or a rice spoon to let the steam out and allow it to cool completely, lid off. To speed up the cooling process, scoop the rice out onto a large plate in a thin layer (about 2.5cm/1inch).
More easy and delicious Asian stir-fries
Made this recipe? Let me know your thoughts or questions by dropping a note in the comments section below! I'd love to hear from you 🙂
Happy eating! - Gen
📖 Recipe
Thai Basil Fried Rice
Ingredients
- 2 cups leftover rice (cold) day old is best
- ¼ cup chicken mince about 40g/1.5oz
- 8 raw prawns/shrimp peeled, deveined
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup fresh basil leaves about 1 handful
- ¼ cup Asian greens (leaves only) eg. gai lan (Chinese broccoli) (note 1)
- 2 tbsp neutral tasting oil eg. sunflower or canola
- ¼ tsp white pepper black is okay too
- ¼ tsp salt
Aromatics
- ½ brown onion finely diced
- 1 clove garlic minced
- 1 red chilli finely diced
Fried rice seasoning
- 1 tbsp oyster sauce
- ½ tbsp fish sauce
- 1 tsp dark soy sauce
- ½ tsp brown sugar
Instructions
- In a large non-stick frying pan (or wok) add 1 tbsp of oil and cook the aromatics on medium heat. About 2 minutes or until soft and fragrant.
- With a spatula, push the ingredients to the edges of the pan to make way for chicken mince. Saute chicken on high heat for about 1 minute or until brown on the outside but not cooked through.
- Push the chicken mixture to the edges of the pan. Add remaining 1 tbsp of oil then crack 2 eggs into the middle of the pan. Add prawns/shrimp, salt and pepper. Let the eggs cook for about 40 seconds on high heat before stir-frying everything in the pan. (note 2)
- Again, push everything to the edges of the pan to make way for rice. Add rice to the middle of the pan, stir fry on high heat for about 1.5 minutes. (note 3)
- Add fried rice seasoning and a bit more white pepper (if desired). Stir fry for a further minute.
- Add Asian green leaves, stir fry for 30 seconds then add basil leaves. Stir fry for 2 minutes.
- Serve with a wedge of lime, cucumber slices and finely chopped coriander.
Notes
- Have all the ingredients out, within arm's reach before you turn the stove on. When it comes to stir-frying, things happen FAST so you gotta be ready when it's time to add the next ingredient.
- Make sure to let every single grain of rice get direct heat from the pan. This transforms plain rice into delicious, flavourful fried rice. It's like magic.
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