Thai Basil Chicken – Make this better-than-takeout recipe in the comfort of your own home in less than 20 minutes. This insanely flavorful, healthier, and lighter option to the traditional restaurant version is a guaranteed hit with the family.
I love Thai restaurants and can eat basil chicken any day of the week. But making it at home is especially perfect for a stress-free weeknight dinner. It’s a flavorful and healthy improvement to the standard fast-food fix. Besides, garlic, Thai basil, and chili pepper make everything better!
Before my blogging days, I used to use these flavors in my cooking as often as possible. Now, not so much—I have to diversify, right? But the unique flavor of Thai basil with that anise-like quality keeps calling me back.
Is Thai Basil Chicken Spicy?
In general, Thai food is pretty spicy. While this Thai basil chicken recipe has quite a kick, it’s definitely on the milder side. Instead of using the super-hot red chili pepper, I add sriracha sauce and pepper flakes so my sous chef can enjoy it, too! However, feel free to add more chili sauce or spicy red chilis if you are a heat seeker.
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Oil – Vegetable oil works because of its high smoke point. You could also use other neutral-tasting oils, such as canola or peanut.
- Seasonings – Onion and garlic provide the perfect flavor base. Sriracha sauce and red pepper flakes add layers of flavor and just the right amount of heat without being overpowering.
- Chicken – My preference is skinless, boneless chicken breasts for convenience. But you could also use chicken thighs or ground chicken.
- Sauce – Fish sauce, soy sauce, and sugar combine to give this dish its signature hot, sweet, savory, and umami flavors.
- Thai Basil leaves provide a fresh, peppery flavor with just a hint of licorice. However, you can substitute sweet basil or Italian basil if you can’t find them at your local grocery store. And the dish will turn out spectacular.
How to Make Thai Basil Chicken
- Rice – If you’re serving this dish with rice, start cooking the rice before you cook the chicken.
- Seasonings – Heat oil in a wok or saucepan, swirl to coat the pan, and add onions, garlic, sriracha sauce, and pepper flakes—sauté until fragrant, 2-3 minutes. Be careful not to let it burn.
- Chicken – Add chicken and cook until it’s no longer pink and is slightly browned (7-10 minutes). You can add a little water, if desired, to prevent burning.
- Sauce – Add the brown sugar, fish sauce, and soy sauce. Continue simmering until the sauce thickens and the chicken cooks through.
- Basil – Finally, stir in the basil leaves. Turn the heat off once the leaves wilt.
- Serve – Dish it up on a serving platter and serve with steamed rice for an authentic Thai dish.
Variation Ideas
- Protein swap. Replace the chicken with your favorite protein, such as turkey, shrimp, pork, or tofu.
- Veggie add-ins. Add chopped red bell pepper, fresh mushrooms, snow peas, broccoli, or baby corn for extra nutrients and color.
- Go nuts! Add toasted cashews to the dish or garnish it with a sprinkle of roasted peanuts for a delightful crunch.
- Fried rice. A great leftover makeover is Thai basil chicken fried rice. Chop everything up, melt some butter in a skillet, add leftover rice and chicken, add a little soy sauce, and heat through.
- Pad krapow. This similar dish uses Thai holy basil instead of the regular basil. Black soy sauce, yard-long beans, and ground meat or chicken deliver close to an authentic recipe.
Tips and Tricks
- For an extra special touch, lightly fry the basil until crispy and use as garnish.
- This recipe comes together quickly, so have everything ready before you start.
- High heat is key to a flavorful stir fry. Make sure the oil is ripping hot when you start.
Make-Ahead Instructions
Thai basil chicken cooks up in a flash once all the prep work is done. That said, you can do most of the prep work a day in advance. Chop the chicken, onion, and garlic and refrigerate them in separate containers.
If you’re adding veggies to the dish, you can also clean and chop them the day before and store them in the fridge. Allow the meat to come to room temperature, and then cook as directed.
Serving and Storage Instructions
Thai basil chicken is absolutely mouthwatering over a bed of fluffy rice. Garnish it with chopped peanuts or fresh diced mango for a special touch.
Leftovers are easy to store and taste just as amazing the next day. Transfer them to an airtight container and keep them in the fridge for up to 5 days. This dish also keeps well for 3 months in the freezer. Place the container in the refrigerator to defrost before reheating.
