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Thai Pan-Fried Basil Chicken
Thai basil, garlic, and fish sauce create the perfect marinade, elevating simple chicken breasts into a delectable dish with bold and savory Thai flavors.
This Thai pan-fried basil chicken is one proof that you can turn chicken breasts into a delicious meal with simple ingredients.
The pan-fried chicken breasts are so juicy and full of flavors thanks to the easy marinating sauce using Thai basil leaves, garlic, and fish sauce.
I usually serve them with steamed jasmine rice, but you can easily add the pan-fried chicken strips to a salad, turn them into a delicious chicken sandwich, or as a topping for pasta or noodles.
Ingredients for Thai pan-fried basil chicken
1. Chicken breast
We will need a pair of skinless, boneless chicken breasts. I usually butterfly the chicken breast so they are thinner and will cook quicker.
2. Thai basil
You can get fresh Thai basil/lemon basil (Indonesian: daun kemangi) in an Asian market in the produce section. Since these leaves don’t stay fresh for long, be sure to use them within 2-3 days of buying.
3. Other ingredients
The remaining ingredients for this dish are easy to find. We will need garlic, coconut palm sugar, salt, white pepper, olive oil, and fish sauce.
Step 1: Marinate the chicken
First, prepare the marinade by grinding Thai basil, garlic, palm sugar, salt, and white pepper in a food processor. Add fish sauce and olive oil, then pulse to emulsify.
Rub the marinating sauce to the chicken breasts, and set aside to marinate in the fridge for at least 2 hours, preferably overnight.
Step 2: Pan-fry marinated chicken
Please remove the chicken breasts from the fridge and let them return to room temperature before frying, usually about 30 minutes.
Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a frying pan/skillet over medium-high heat. Fry the chicken breasts until golden brown, about 2-3 minutes each side.
Set aside the chicken to rest for 10 minutes, covered with a piece of aluminum foil.
Cut the chicken into thin strips, transfer to a serving plate, garnish with fresh Thai basil. Serve immediately.
Thai Pan-Fried Basil Chicken
Ingredients
- a pair (~ 500 gram/1 lb) skinless boneless chicken breast, butterfly for even thickness
- Marinating sauce
- 1/2 cup Thai/lemon basil leaves
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1 teaspoon coconut palm sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper
- 1 1/2 tablespoon fish sauce
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
Instructions
- Marinating sauce: First, prepare the marinade by grinding Thai basil, garlic, palm sugar, salt, and white pepper in a food processor. Add fish sauce and olive oil, then pulse to emulsify.
- Marinate chicken: Rub chicken breasts with the marinade, and set aside to marinate in the fridge for at least 2 hours, preferably overnight.
- Room temperature: Please remove the chicken breasts from the fridge and let them return to room temperature before frying, usually about 30 minutes.
- Fry: Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a frying pan/skillet over medium-high heat. Fry the chicken breasts until golden brown, about 2-3 minutes each side.
- Rest: Set aside the chicken to rest for 10 minutes, covered with a piece of aluminum foil.
- Serve: Cut the chicken into thin strips, transfer to a serving plate, garnish with fresh Thai basil. Serve immediately.
Comments
So simple and so perfect, I really feel like eating chicken now. :)
hi I would love to try this out. just wondering if I used sweet basil instead of lemon basil, would the recipe still work?
Hi Amy, sweet (Italian) basil has a different flavor compared to lemon (Thai) basil and I don't think it will make for a good substitute. Personally, I would prefer to use fresh cilantro if available, though it will end up with a different dish :)
Tasty and simple. I used regular (Italian) basil with good results. I don't know how lemon basil would have improved this dish aside from making it more authentic, but I think the other ingredients more than made up for any difference. When I can get some lemon basil, I will definitely try it. One big change: I used harder to overcook bone-in thighs and fried them at a slightly lower temperature for about 9 minutes per side for a deep golden brown and juicy result.
I absolutely love how easy this recipe is. So perfect for weeknight meals. This will be on my weekly rotation for sure. Thank you so much for the recipe :)
Recipe is amazing and pictures are clicked beautifully.
Looks delicious. We grow a lot of Thai basil in our garden so this is easy for us!
This looks so fresh and tasty, can't wait to try it!
Such a simple supper but really lovely flavours, thanks so much for a great recipe!
These are simple and fast to prepare and everyone enjoyed them!
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