Thinking chicken for tonight’s dinner? This Thai basil chicken recipe is quick to make: In less than 30 minutes, you’ll have a satisfying plate of chicken stir-fry filled with a delicious aroma from the Thai basil leaves. Serve over hot white rice for a fulfilling meal.
Is Thai Basil Chicken Healthy?
Yes, our recipe is a healthy option.
With less than 500 calories in one serving, you will have a dish packed with protein and rich in vitamins.
Specifically, one serving contains a hearty amount of 28 g of protein, thanks to the chicken. Meanwhile, the Thai basil leaves and red bell peppers give our dish a boost of vitamins A and C.
Important nutritional values are also kept within the limits set by the 2020 – 2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans. For this recipe, there is less than 600 mg sodium and around 2 g saturated fats for each serving.
Ingredients You'll Need
Our recipe calls for:
- Chicken: We use skinless boneless chicken thighs for this stir-fry recipe.
- Canola oil: We use canola oil for stir-frying.
- Garlic: We saute minced garlic before adding the chicken for a kick of flavor.
- An 8-ingredient sauce: We combine water, lime juice, brown sugar, cornstarch, sriracha, oyster sauce, soy sauce, and fish sauce into a luscious savory sauce and stir-fry it along with the chicken and other veggies.
- Thai basil: These Thai basil leaves have a wonderful aroma that goes perfectly well with chicken stir-fry.
- Vegetables: We add onions and red bell peppers to our dish for extra taste and texture.
- Cooked rice: We serve this Thai basil chicken with hot white rice for a well-rounded eating experience.
How to Store and Reheat the Leftovers
You can store the leftover this dish in an airtight container in the fridge. It should stay good for around 2 days.
For reheating, you can microwave the dish at high heat for 1 minute or give it a quick stir fry in a skillet over medium heat for about 3-4 minutes.
What to Serve With
Here are some recommended sides to serve with our this recipe:
- Thai Beef Salad Recipe
- Healthy Thai Mango Salad Recipe
- Winter Melon Meatball Soup Recipe
- Cabbage Potato Soup Recipe
- Stracciatella Soup Recipe
Treat Yourself Sometimes With These Chicken Recipes
These crispy treats are bite-sized chicken thighs coated in mochiko rice flour and deep-fried. It’s like your regular chicken nuggets, but with a slightly chewy texture thanks to the flour. Every bite is also bursting with flavors, a delicious snack or dinner over rice.
With this recipe, you can have your meat all juicy and sticky in just 30 minutes. It's the simplest recipe for the sweet and savory Japanese sauce that goes with everything. It was a success on the first try, so it's a shame I didn't get to try it again.
How to Make Thai Basil Chicken
This Thai basil chicken recipe makes a quick and delicious weeknight meal, with juicy flavorful chicken stir-fried in fragrant Thai basil for an irresistible taste experience. Another plus is that it's quick and easy to put together.
- by Tuyet Pham, Luna Regina, 2022-11-11
- cook TIME 17 mins
- prep TIME 15 mins
- total TIME 28 mins
- COURSE Main Course
- CUISINE American, Asian
- SERVINGS servings
- CALORIES 459 kcal
INGREDIENTS
- 16 oz skinless boneless chicken thigh (sliced)
- 1 oz Thai basil leaves (picked)
- 1 fl oz water
- 1 tbsp lime juice
- 2 tsp brown sugar
- 4 oz onion (cut into wedges)
- 0.5 oz coriander (chopped)
- 3 1/2 cups cooked medium-grain rice (from 1 3/4 cups uncooked rice)
- 1 tbsp garlic (minced)
- 4 oz red bell pepper (sliced into strips)
- 2 tsp cornstarch
- 0.5 oz bird's eye chili
- 1 tsp Sriracha
- 1 tbsp oyster sauce
- 2 tsp reduced-sodium soy sauce
- 1 tsp Thai fish sauce
- 2 tbsp canola oil
INSTRUCTIONS
Prep:
Prep the chicken: Cut the chicken breasts lengthwise into slices of 0.5-inch width.
Cook the rice: Rinse the rice with clean water. Gently massage to remove any debris or excess starch. Change the water a few times until it becomes clear, then drain it out. After that, cook the rice using a rice cooker or an instant pot.
Slice the pepper: Cut away the top and bottom of the bell pepper, and slice it open. Hold the knife horizontal to the cutting board and carefully slice away the white part as well as the seeds. Cut the rectangular piece of pepper into strips.
Cut the onion into wedges: Half the onion lengthwise and slice off the root and head. Lay one half flat, then make a vertical cut right through the center to have two large wedges. Flip the large wedges and cut them into four small wedges.
Peel and mince the garlic: Cut to remove the root part of each garlic clove and mash them down with a knife to remove the peel with ease. Mince the peeled cloves.
Separate the romaine lettuce into individual leaves.
Pick the basil leaves and wash clean.
Roughly chop the coriander.
Cook:
Make the sauce: In a small bowl, add 1 fl oz water, 1 tbsp lime juice, 2 tsp brown sugar, 2 tsp cornstarch, 1 tsp Sriracha, 1 tbsp oyster sauce, 2 tsp reduced-sodium soy sauce, and 1 tsp Thai fish sauce. Mix to combine.
Saute the garlic: In a skillet over medium heat, add 2 tbsp canola oil and 1 tbsp garlic and stir for 30 seconds.
Add the chicken: Add 16 oz chicken thigh and stir-fry for 5 minutes.
Add the onion and red bell pepper: Add 4 oz onion and 4 oz red bell pepper. Stir for 2 minutes.
Add the sauce: Add the sauce and stir well for 1 minute.
Add the Thai basil: Add 1 oz Thai basil and stir for 1 minute. Remove from heat when done.
Garnish and serve: Sprinkle 0.5 oz bird's eye chili and 0.5 oz coriander on top and serve with hot white rice.
NUTRITION
Tuyet Pham
Head Chef, Culinary ConsultantLuna Regina
Writer, AuthorEmily Rogers, MPH, RDN
Nutrition Reviewer- analyticalblondeTasty Thai basil chicken recipe with a kick.