To reheat, place the leftovers in a skillet over medium-high heat for approximately 5 minutes. Or you can heat individual portions in the microwave for 2-3 minutes.
Perfect Sides for Thai Basil Chicken
You can’t go wrong serving Thai basil chicken over a plate of aromatic jasmine or basmati rice. A fresh, colorful pineapple cucumber salad perfectly complements the savory chicken.
Wine Pairing: Spicy dishes go best with sweeter wines. An off-dry Reisling or Gewûrztraminer is the perfect match, but a slightly sweet Pinot Gris is also delicious.
More Quick, Easy, and Delicious Chicken Recipes to Try
Watch How to Make It
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This blog post was originally published in January 2015 and has been updated with additional tips, new photos, and a video
Thai Basil Chicken
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Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons (30ml) vegetable oil
- 1 teaspoon (6-7g) sriracha sauce
- 1 teaspoon (1g) crushed red pepper
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, sliced (about 3 tablespoons)
- 1 pound (450g) skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces
- 2 teaspoon (10g) brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon (15ml) or more fish sauce (adjust to taste)
- 1 tablespoon (15ml) soy sauce
- ¾ cup (15g) fresh basil leaves (10 or more leaves)
Instructions
- If serving this dish with rice, start cooking the rice before you cook the chicken.
- Heat oil in a wok or saucepan, swirl to coat the pan, and add onions, garlic, sriracha sauce, and pepper flakes—sauté until fragrant, 2-3 minutes. Be careful not to let it burn.
- Add chicken and cook until it's no longer pink and is slightly browned (7-10 minutes). You can add a little water, if desired, to prevent burning.
- Add the brown sugar, fish sauce, and soy sauce. Continue simmering until the sauce thickens and the chicken cooks through.
- Finally, stir in the basil leaves. Turn the heat off once the leaves wilt.
- Serve it on a serving platter with steamed rice for an authentic Thai dish.
Tips & Notes:
- Thai basil chicken is pretty spicy. While this one has quite a kick, it’s definitely on the mild side. Instead of using super hot red chili peppers, I sub with sriracha sauce and pepper flakes.
- If you are a heat seeker, definitely add more chili sauce or use the spicy red chili.
- For an extra special touch, lightly fry the basil until crispy and use as garnish.
- This recipe comes together quickly, so have everything ready before you start.
- High heat is key to a flavorful stir fry. Make sure the oil is ripping hot when you start.
- Pad krapow. This similar dish uses Thai holy basil instead of regular basil. Black soy sauce, yard-long beans, and ground meat or chicken deliver close to an authentic recipe.
- Please remember that the nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary significantly based on the products used in the recipe.
Lena says
I added a little water for more sauce and to cut the salt but otherwise a fabulous dish!
imma africanbites says
Thank you for sharing those tips, Lena!
lori says
i want to make this tonight but I would love it to have more sauce on it? what should I do
imma africanbites says
Hi, Lori. If you want more sauce in this recipe, I’d say you 4x the soy and fish sauce mixture and taste according to preference.
Veronica says
I cooked this with thighs and it was amazing! You are the real deal with these brilliant recipes. When I was cooking this my boyfriend complained about the fishy smell but once he started eating it he could not shut up on how amazingly tasty it was. Thank you! Also I cooked an egg in the chicken grease like they do at the thai restaurants and it was a huge hit !
ImmaculateBites says
That’s good to hear. I am So Thrilled!! Thanks for taking time out to share your thoughts
Ama says
I made this today and just finished eating it. Delicious! I doubled the recipe. I wish I could’ve marinated over night, so the chicken could absorb more of the sauce. Any recommendations? Maybe I should cut the chicken into smaller pieces? I know breast tends to be a bit dry. Nevertheless, excellent receipe! Oh, I also threw some jalapeño in!
imma africanbites says
Love the addition of jalapeño, Ama. I might have to try it next time with it. I’d probably cut the chicken into bite-sized pieces and would double or 4x the sauce as noted by others above. Thanks for trying it out.
Jessica says
Thank you for the recipe!!! This was super yummy! My 20 month old seem to really really enjoy eating it! (we had the non spicy version where I removed the sriracha and red chili flakes… but i added ginger) . I also substituted lightly sauteed zucchini and carrot noodles instead of rice, delicious!
