When I lived in the states there was this killer Thai food restaurant I would eat at a couple times a week. It was close to where I worked, the prices were great, and the food was fantastic. The restaurant was a mix of Asian cuisines but my favorites dishes were always the Thai ones. The restaurant is also where I first tried Thai basil chicken, and I loved it.

Since moving away I’ve tried to recreate that spicy dish I loved to eat. Though my recreation always tasted great I unfortunately was never successful in recreating it exactly, so I stopped trying and somehow forgot about it. Fortunately I always wrote done the different ingredients I combined with my failed attempts. Recently, and before our move, I decided to give the dish one more try just so that I could share it with you.

As you can see this doesn’t look like the Thai basil chicken served at many restaurants, hence why I named my recipe differently. But just because it doesn’t look like the traditional dish that doesn’t mean it doesn’t taste fantastic — it really does! The main difference in my recipe is that the chicken isn’t minced. Another difference, and to make the dish spicier, is that I add red curry paste and of course this compliments the strong basil flavours perfectly. Additionally I like to add carrot, and it is usually shredded so I can cut down the cooking time; the carrot also adds a lovely color to the dish. Sometimes I serve this dish with steamed Jasmine rice and other times with rice noodles, it really depends on what I have in the house.

Okay, let’s get cooking!

5.0 from 4 reviews

Curried Spicy Chicken and Basil

 

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Prep time

10 mins

Cook time

30 mins

Total time

40 mins

 

My take on a classic Thai dish gets a spicy makeover!

Author: SpicieFoodie.com & Nancy Lopez-McHugh

Recipe type: Chicken, Curry, Gluten Free

Cuisine: Fusion, Thai, Asian

Serves: 2-3

Ingredients

• 2-3 skinless and boneless chicken breast cut into bite size pieces (I used 350 grams)
• 4 carrots, shredded
• 4 green onion, rinsed and cut into 6- 8 sections
• 4 cm or 1.58 inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and finely chopped
• 3 peeled garlic cloves, minced
• 1 heaping tbsp red curry paste (adjust to taste or make your own)
• 1 tbsp water
• 2 tbsp fish sauce
• 4 sprigs of fresh basil leaves, or as much as you like
• 1 tbsp coconut or olive or any vegetable oil of choice
• 1 small pack of rice sticks or rice vermicelli noodles

Instructions

1. Heat the oil and once hot cook the chicken pieces until cook through. While the chicken is cooking boil the noodles according to the package instructions, usually it will require soaking the noodles in boiling water for 8-10 minutes. Drain and set the noodles aside.
2. Add the minced garlic and ginger to the chicken and fry for another 2 minutes. Add the curry paste and 1 tbsp of water and mix throughly, cook for another 5 minutes.Then add the carrots and fry for a few minutes or until the carrots are soft. Add the chopped onions and fry for 3 minutes, then add the fish sauce and half the basil leaves and cook for another 5 minutes.
3. You can either serve the chicken mixture over the noodles or add the cooked noodles to the pan and stir thoroughly until the noodles are well coated and mixed with the rest of the ingredients. Right before serving toss in the remaining basil leaves and serve.

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3.2.2124

The result is a spicy chicken dish with pungent basil bursts, and tones of slight sweetness added by both the carrots and onion. It may not be that dish I used to eat or even the traditional Thai recipe, but it is a scrumptious dish that satisfies every time.

I hope you give the recipe a try and see how yummy it is…If not below are more recipes using curry that you can try out. Enjoy!!

- Peppered Lemon Chicken Bites and Curried Brussels Sprouts by MJ of MJ’s Kitchen
- Curried Oyster Mushrooms with Snap Peas
- Kofta Curry – Meatballs in Tomato Gravy by Ash of Food Fashion Party
- Curry Spiced Potato and Pumpkin Empanadas
- Kev’s Amazing Grace Curry by Lorraine of Not Quite Nigella
- Indian Chickpeas with Tomatoes and Dill by Kate of Girl Cooks World

in Asian,Chicken,Curry,Gluten Free