THANK YOU FOR SHARING!
imma africanbites says
I love your own take on this recipe, Jessica. Way to go! And thank you for stopping by!
Bernadette says
zucchini and carrot noodles–what a great idea! Thanks for sharing.
Leslie says
I found your Thai Basil Chicken recipe and discovered your blog through Yummly. I made the chicken last night, and it came out perfect the first time! So delish!! I served the chicken over cauliflower rice, but could also have served over a bed of greens as well, for a tasty salad. I can’t wait to see what other delicious recipes you have on your blog!
ImmaculateBites says
Awesome! Thanks for taking the time to let me know .
Debbie L. says
Delicious!!! Totally satisfied my favorite takeout dish craving. We have been trying to cut back on carbs so instead of rice I quickly sautéed lightly salted zucchini noodles in a bit of sesame oil and olive oil. Tasted great!
ImmaculateBites says
I’m so pleased to hear that Debbie! Thanks for sharing your feedback!
Kay says
Great recipe! Had it with brown rice today, absolutely delicious!
Made it with a few modifications: added shrimps, bell peppers and spring onions for more veggies, and oyster sauce after scouting other recipes.
Wow, really good, quick and tasty.
My only mistake was I somehow bought shrimp with shell on (which I haven’t done in years), and had to spend time peeling and deveining, while debating if I should just stick with chicken 🙂 Was well worth the effort though! 🙂
Thanks for the recipe … will try with beef next time — no shell-on 🙂
Susan says
This was delicious. My husband got thai basil at the farmer’s market, so I was looking for a dish which required it. My youngest doesn’t like spicy things, so the rest of us put the crushed red pepper and Sriracha on as condiments after the dish was cooked. Instead of rice, I like it with rice noodles. I soaked them for 9 minutes, drained and threw them in with the cooked mixture and stir fried for a few minutes. I made 4x the sauce so that I would have enough to coat the noodles. Perfection.
ImmaculateBites says
Fantastic! Thanks for providing feedback and tips with us Susan.
Valerie says
Thanks for the great recipe. It would be helpful if you added cooking times, to better guage when to cook sides,, that would be helpful. I didn’t put any siracha and cut the crushed red peppers in half and it was perfect, spice wise, for my husband and I, but still a little spicy for our 3 year old. I can’t imagine how spicy the original is! I used a leek instead of the onion because I can’t digest them, and it was perfect. Lastly, I added the fried basil to the top, but I didn’t find it added much to the dish, I would omit that step in the future. Thank you so much.
ImmaculateBites says
Am on it ! Thanks for taking the time to provide feedback.
Liz says
Thai Basil is my favorite dish!! Made this for dinner and instead of rice put it over zucchini noodles, literally amazing and super easy!! Thanks so much for sharing!!!
ImmaculateBites says
My pleasure ! So happy to hear it worked out for you.
Isabel Eats says
I made this for dinner tonight and it’s SOO GOOD! Lovely recipe 🙂
ImmaculateBites says
Fantastic! Glad you liked it .
Soniya says
I just made this and this turned out way better than take out. I pretty much followed the recipe exact, except I added some red bell peppers for some veggie content. Will be making this again and again. Great recipe!!
ImmaculateBites says
AWESOME! Thanks for the feedback!
Kris says
I made this last night for the first time – was really good. I ended up doctoring the sauce a bit as I used a bit too much fish sauce at the beginning but the end result was fantastic! I would like mine with a bit more sauce but the flavors were great and this was pretty easy. Thanks so much for sharing. This one is headed right to my recipe box.
ImmaculateBites says
Awesome! Thanks for giving this a try kris.So glad that you took the time to provide feedback. Will definitely make a note on the recipe for those that want extra sauce.
Melanie says
Just cooked it for Father’s Day for my Jamaican-American Family….I hope they like it. It tastes awesome to me! I made two batches – one with more kick and one for the small ones….and I have fresh thai basil – growing in our backyard to add…..so good. THANKS! We are going to try all your recipes! Thanks. We cook. It is what we do!!!
ImmaculateBites says
Thanks for the feedback Melanie- Am I glad you are going to try out my recipes, so looking forward to see which ones you try out.